Value chain · CLM-0276
In plain terms
The price the UK government agrees to pay offshore wind farms, per unit of electricity actually generated, dropped sharply from 2015 to 2022, then rose again through 2024 and 2026. In 2023 no offshore wind developer was willing to build at the price on offer, so zero megawatts were awarded that year. These are real, dated contract prices from competitive auctions, not projections, but they are for electricity as generated, not for guaranteed firm delivery.
The claim as recorded
UK offshore wind CfD strike prices fell from GBP 114-120/MWh (2012 prices, AR1, 2015) to a low of GBP 37.35/MWh (AR4, 2022), then rose to GBP 54-59/MWh (AR6, 2024) and GBP 64-65/MWh in 2012 prices, equivalent to GBP 89-91/MWh in 2024 prices (AR7, 2026); AR5 (2023) cleared no offshore wind contracts at all.
Scope and limits
These are UNFIRMED generation prices - the generator is paid only for electricity actually produced, with no obligation or extra payment for dispatchability. They cannot be used as evidence for the cost of firm or baseload power, however low the headline number. The AR5 "zero MW" result reflects an administrative strike price set too low that auction round, not a statement that offshore wind became uneconomic; do not read it as a cost data point.
What it assumes
Subsidised (CfD is a top-up subsidy over the wholesale reference price, not a market price); strike prices quoted in 2012 prices for AR1-AR6, dual-quoted in 2012 and 2024 prices from AR7 onward; contract length per CfD standard terms (not separately verified); delivery years span 2017/18 (AR1) through 2030/31 (AR7).
Where it comes from
AR1 EA1/Neart na Gaoithe 114.39-119.89; AR3 Doggerbank/Sofia/Seagreen 39.65-41.611; AR4 Inch Cape/EA3/Norfolk Boreas/Hornsea 3/Moray West 37.35; AR5 "no offshore wind bids"; AR6 Hornsea 4/EA2 58.87, Inch Cape/EA3B/Hornsea3 (permitted reduction) 54.23; AR7 Awel y Mor/Dogger Bank South/Norfolk Vanguard 65.45 (2012)/91.20 (2024), Berwick Bank (Scotland) 64.23 (2012)/89.49 (2024).
Basis: GBP2012 (AR1-AR6, and dual-quoted alongside GBP2024 in AR7), NOMINAL contract/REAL basis-year convention, UNFIRMED
Related records
- Answers question
- QST-021 not published in this release
Cite this
energyaperture.com/c/clm-0276
CLM-0276, Energy Aperture, as of 2026.
Connected records
Other published records linked to this one. A list, not a judgement.
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- Also from SRC-168
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