Changes announced prior to the seventh contract for Difference (CFD) Allocation Round Round Round Breated as the key to achieving the clean energy goals of the government for 2030. Target company window for solar projects that are also extended pending projects for greater capacity.
The British government will increase the duration of the new contract for Difference (CFD) from 15 to 20 years in its seventh allocation round (AR7), expected to open for applications in August 2025.
Changes to the AR7 contract term will apply to successful offshore wind on solar energy, floating offshore wind and onshore wind projects.
The target commissioning window (TCW) for PV projects for solar energy will also be extended to 12 months. According to the current CFD rules, the Solar project developers must record a start date for a three-month TCW in their allocation round. This must overlap with one of the delivery years that are offered during the CFD allocation round.
Change in the TCW has been applied in anticipation of solar projects with greater capacity that will be developed in the future. The British government initially proposed to increase the window for six months. However, industry-interested people argued that a 12-month window should be considered as reducing the risk of commercial and delivery-related problems, restrictions on supply chain, construction and other issues.
The decision to extend the length of the CFD contract period follows a consultation with the industry, whereby a majority of respondents claim that the existing 15-year CFD projects have exposed to a larger market price risk. Industry interested people mentioned a longer lifespan of assets, a significant increase in the use of renewable energy sources and more frequent periods of negative prices as a reason for an extension.
Other announced changes to the CFD include plans to set up a budget and auction parameters to support multiple test and demonstration scale that are driving offshore wind projects, a temporary restriction on CFD capacity that has been surrendered by previous assignment rounds that are introduced in AR7 and contract changes with regard to Saost changes.
Much drives on the success of AR7, since the British government is making ambitious goals for solar and wind for 2030. In 2030, the government committed itself to 95% clean electricity generation for Great Britain, including the expansion of the solar capacity used to at least 45 GW, from almost 19 GW of May 2025, according to provisional government figures.
Aurora Energy Research Head Research for UK and Ireland, Marc Hedin, said earlier PV -Magazine The next CFD auction must break records to achieve British sunshots. “I think there will be a lot of budget in the coming allocation round, especially for solar energy,” he said.
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