The premature closure of Longannet power station at a time of falling spare
capacity in the system is a “national scandal”, the energy minister has said.
Fergus Ewing told MSPs the Scottish Government would “strain every sinew”
to help employees at the struggling Fife station if the closure cannot be
averted.
Operator Scottish Power has said that it will ”in all likelihood” shut by
March 2016 after losing out on a short-term National Grid contract to
Peterhead.
In a statement at Holyrood, Mr Ewing defended the Government’s renewables
policy against claims it was harming power stations such as Longannet.
He said: “Some members opposite believe the development of renewables has
harmed the prospects of thermo stations. Those arguments are false.
“They might have carried some credibility if we were in a situation of
healthy oversupply, but spare capacity in the GB system has fallen to as
low as 2% by next winter.
“The fact that we are even debating Longannet’s future at exactly the point
when the UK authorities have allowed energy security to dwindle so severely
is a national scandal.”
Mr Ewing said the Government was “determined” to explore any option that
might avert the premature closure of Longannet.
The plant has been under pressure from new European Union (EU)
environmental legislation and carbon taxation combined with higher
transmission charges to connect to the grid due to its location in Scotland.
Mr Ewing said the UK transmission charging regime had “uniquely
disadvantaged” Longannet, which was forced to pay £40 million to connect to
the grid.
He said: “We believe the decision taken by National Grid and endorsed by
the outgoing UK Government is flawed, and it fails to take account of
serious flaws in the UK electricity supply system.
“Scotland has an established policy towards its electricity generation, one
which recognises the need to maintain a balanced mix of generation, but our
efforts are frustrated by the UK Government’s unwillingness to address
Scottish issues properly.
“Clearly, on a wide range of issues we remain at the mercy of decisions
taken in Westminster over which this Parliament and this Government has no
control.
“This lack of power over key decisions on energy policy should concern all
political parties in Scotland and should prompt some deeper reflection on
the future of our energy system.
“There will be opportunities to review the landscape for energy policy
post-May but our immediate priority, ideally supported by a show of unity
across this chamber, must be to avert the premature closure of Longannet.”
Mr Ewing continued: “The UK authorities have created an environment in
which it is increasingly difficult to operate thermo plant in Scotland.
“Scotland exported 28% of the power we generated in 2013 and we want to
continue delivering large amounts of electricity across these islands, but
our ability to do so is undermined by a UK framework that penalises
Scottish generators and discourages investment.
“The location-based transmission charging methodology introduced to
Scotland in 2005 under Labour UK government is the single and biggest and
most pressing issue.”
The energy minister said his thoughts were with the 270 people directly
employed at Longannet and others in the supply chain.
He is to meet unions tomorrow to discuss the latest developments and said
the Scottish Government will work with Fife Council on a joint response to
the situation.
“The Government and all our partners will strain every sinew to secure the
best possible outcomes for all off those affected and to mitigate the local
and national economic impact if closure cannot be averted,” he said.
Mr Ewing also called for swift action to progress a proposal from the
Scottish coal industry to the UK Government for coal restoration, which he
said could reduce Longannet’s running costs.
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