New boost for the tidal industry with 28 MW allocated in the latest UK renewable auctions
04.09.2024
The UK government announced the award of 6 new tidal projects under its Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme. The Allocation Round 6 (AR6) is the third consecutive round including a ring-fenced budget for tidal stream energy. This confirms once again the growing momentum for tidal energy in the UK. This additional £15m investment from the government is set to provide much-needed long-term certainty and further boost private investment.
In Scotland, projects led by OEE members SEA Renewables, Nova Innovation, and Magallanes will deliver 18 MW of new capacity. In Wales, HydroWing will bring another 10 MW.
AR6 adds 28 MW of tidal projects on top of the already contracted 93 MW from the previous two rounds, bringing the pipeline of tidal farms to be deployed by 2029 in the UK to 121 MW. This marks a key milestone on the road to industrialisation for the sector. This clearly demonstrates that national revenue support systems are highly efficient in unlocking ocean energy pre-commercial farm scale projects.
As the new legislative term is about to start, this also serves as a timely reminder for the EU that market visibility and funding support are instrumental in driving ocean energy’s industrialisation. Europe’s competitiveness in clean technology depends on the development of innovative technologies like ocean energy, which can produce power at different times than established renewables. Recent public investments and policies from the US and China make it clear that global competition for ocean energy is intensifying.
The new Commission has an opportunity to build on the ongoing momentum to secure Europe’s leadership once it for all. Ongoing EU funding support and access to de-risking instruments will be key drivers to leverage further private investments and enable the industry to move to the next stage.
Rémi Gruet, Ocean Energy Europe’s CEO, said: “The UK’s success with tidal CfDs shows that governments can swiftly deliver multi MWs ocean energy farm scale projects with earmarked revenue support. This should light the way for other European countries with wave and tidal resources to follow suit to unlock the full potential of ocean energy. Such measures brought wind and solar to the market and will be equally crucial for ocean energy.“
The EU must also step up to deliver its ocean energy targets. The announced Clean Industrial deal and the Competitiveness Fund are the right opportunities for Europe to bridge the investment gap and accelerate the industrialisation of innovative renewables like ocean energy.