UK Steel - Contracts for Difference Sustainable Industry Award Consultation Response

January 2024

UK Steel and its members welcome the aspiration to progress towards a fully decarbonised electricity system by 2035. With the move towards electric arc furnace production across the UK steel industry, our members will require affordable, competitively priced green energy to make this important transition. The UK steel industry can also contribute directly to this plan by supplying steel products to the development of renewable electricity deployment, including offshore wind and floating offshore wind.

For the United Kingdom to become a world leader in the production of offshore wind infrastructure, it needs to develop secure, reliable domestic supply chains – and the procurement of UK-made steel is vital to this.

As such, any consideration of non-price factors for the awarding of Contracts for Difference, including the Sustainable Industry Rewards (SIRs) outlined in this consultation, should encourage bidders to support domestic supply chains, UK-based manufacturing and development of UK capacity to produce the products needed to develop our offshore and floating wind turbines. Around 80% of a wind turbine is made of steel, from the foundation to the tower, gears and casings.

Our response to this consultation focuses on the questions and issues relevant to UK steel producers seeking to supply into the development renewable energy infrastructure.