The UK Government has set out new plans to allow remote island wind projects to take part in the Contracts for Difference (CfD) auction.
BEIS said wind projects on remote islands – such as Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland – have “great potential” due to the strong winds.
However, they also face higher costs due to their location and transmission requirements, which set them apart from onshore wind projects elsewhere in the UK.
The government believes if a sufficient number of projects are successful, it should facilitate the construction of new transmission links.
It has therefore proposed to enable remote wind projects to apply for a CfD in the next auction planned for spring 2019 for less established renewable technologies, which includes wave, tidal and offshore wind.
More than 750MW of wind projects with planning consent on these islands could be eligible for the next auction.
BEIS previously confirmed £557 million for future auctions in its Clean Growth Strategy.
It has launched a consultation on the proposals, which consists of other changes to enable it to continue supporting new generation of power.
They include proposals to increase the efficiency requirements for combined heat and power (CHP) and advanced conversion technologies (ACT) as technology improves to ensure only “sufficiently advanced and efficient plants” are awarded subsidies.
Changes are also proposed to ensure costs of future projects can be accurately forecast and future schemes continue to drive carbon emission reductions.
The consultation will run until 9th March 2018.
