The UK government has unveiled the results of Allocation Round 6 (AR6) of the contracts for difference (CfD) renewable auction, with six projects across five sites securing contracts to deliver 28 MW of tidal stream capacity. AR6 is the third consecutive round of the auction with a ringfence for tidal stream technology.

The projects awarded contracts in AR6 include HydroWing, which will deliver 10 MW in Wales, while MeyGen (9 MW), Seastar (4 MW), Magallanes (3 MW), and Ocean Star Tidal (2 MW) will collectively contribute 18 MW in Scotland. The announcement means that Scotland now has 83MW and Wales 38MW of contracted tidal stream capacity.

Floating wind

In addition to tidal stream, floating wind projects grabbed a piece of the subsidy pie. Offshore wind developers Flotation Energy and Vårgrønn’s floating offshore wind project off the Scottish coast, Green Volt, has been successful in winning a UK Government Contract for Difference.

“This award is a clear vote of confidence from the UK Government in our plans to build Europe’s first commercial scale floating offshore wind farm. It is fantastic news for both our project and the wider floating offshore wind sector. Green Volt will stimulate investment in new port infrastructure, helping accelerate the development of more floating windfarms. We look forward to expanding our dialogue with the supply industry.” Stephen Bull CEO of Vårgrønn said.

The Green Volt project will be the largest floating offshore wind project in the world to reach market, which is double the size of Europe’s total installed floating offshore wind capacity.

Fixed wind

As well as the newer and innovative technologies awarded a CfD, nine contracts were awarded for fixed-bottom offshore wind projects. Ørsted received the largest CfD for offshore wind, securing 2.4 GW for the Hornsea 4 offshore wind project.

The offshore wind farms awarded CfDs are the 288 MW Inch Cape and Moray West (for 73.50 MW) in Scotland, the 963.07 MW East Anglia Two and East Anglia Three (for 158.90 MW), the 2,400 MW Hornsea 4 and Hornsea 3 (for 1,080 MW) in England.

“After the failure of last year’s offshore wind auction, it was essential that this auction succeeded and the fact that nine major offshore wind projects have secured contracts will increase investor confidence. There is intense global competition in offshore wind and the next auctions will be crucial for the UK“, said Dan McGrail, RenewableUK’s Chief Executive.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said:   “Today we have now achieved a record-setting round for enough renewable power for 11 million homes, essential to give energy security to families across the country. It is another significant step forward in our mission for clean power by 2030 – bringing Britain energy independence and lower bills for good.”