No offshore wind projects entered Britain's auction

No new contracts for offshore wind farm projects were awarded in a key government auction today. Companies involved in developing wind farms said they had decided not to bid because the price offered by the government did not reflect rising costs in the sector. The auction result has dealt a serious blow to Britain's strategy for building up renewable energy sources, the BBC reported.

The auction result could also jeopardise Britain's target of net zero emissions by 2050. To meet the target, the country needs to increase offshore wind capacity to 50 gigawatts (GW) by 2030, from around 14 GW currently.

In last year's auction, offshore wind projects with a capacity of seven GW were the main recipients of funding. But companies submitted no bids in the latest auction.

Costs in the offshore wind sector have risen sharply. This has prompted companies in the sector around the world to abandon projects or seek to reassess them. Last week, leading investor Orsted announced large write-downs on its US projects.