Scottish wind farms are the main beneficiary of compensation as the network
is unable to cope with the power produced
Mark Macaskill
Scottish ministers have been accused of an “irresponsible” dash for green
energy as new data reveals that wind farms have expanded while being paid
record sums of money to power down turbines.
This year, the operators of 86 wind farms across Britain were handed more
than £136m in constraint payments to reduce output and discard surplus
energy, a new annual record and £12m more than was paid in 2018.
Most of the compensation (E127m) was paid to Scottish onshore wind farms,
including several that have either extended in recent years – with the
Scottish government’s approval – or are seeking permission to do so.
The disclosure has prompted disquiet among opposition politicians and
environmentalists who said compensation payouts should be a key
consideration in whether to allow wind farms to be built or extended.
Energy firms are compensated for turning off turbines when the network is
unable to cope with the power they produce. Such constraint payments are
paid out by the National Grid but ultimately charged to consumers and added
to electricity bills.
Analysis carried out by the Renewable Energy Foundation, a charity that
monitors Britain’s energy use, shows that in 2019, six onshore Scottish
wind farms received about 50% of the £127m bonanza. They include Fallago
Rig in Berwickshire, which received £7.8m in constraints this year, yet is
seeking an extension to add a further 12 turbines.
The Clyde wind farm was completed in 2009 but permission to extend the site
with an additional 74 turbines was granted in 2014 and completed in 2017.
Its operators, which includes the energy giant SSE, received almost £15m in
compensation this year.
The big six also includes the 96-turbine Kilgallioch wind farm in South
Ayrshire, which was extended in 2017. Its owners, Scottish Power
Renewables, is seeking to extend the site by up to 11 turbines.
Whitelee, Europe’s largest wind farm, opened in 2007 and added a further 75
turbines five years later. Since 2013, it has received £106.5m in
constraint payments, including £12m this year.
The Stronelairg wind farm near Fort Augustus went live a year ago and
received more than £llm in constraint payments this year. Critics have
questioned the wisdom of proposals to build two neighbouring wind farms.
“The probability of constraint payments is not given any significant weight
in the planning system when considering applications for new or extended
wind farms, with the result that the Scottish government is needlessly, and
some will feel irresponsibly, contributing to the constraint problem and to
UK consumer bills,” observed Helen McDade, the Renewable Energy
Foundation’s Scottish policy adviser.
Alexander Burnett, the Scottish Conservative energy spokesman, said: “The
fact that the SNP are still allowing wind-farms to expand despite this
staggeringly high level of constraint payments already in operation is
astonishing. Indeed, this absurd situation simply demonstrates the
foolishness of the SNP’s renewable energy policy.”
Since 2010, when constraint payments were introduced, more than £600m has
been paid to Scottish wind farm owners. Because of a rapid growth in
onshore wind, payments have increased steadily, in spite of grid
reinforcements and upgrades such as the Elbn Western Link between
Hunterston and Deeside, which was built to export Scottish power. The
foundation claims that some wind farms lie behind grid bottlenecks, yet are
given ministerial approval for upgrades to generate more power. The charity
points to increases in turbine heights at the extension to the Gor-donbush
wind farm, near Brora in Sutherland. The original wind farm has been paid
more than £16m to reduce output since it was commissioned in 2012.
Paul Wheelhouse, the energy minister, said constraint payments will fall as
investment in the grid increases. “Adding more demand load onto the grid,
as we electrify Scotland’s own transport and heating systems, will also
reduce the need for constraint payments. The importance of continued grid
investment to facilitate transmission cannot be over-stated and this need
featured in our Networks Vision Statement which we published earlier this
year”.
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