The UK Government has increased the renewable energy projects’ subsidy budget to £300m, marking an increase of £95m from the first budget unveiled in July 2014.

The move, which will be supported under the Contracts for Difference (CfDs) scheme, follows the latest estimates of the total costs of other policies.

The Renewables Obligation, in particular, are lower than anticipated.

Established technologies such as onshore wind and solar will compete for up to £65m in annual support whereas less established technologies including offshore wind and marine energy will share £235m.

The rise in the less established technologies means that 700MW to 800MW of clean energy will be installed under the new budget – an increase of 200MW on the earlier announcement.

UK Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey said: "We are transforming the UK’s energy sector, dealing with a legacy of underinvestment to build a new generation of clean, secure power supplies that reduce our reliance on volatile foreign markets.

"Average annual investment in renewables has doubled since 2010 – with a record breaking £8 billion worth in 2013. By making projects compete for support, we’re making sure that consumers get the best possible deal as well as a secure and clean power sector."

Commenting on the government’s move, RenewableUK policy director Gordon Edge said: "Of course the extra funding is welcome as it will help us to install much-needed extra capacity – it’s always good to see DECC putting their money where their mouth when it comes to supporting clean energy.

"But there’s a sting in the tail. The reduction in the all-important reference price of electricity means that the extra budget doesn’t go as far, so when you weigh the good news of the extra funding against the bad news on the reference price, offshore wind developers will end up only slightly better off and onshore wind developers end up in about the same place as they were under the original budget."

Additionally, the government decided to close the Renewables Obligation for new large-scale solar projects above 5MW from 1 April 2015.