Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the budget for allocation round five of the contracts for difference scheme to help meet (a) increased construction costs and (b) Government targets for the rollout of renewable energy.

National Grid Electricity System Operator (NG ESO) runs the auction process for Contracts for Difference (CfD) Allocation Rounds and is currently assessing the eligibility of all CfD Allocation Round 5 applicants. Once the Department has received the final valuation of eligible participants, the Secretary of State will consider any budget uplift for the round, taking into account decarbonisation targets and the cost to bill-payers.