Windfarm operators in Carrick have collected payments totalling over £1m
this month alone as a result of turbines switching off.
Scotttish Power Renewables who operate the Arecleoch and Markhill windfarms
near Barrhill and Scottish and Southern Energy who operate the Hadyard Hill
windfarm near Dailly are paid constraint payments when output levels on the
National Grid are deemed too high.
In this month so far Arecleoch’s payments have totalled £578,232, Hadyard
Hill’s £358,957 and Markhill’s stand at £208,765 giving an extraordinary
total of £1,145,954.
The figures are compiled by the Renewable Energy Foundation and their
director John Constable said: “Constraint payments are in essence the
outcome of a mistaken political determination to push ahead with wind power
in Scotland well before the grid system could accomodate the energy at
reasonable cost to the consumer. Errors of this kind are to be expected
when climate policy is driven by arbitary targets, rather than long-term
economic fundamentals.”
On Saturday December 5 all three windfarms output were deemed too high by
the National Grid so they turned off.
Scottish Power were paid £132,650 in constraint payments for Arecleoch that
day as well as £52,788 for Markhill whilst SSE received £65,206 for Hadyard
Hill not operating.
On December 9 Scottish Power received £71,225 for Arecleoch not operating
and £21,256 for Markhill’s switch off whilst £59,563 was paid to SSE for
Hadyard Hill.
And on December 10 £50,130 was paid to Scottish Power Renewables for
Arecleoch and they collected £13,782 for Markhill not operating. On that
same day SSE also received £30,468 for Hadyard Hill being asked to turn off
by the National Grid.
A Scottish Power Renewables spokesperson said: “Unfortunately we must
comply with National Grid’s instructions to reduce output from time to
time, to allow them to manage the electricity network.
“We would much prefer never to be constrained in this way and major grid
upgrades such as the Western Link subsea interconnector, which is currently
being constructed, will help.
“As an electricity generator we pay substantial annual fees to be allowed
to connect to the electricity network, so when National Grid tell us that
we can’t be connected for a period, we receive a payment.
“We have worked very closely with National Grid to understand their
requirements, and this means that our compensation price is the cheapest in
the industry.”
Jenny Hogan from industry body Scottish Renewables said: “Constraint
payments are not a new phenomenon, or one restricted only to wind farms.
“They are a normal part of the overall efficient management of our
electricity system, given the limitations of the UK’s aging energy
infrastructure.
“National Grid pays a variety of technologies to reduce or increase output
as required to help balance the system.
“Overall, delivering a modern electricity network capable of getting power
generated to customers must be a priority over the coming years. However,
in some cases constraints will be cheaper than further investment in the
transmission network – the cost of which would be passed on to the consumer.”
The Gazette has regularly written about wind farm operators receiving
substantial sums as a result of the grid turning off their turbines.
Earlier this year we revealed how SSE had collected £6.5m in payments since
2011 for Hadyard Hill as they were planning to build a further 31 turbines
on the site.
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