Prices ‘more important than ever’ in AR8

The price of CfDs in the upcoming AR8 auction will be more important than in any other round, according to energy minister Michael Shanks.

He told the Global Offshore Wind 2026 conference in Manchester “price will be the absolute central factor” in deciding the outcome of the upcoming CfD auction round.

“As we look forward to AR8 opening, we need to recognise that although securing offshore wind will be critical to our future energy goals, it cannot and it will not be at any price,” he said.

Shanks said there “should be no assumption that the increase in budget that we managed to secure for AR7 will be replicated in AR8” and that the political environment has become more difficult.

“We will continue to make the absolute case for how important this sector is. But we can’t be the only ones doing that,” he stressed.

“And so right across government, as the political framing will become even more difficult as we move towards another general election, we need industry to be right behind us in that fight as well,” he said.