On 19 January 2022, a webinar hosted by Cornwall Insight in partnership with the law firm Weightmans focused on routes to market for renewable projects that may not secure a contract during the fourth allocation round of the ‘Contracts for Difference’ (CfD) auction, which opened in December 2021. In the absence of the revenue certainty provided by a contract with a credit-worthy counterparty such as the government, developers have to find alternative business models to mitigate uncertainty, such as utility power purchase agreements (PPAs) and corporate PPAs, accepting various degrees of merchant risk. Our event considered the options available for developers and investors, based on asset type, connection and potential revenue streams. The recording is available here.
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Regulation and policy
Government Announces Record Budget for Contracts for Difference Allocation Round 6
The government has released the budget and reference prices, along with the auction parameters, for the upcoming Contract for Difference (CfD) Allocation Round 6 (AR6). As recently reported, there were considerable questions outstanding about the parameters which will be used in the auction and significant pressure was placed on AR6...
Low carbon generation
Learning curves and the many moving parts of the CfD Auctions
Learning curves are an important part of the toolbox of energy system modelling, representing the benefits of learning by doing and the economies of scale. The learning rate describes how as production doubles capacity cost reduces, so a learning rate of 15% would imply that as production doubles, costs would...
Commercial and market outlook
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Regulation and policy
Calm after the storm although transition begins to lag | 2023 year in review
This year saw a return to relative calmness after the energy shocks of last year, while governments are playing an increasing role as the rate of new renewable generation lags. Spot pricing was subdued compared to last year, with no significant unexpected outages that caused sustained price spikes. Higher levels...
Net zero corporates and ESG
Race to net zero: Rebuilding investor confidence in the UK
In our recent insight paper “Race to net zero: Rebuilding investor confidence in the UK”, published on 30 November, we discuss how increased macroeconomic pressures and rising international competition for capital have impacted the UK’s ability to secure investment in renewables and maintain momentum towards net zero. We also investigate...
Low carbon generation
Understanding the evolution of the Irish electricity markets
The Irish electricity sector has undergone significant change in recent years. The Integrated Single Electricity Market (I-SEM) arrangements introduced in 2018 fundamentally transformed the market framework to maximise competition, facilitate electricity wholesale trading, and incentivise the development of low-carbon generation sources. In parallel the physical system continues to evolve rapidly....
Net zero corporates and ESG
Long-term regulatory and policy changes needed to avoid stalls to business decarbonisation
In light of the financial pressures faced by businesses from rising inflation and interest rates, tight supply chains and labour markets, alongside high energy bills, there is a high chance corporate investment in decarbonisation could be in trouble. In Cornwall Insight's latest Insight paper “Business net zero: Making progress in...
Commercial and market outlook
Winter 2023-24 price cap forecasts fall further below 2022-23 EPG, but long-term prospects remain uncertain
The predictions for the Default Tariff Cap in this piece are out of date, please click here to find our latest forecasts and commentary on the cap. Our latest forecasts for the Default Tariff Cap (price cap) have shown energy bill predictions for a typical household1 have fallen to £3,208...