The UK government wants to reduce the barriers to the development of Scotland's renewable energy industry, which it views as critical in the country's climate change targets.
Energy and Climate secretary Chris Huhne has announced plans to reduce objections to new onshore wind farm developments from the aviation industry, and says he will also examine the possibility for adjusting transmission charges for projects in remote areas such as the Scottish islands.
The tendency of wind farms to interfere with radar systems has created a significant barrier for Scotland's renewables industry, with numerous projects facing objections from aviation radar operators. Major renewable energy projects in the Scottish islands are also on hold because of concerns about forecast transmission charges, said Huhne.
“If we are to meet our climate change targets, Scotland will be mission critical. Success here will define our low carbon legacy,” said Huhne in a speech to the Scottish Renewables conference in Glasgow. “Government must break through the barriers that are stopping new schemes being built ... Overcoming the financial, planning and delivery hurdles that can hold up progress on renewables.”
A new partnership agreement between government, aviation bodies and the windfarm industry will help to reduce the number of objections to onshore wind farms by implementing new radar solutions, said Huhne.
“This can be a win-win situation: bringing new state of the art radar and releasing up to 5 GW of new onshore wind capacity,” said Huhne.
The Scottish government recently approved two new onshore wind farms that had faced objections from radar operators. A 69 MW extension to the Black Law wind farm near Shotts and the 69 MW Blackcraig wind farm near New Galloway will between them power 64 000 homes, said Scottish Energy Minister Jim Mather.
“Both of these developments faced objections from aviation radar operators and the fact that these have been successfully addressed is a mark of the progress being made in tackling aviation issues in wind farm deployment,” said Mather.
ScottishPower Renewables applied for the construction of an extension to Black Law in 2008 and agreed a mitigation solution with radar operator NERL in January 2011.
Scottish and Southern Energy Generation Ltd applied to construct and operate the Blackcraig Hill wind farm in Dumfries and Galloway in September 2005.
Linkedin
