West Ham investor vies for lucrative power subsidies

The billionaire West Ham United investor Daniel Kietinsky and the Swiss commodities company Vitol are among bidders hoping to land hundreds of millions of pounds in subsidies to keep the lights on in Great Britain.

National Grid’s electricity system operator is preparing to announce successful bidders in a capacity market” auction this month for 2026.

The annual auction will set a subsidy price to pay owners of power stations and battery storage facilities to cover the cost of being on standby in case of any rapid need for extra electricity. The costs are covered through consumer bills.

Existing plants are awarded oneyear deals, with new-builds given 15-year contracts to guarantee covering investment costs.

Analysis of the public register before the auction shows 69 newbuild gas-fired plants have been proposed for 15-year contracts.

Gas accounted for 38% of generation last year athree-year high as the single largest source of power. The prospect of more fossil-fuel powered plants may anger green campaigners and those urging the government to move faster in supporting renewables projects.

The auction comes as the energy regulator Ofgem draws up proposals to prevent backup generators from raking in excessive” profits as part of their licence conditions.