UK awards record 3.3GW solar PV in latest CfD AR6

The UK Department for Net Zero and Energy Security (DESNZ) latest Contracts for Difference (CfD) has awarded 3.3GW of solar PV.

In total, 93 ground-based solar PV projects were awarded CfDs in the sixth auction round (AR6). This auction round beat a record set in AR4, when 66 solar projects, totaling 2.2GW, gained CfDs.

Delivery of the projects will be spaced out between 2026 and 2028, with 884MW of solar PV contracted for 2026, 509MW in 2027 and 1,895MW in 2028.

Solar PV achieved a strike price of £50.07/MWh, higher than both AR4 (which was £45.99/MWh) and AR5 (which was £47.00/MWh, the maximum allowable price for the auction).

AR6 had the highest-ever budget allocated for a funding round, reaching a total of £1.5 billion after the Labour government announced a £500 million increase on 30 July.

“The CfD system is currently working well for solar. We look forward to future allocation rounds and will work with the Government to deliver the capacity necessary to meet its renewable energy targets. Having greater visibility of future budgets for the years to come would help achieve this,” said Gemma Grimes director of policy and delivery at trade association Solar Energy UK.

French renewables developer EDF Renewables’ Longfield Solar Energy Farm, a nationally significant infrastructure project (NSIP) with 400MW generational capacity that secured a development consent order (DCO) in June 2023, won 299MW in AR6. Longfield is the first solar development with a capacity over 50MW to secure a CfD and was the highest capacity for a solar PV project awarded in AR6.

According to Cornwall Insight, solar PV’s CfD success results from a strong pipeline of assets across many Great British regions and its competitive edge over onshore wind. Despite this positive result, combining operational and future CfD contracted capacity, total solar PV capacity in Great Britain is expected to reach at least 23.3GW—well below the 50GW target set in Labour’s Green Prosperity Plan.