Clean Power 2030: What the Action Plan Means for Energy Investors - SSEP, CSNP, RESP and RNP.....

Clean Power 2030 is UK government policy and a major commitment: by 2030, Great Britain is intended to generate at least 95% of its electricity from clean sources in a typical weather year. The Clean Power 2030 Action Plan sets out the direction of travel. For developers and investors, the implications are immediate.

The Numbers That Matter

• Target: At least 95% clean electricity generation by 2030

• Offshore wind: 43–50 GW

• Solar: 45–47 GW

• Onshore wind: 27–29 GW

• Battery storage: 23–27 GW

• Flexibility: 51–66 GW of flexibility capacity by 2030

• Networks: Accelerated transmission investment and delivery remain central to the plan

AR7 & AR7a: A Record-Breaking Outcome

The latest CfD rounds delivered stronger-than-expected results:

• AR7: A record 8.4 GW of offshore wind secured—the largest offshore wind auction outcome to date

• AR7a: 6.2 GW secured across onshore wind, solar and tidal stream

  • Onshore wind: 1.3 GW

  • Solar: 4.9 GW

  • Tidal stream: 20.9 MW

• Combined: Around 14.6 GW of new clean capacity contracted

• CfDs: Long-term revenue support, with delivery years varying by technology and project

The AR7a results show the depth of the development pipeline: solar secured 4.905 GW, onshore wind 1.306 GW and tidal stream 20.9 MW. Clearing prices were below administrative strike prices across the successful technologies. Official AR7a results

The auction success does not, however, resolve the underlying tension: network, balancing and policy costs are becoming more prominent in long-term project economics. Every revenue model should reflect potential change ahead of AR8.

Reformed National Pricing: The Zonal Question Is Settled—But the Market Is Not

In July 2025, the government decided to retain a single national wholesale electricity price for Great Britain. Zonal pricing was rejected.

That decision did not close the market-design debate. The programme is now called Reformed National Pricing (RNP). NESO’s Call for Input examined reforms to balancing, settlement and dispatch arrangements, while the government published its RNP Delivery Plan in April 2026. Further policy work is ongoing. NESO RNP programme

The Call for Input explored proposals to:

• Lower the mandatory Balancing Mechanism participation threshold to increase liquidity

• Re-align Gate Closure to one hour before each settlement period

• Require physical notifications to match traded positions

• Require unit-level BM bidding, limiting portfolio trading across Great Britain

• Shorten settlement periods from 30 minutes to 15 or potentially five minutes

Why this matters for your project: each proposal could affect the BESS revenue stack and operational dispatch strategy. Unit-level bidding and shorter settlement periods alone could materially change how battery assets are operated and optimised. Financial models built today should stress-test these scenarios, even where implementation dates remain uncertain.

What Changes in 2030-Ready Markets

Three structural shifts are already visible in how well-capitalised developers are positioning:

• Co-location of wind or solar with BESS to optimise grid capacity and revenue stacking

• Merchant tolerance increasing as CfD competition intensifies, with lenders accepting more structured merchant exposure on bankable projects

• Long-duration storage moving from policy discussion toward early-stage financing, supported by the proposed cap-and-floor framework

Talk to CM Energy Insight

Clean Power 2030 creates opportunity and complexity in equal measure. CM Energy Insight provides independent advisory on CfD strategy, project finance and market positioning—without the institutional conflicts of larger firms.