The Scottish government has targeted 2021 for the establishment of its public owned energy company.
It set out the date in the Scottish energy strategy, which confirms the Holyrood government’s plan to generate half of power needs from renewable sources by 2030 north of the border.
The strategy, published yesterday (20 December), says the establishment of a public owned energy company is a “unique challenge, requiring deep expertise.”
It says the government is analysing how the company should be set up with the aim of having it up and running by the end of the current Scottish Parliament in 2021.
According to the strategy, the company may also have a role in promoting renewable generation.
The document confirms the Scottish government’s goal, set out in the draft strategy earlier this year, to supply the equivalent of 50 per cent of the energy for Scotland’s heat, transport and electricity consumption from renewable sources.
Meeting the 50 per cent target, which it estimates will require installed renewable capacity to nearly double from 9.5 GW now to 17 GW, will be “challenging”, the strategy says.
Other measures include:
- New target to increase the productivity of energy use across the Scottish economy by 30 per cent
- Plans for the Scottish government to work with its counterparts at Westminster on efforts to open up the next Contracts for Difference auction to onshore wind power projects in the Scottish Islands
- Scottish business minister Paul Wheelhouse will chair an industry working group to identify priorities for securing the future of the wave and tidal sector
- Publication of a route map in May 2018 for a Scotland Energy Efficiency Programme
- Identification of two scenarios for cutting carbon from Scotland’s energy system: greater electrification of heat and transport or hydrogen gas to power the two sectors
Claire Mack, chief executive of Scottish Renewables, welcomed the confirmation of the 50 per cent renewables target.
She said: “The huge ambition of the new target is to be commended. The strategy creates a framework for us as an industry, Scotland’s policymakers and the public to think in different ways about energy supply and demand.”
Previous targets had stimulated the growth of renewables to an industry employing 26,000 people, she said.
“This new target has the potential to do the same not just for the continued growth of our renewable electricity sector but also for heat and transport, where action to decarbonise is urgently needed.”
Responding to the publication of the energy strategy, Lawrence Slade chief executive of Energy UK, said: “We welcome this comprehensive strategy for the future of the Scottish energy industry. This strategy will be achieved through the energy industry’s continued innovation and the leadership provided by the Scottish government.
“The Scottish government has always set challenging decarbonisation targets as well as looking to develop an energy efficiency programme both to the benefit of customers and the environment. We look forward to working with them to develop an energy efficiency programme and ensure the planning system can help deliver the required investment across the board and realise the benefits of low cost onshore wind.”