Government publishes administrative prices for eighth allocation round (AR8), new auction pot structure, and adds an extra delivery year for solar and onshore wind. Load factors remain the same across technologies, but applicants will need a grid connection agreement to proceed.
The price ceilings for the next UK contracts for difference (CfD) auction have been revealed, with solar set at GBP 75 ($100) per MWh – unchanged from the administrative strike price chosen by the government for the previous allocation round.
CfD allocation rounds are the main lever used by the UK government to procure utility-scale renewables capacity, by offering state-backed contracts that provide long-term revenue at a fixed price.
Solar remains the most affordable renewables technology within the UK CfD process, with its GBP 75/MWh administrative strike price below onshore wind at GBP 92/MWh, offshore wind at GBP 113/MWh and floating offshore wind at GBP 271/MWh.
Competition between these technologies could heat up in the eighth CfD allocation round (AR8) as the UK government has opted to separate established technologies in the auction process, potentially giving the government more flexibility in its procurement strategy and greater control over the technology mix.
