Renewables might seem to the uninitated kinda new-fangled or on the margins of the energy scene, but in fact renewables were the source of over a quarter of Scotland’s electricity needs in 2009, and this year that figure is likely to nudge upwards to the 1/3rd mark.
Impressive though this is, it’s medium sized potatoes to the amount of renewable energy planned for the future, with some very ambitious targets having already been set. One thing that will help the industry towards achieving these figures is research and development, so it was good to see this week that the Hydrogen Office in Fife was officially opened by Scottish First Minister, Alex Salmond. It’s an impressive building, forming part of Fife’s Energy Park, Scotland’s renewables hub.
Hydrogen Office is powered by hydrogen fuel cell technology and “is expected to become one of Europe’s leading locations for innovation and development of renewable technology” according to Scottish Enterprise.
Photo taken by George McLuskie on behalf of the Hydrogen Office Ltd
It looks like Bill Gates – someone whose entire fortune is based on the ability to see into the future – has been thinking Green lately.
In this report from the US, Bill asks perhaps the biggest energy question of the millennium so far:
‘Can the energy sector finance its own revolution and create … great R&D jobs here in America?’
With the errr… you know what in the news constantly over the past few weeks, I’m sure Gates isn’t alone in wondering what the best way forward for the energy sector is. And while Gates wasn’t explicit about the details, it doesn’t take much reading between the lines to get the gist of what his thinking is:
‘[energy] that is both cheaper, not dependent on foreign supply and is environmentally designed so that we’re not emitting carbon and getting into the climate change problem’
Big voices like Gates’ calling for a step-change in energy production may be a relatively new phenomenon, but one that is surely here for the long term. It’s not surprising that the USA is the world’s biggest oil user, so it is a good thing that diaogue is beginning in terms of how to produce energy from renewable sources.
Here in the UK, steps are being made towards a greater mix of renewables on the road to green energy provision, and if the green energy sector continues to expand and provides jobs, everyone’s a winner.
Controversy surrounding the Beauly to Denny power line replacement linking Nothern and Central Scotland continues to rumble on. Last week the Scottish Government approved the 137 mile line (with 600 overhead pylons). The decision was made despite 18,000 objections. The latest development is that appears that some of the line could go underground after all – if you take Energy Minister Jim Mathers rather Rumsfeld-esque take on the issue:
“We cannot require them to underground. What we can require them to do is to mitigate. That them leaves them the option to mitigate by undergrounding.”
In other words, he can’t force Scottish and Southern Energy (the developers of the line) to go underground but the option is open.
Another intriguing aspect of this project is the fine line being straddled by environmental groups such as Friends of the Earth Scotland, who lent their support to the line on the principal that it’s worth scarifcing the aesthtics of the Scottish landscape in order to combat future climate change.
Those of you who have an hour and a half of your time to spare can watch Scottish Energy Minister Jim Mather being questioned on the decision.
Im sure that you are all too aware of the feeling you get sometimes: “i wish id thought of doing that!” – well, this sensation washed over me quickly this week when i came across this great illustration from US website Power and Energy.
Essentially, it encapsulates in one tidy design the questions regarding Wind Energy, the generation of which has been risen rapidly in the USA over the past two years. Although the statistics are all related to North America (and New York state in particular), the questions posed still hold relevance worldwide.
With scottish power suppliers and the government in this country pushing Wind Energy as THE answer to our energy needs, perhaps it would help them to consider this graph.
Excellent news for Glasgow yesterday that Scottish and Southern Energy had agreed to join with The University of Strathclyde (renowned for wind power research) in Glasgow to create a new Centre of Engineering Excellence for Renewable Energy (CEERE). The new facility will primarily become a new a new research and management centre for wind farm projects.
SSE Manging Director Ian Marchant:
“Our Centre of Excellence which will be known as CEERE will play a crucial part in helping SSE to realise its renewable energy goals in the UK, Ireland and elsewhere in Europe, helping to secure energy supplies and contributing to the development of a lower carbon economy.
“Having considered all of the options in mainland Europe, Ireland and the UK, we have settled on Glasgow as the best location for CEERE, and the city’s own sustainable energy ambitions also make it a very appropriate choice.
“Working with the University of Strathclyde, and with the support of the Scottish Government, we will create and secure several hundred skilled jobs for Scotland.
“Scotland’s ambition to become a leader in renewable energy is well known and we are delighted to be making this investment in Scotland. We’re very positive about the prospects for creating new jobs to harness Europe’s renewable energy resources and the potential make a significant contribution to the achievement of Scotland’s ambitions.”
Strathclyde University Principal (and Professor) Jim McDonald said:
“If we are to address the challenges of climate change, rapid and widespread deployment of renewable energy technologies is critical.
“The new partnership reflects Scotland’s potential to be at the forefront of the UK and European renewable energy sectors, creating new jobs and research and development opportunities.”
The Scottish Government is investing £2.8m into the scheme, First Minister Alex Salmond spoke on the new energy centre yesterday.
Good news for Glasgow and Scotland – this is a considerable commitment to the green economy and hopefully another step on the way for Scotland to become a true renewable energy hub.
Scottish European Green Energy Centre (SEGEC) Launches
In what was probably a moment of ‘calm before the storm’ for Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond (before the Megrahi Announcement), last week he opened The Scottish European Green Energy Centre at the University of Aberdeen.
