The UK has unveiled the Clean Industry Bonus (CIB), a new incentive scheme to bolster offshore wind projects and advance the country’s goal of decarbonising its energy system by 2030.
The scheme is set out in the Contracts for Difference (Allocation) Regulations 2014 and the Electricity Market Reform (General) Regulations 2014.
It will provide an initial £27m ($33.5m) in funding for every gigawatt (GW) of capacity to successful offshore wind project bidders, as reported by Reuters.
The CIB is designed to encourage investment in sustainable supply chains by offering extra Contracts for Difference (CfD) revenue support to fixed and floating offshore wind applicants.
To qualify for the CIB, developers must meet minimum investment standards, which include a commitment of at least £100m per GW for fixed bottom offshore wind farms and £50m per GW for floating offshore wind farms.
Any application that exceeds the minimum investment standards will be considered a CIB extra proposal. The application window for the CIB will close on 14 April 2025.
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The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) will assign a score to submitted CIB extra proposals after the closure of the CIB application window.
Offshore wind is a cornerstone of Britain’s clean energy strategy, with plans to expand current capacity from 15GW to between 43GW to 50GW by 2030.
In 2024, the UK’s grid operator acknowledged the government’s target to source 95% of power from clean energy as a significant but attainable challenge.
Britain anticipates conducting additional renewable auctions in 2025, in which developers will compete for government-backed price guarantees on the electricity they generate.
The new funding will be allocated through the contracts awarded in these auctions.
