Northfield UK Solar, developer of the 50MW RAF Desborough solar farm which received final planning approval earlier this week, has criticised the government over the uncertainty surrounding its Contracts for Difference scheme.
The development at RAF Desborough received planning from Kettering council on Tuesday, but a statement released by Marechale Capital, an investment fund with a 26% stake in the project, indicated some insecurity over the project’s future following energy secretary Amber Rudd’s refusal to give concrete assurances over the future of CfDs.
At an energy and climate change select committee hearing last month, Rudd confirmed that the second CfD allocation round had been postponed indefinitely and said she could not comment on whether or not there would be future rounds as DECC and the Treasury look to resolve a £1.5 billion overspend in the Levy Control Framework.
And Apolka Totth, chief executive officer at Northfield UK Solar, said the government had “significantly impacted investor confidence in the energy sector” with its actions since May, adding her belief that it was now “much more difficult to support growth in jobs and investment”.
“I thought [jobs and investment] was a key Conservative Party platform. Supporting this critical sector and growth engine of the British economy requires a government willing to think long term about the economic and social well-being of both today’s consumers and future generations,” she said.
After the Conservatives followed through on a manifesto promise and blocked onshore wind from competing for CfDs there had been hopes within the solar industry that it would leave the door open for solar to secure more economical contracts than the five projects which were successful in the first round, of which three have been cancelled.
The uncertainty over the future of the process has spread to large utility-scale projects currently in the UK pipeline. While Marechale’s share price soared by more than 400% when rumours circulated that RAF Desborough was to be granted planning permission, it dropped back towards its original position following the company’s statement and currently stands at 3.2 pence, down 70% on its price at the end of last week.
However Totth said that the company remained optimistic about the future of the RAF Desborough project, adding that she “remained hopeful” that the government would “maintain its commitment to low-cost, responsibly sited, and carbon free power generation”.