With joint-funding coming from a £1.6 million investment from the European Regional Development Fund, and a further £1 Million from the Scottish Government the centre has the none-too-difficult task of establishing the Granite City as a research hub into wave, tidal and wind power. SEGEC’s primary focus will be on marine energy, offshore wind, long-distance super-grid development and smart distribution grids, carbon capture and storage, renewable heat and energy efficiency.
According to the official Press Release from the Scottish Government:
“It aims to help the Scottish green energy sector secure maximum benefits from engagement with Europe through developing partnerships with businesses and institutions, designing collaborative projects and identifying and accessing European funding.”
One of the partner companies is Scottish and Southern Energy, their Chief Exec Ian Marchant explained their involvment:
“The Scottish European Green Energy Centre is another important step in the realisation of Scotland’s renewable energy ambitions, which SSE is pleased to support. The key is developing and deploying the technologies that can harness Scotland’s remarkable green energy resources, and this new Centre will provide a key means of doing this, involving industry, government and universities here and elsewhere in Europe. It is the kind of initiative that has to be taken and has to succeed if challenging targets for renewable energy in 2020 and beyond are to be met.”
Speaking at the launch, Mr Salmond said:
“The Scottish European Green Energy Centre (SEGEC) aims to build on Aberdeen’s long-established global reputation as an energy hub by positioning Scotland at the forefront of European innovation, research and development in clean, renewable energy.
“The investment of European funding will embrace the energy-related opportunities presented through Scotland’s leading global effort to reduce climate change. Scotland’s natural capital can create tens of thousands of green jobs.”
Here is the official launch video:
Some questions on SEGEC
Obviously, any establishment which aims to promote green scottish power is to be welcomed. However, we have a few questions that you can possibly help us to answer:
Is Aberdeen a feasible location to become Scotlands Green Energy hub?
Will we (the energy buying public) see any direct benefits from any of these projects? or
Are these purely academic exercises?
Will the rest of Europe be willing to invest in Scottish Green Energy schemes?
If the Scottish Government is serious about green energy supply, then is £1 million a large enough investment?
Will all the partner energy companies be willing to adapt to any recommended changes in practice?
If anyone has any thoughts on these please leave a comment!
Scotlands first minister Alex Salmond has announced that the 140 turbine strong wind farm at Eaglesham Moor in East Renfrewshire is set to expand further. At today’s official launch of the site, Mr Salmond that the go-ahead has been given to create another 36 wind turbines on the site, giving a total power wattage of 452 MW – enough to power 250,000 homes.
The site will also soon be home to a brand new visitors centre and will be opened up to the public -walkers, cyclists and ramblers will all be able to roam the site. However, Dave Morris the director of Ramblers Scotland sounded a note of caution, as he told the Beeb:
“Existing UK energy policy will require an incredible 600 Whitelees to be built by 2050 – that would cover an area of land the size of Wales”
He goes on to point out that the UK cannot keep swallowing up vast swathes of land for wind farms – in his opinion the the future of Scottish energy lies off-shore.
Do you agree with Mr Morris? – Let us know your thoughts!
Of the ‘big six’ energy companies that were involved in the tendering process, Scottish Power and Scottish and Southern Energy won a share of the contracts that were available. Scottish Power will supply power to major public buildings within Scotland, and SSE will supply metered council housing with green electricity.
Both companies have insisted that the energy for these projects will be produced from 100% Scottish renewable sources.
Scotland is seeking to cut emissions by 80% before 2050.
Glendoe Power Station
Scottish and Southern Energy will generate its power from its big new hydro project at Glendoe to supply its side of the energy deal.
The 100MW capacity Glendoe power station, built adjacent to Loch Ness, is the first conventional hydro-electric pwer station to be built for 50 years. The SSE contract also provides access to low carbon and renewable technologies such as combined heat and power, solar and biomass.
Scottish Government Finance minister John Swinney outlined the main principles behind the deal:
On top of saving money this contract will create a greener Scotland. The public sector needs to show leadership if we are to achieve the ambitions of our Climate Change Bill.
The contracts will help public bodies address emissions from energy use through a range of energy efficiency measures, access to renewable generation sources and opportunities to sell green electricity back to the Grid. The vast majority of public bodies have recognised these benefits and have signed up to this deal.
Is this deal good for Scotlands energy future? Please let us know your opinions…………
We’ve recently came across this extremely cynical post on green electricity from Fred Pearce over at The Guardian. He slaughters the majority of the UK biggest energy suppliers, claiming that the green and clean electricity and gas tariffs that they offer are nothing more than a smokescreen.
We tend to feel that in some cases Mr Pearce may indeed have a point. However, you cannot possibly blame green conscious consumers for signing up to these tariffs – many of them will have no idea as to the technical aspects of the energy generation process. They simply wish to lower their carbon footprint and increase the energy efficiency of their homes.
News from the BBC this morning of the delay of a planned closure to the vestas wind turbine plant in Cambeltown, Western Scotland. 100 workers were in line to lose their jobs. It amazes us that this situation has been allowed to fester without a solution, however it seems that this scheme has been something of a political football from the start. Aside from the fact that these skilled people would be out of work, there is something quite sad about this plant being decommissioned at a time when demand for wind turbine technology is so high. Indeed, leading US clean energy research and advisory firm Emerging Energy Research expects the international wind power industry to increase 500 per cent over 12 years. Scotland should be at the forefront wind energy and a significant volume of Scottish power needs should be met by wind energy. The powers that be of each party must take control of this situation before we fall even further behind.
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