UK postpones 1st CfD auction for Oct 16

Sep 30, 2014 - The UK government will start the first allocation round under the Contract for Difference (CfD) support scheme for renewables on October 16, instead of October 14 as previously announced.

The delay is needed to ensure enough time between the budget notice for the auction and its start.

In turn, the application period will now run until October 30, three days later than initially announced, the Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) said on Friday. The end of the first round under the programme has been delayed to April 15 from March 31.

The auction will be managed by National Grid (LON:NG) and Low Carbon Contracts Co Ltd.

Under the CfD mechanism renewable energy firms will receive a variable premium over the wholesale electricity price until the total amount reaches pre-defined "strike prices". Individual projects will receive support for as many as 15 years. The new system, which is part of the UK Electricity Market Reform, will replace the renewable obligation for all new renewable projects from April 2017.

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