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The budget allocated by the government may not all be spent, but rather represents the “worst case” cost under the “contracts for difference” (CfD) scheme, which reduces the risk for developers investing in clean power generation.

Under the scheme, the government sets a bar for electricity prices generated from the projects. If prices are below that bar, called a strike price, the government tops up the difference, while generators must pay back the government for any earnings above that price. The whole budget would be spent only if energy prices were to stay lower than expected for a sustained period of time.

Jess Ralston, head of energy at the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, a thinktank, said: “Every bit of free wind and sun power that we harness means we need to buy less foreign gas from abroad, boosting our energy security.”