Contracts for Difference has come a step closer after the Energy Bill passed its third reading through the House of Commons.
The third reading received 396 votes in favour compared to eight against as it made its way through the House of Commons to its passage now through the House of Lords.
As part of the Electricity Market Reform element of the Bill, Contracts for Difference will be introduced to replace the Renewables Obligation, which will be closed to new entrants from April 2017.
The Government expects that the Energy Bill will have brought about £110 billion of private sector investment in to building new energy infrastructure including renewables.
Business and Energy Minister Michael Fallon said: “This bill will bring unprecedented levels of inward investment into our energy infrastructure, on a scale that will dwarf the Olympics and indeed everything else in the infrastructure pipeline from transport, water and telecoms.
“Already since 2010, we have secured £29 billion of the £110 billion investment we need, supporting 30,000 skilled jobs in the renewables sector. We estimate that in total there could be 250,000 jobs in the energy sector as a result of the Energy Bill.
“We know that investors want certainty from Government and this will be the year that they get the certainty they need.
“By the summer, we will publish draft strike for our electricity market reforms, plus more details about how the Capacity Market will work and when it will run.
“Already, we have attracted considerable inward investment and after decades of under-investment, we can look forward to a new era of energy generation.”
The Government inserted a clause into the Energy Bill that requires it to set a 2030 decarbonisation target by 2016 following recommendations from the Committee on Climate Change.
However, the Committee had recommended that the Government set this target by no later than 1 April 2014.
Climate Change Select Committee head Tim Yeo had attempted to amend the bill to include this target being set in April 2014, but this amendment was defeated.
