The UK government has increased the budget for this year’s renewable energy auction by £500 million to £1.56 billion, which it says is a new record.

Around £1.1 billion has been allocated to offshore wind farms, while £185 million has been earmarked for established technologies such as onshore wind and solar.

Around £270 million will go towards emerging technologies such as floating offshore wind and tidal methods.

Under the auction system, energy companies must bid for a share of the funding through government’s sixth renewable auction – known as the Contracts for Difference scheme – which provides developers with initial subsidies for clean electricity projects across Britain.

These subsidies are paid back when wholesale electricity prices are higher than the agreed Contract for Difference price.

The additional budget aims to support the development of green infrastructure and increase the amount of clean and low-carbon energy available in the UK.

The budget for the auction has increased by over 50 per cent compared to the previous one set by the Conservative government in March.

“It is our mission for the UK to be more energy secure and to do that we need more renewable energy projects connected to the grid and powering our homes,” said energy minister Michael Shanks. “Increasing the budget by more than 50 per cent will boost industry confidence to back clean energy, attracting cutting edge clean technologies to Britain as we accelerate to a decarbonised power sector by 2030.”

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