People living in the north of Scotland are paying considerably more for their energy than those in the south of the country, it has been claimed.

Research suggests that customers on pre-payment meter tariffs typically pay nearly £100 more a year than Scottish customers living further south.

The latest tariffs have been analysed by research company Cornwall Insight, revealing a stark north-south divide.

The research firm identified a number of factors behind the increased costs.

They include: The limited availability of gas in rural Scotland means many people can only heat their homes with oil or electricity, which is more expensive. Not having access to mains gas also means northern customers miss out on cheaper “dual fuel” tariffs.

The customers in off-grid areas are on restricted meters and pay 4p more per unit of electricity – which amounts to around £400 a year more than consumers elsewhere in Scotland, claims that many pensioners and poorer people are living in cold, damp homes, often in sub-zero temperatures at night during winter. Northern Scotland distribution costs are 45% above the British average and around a third higher than costs in southern Scotland.

These costs would be even higher if it was not for a £50m subsidy paid for by all energy consumers to reduce the charges for transporting the power long distances.

It is clear that the UK needs to find ways now to meet UK and EU commitments to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and improve air quality. The 2008 Climate Change Act commits the UK to reducing emissions by at least 80 percent below 1990 baselines by 2050. An estimated 25 per cent of UK carbon dioxide emissions* are from transport (of which 21% are from Heavy Goods Vehicle “HGV”s). Any improvements that can be made in transport need taking very seriously.

International Maritime Organization (IMO) has decided to tighten the regulatory limit of sulfur content of marine fuel in the general sea area after January 2020, and adopted an Initial IMO Strategy which regulate the reduction of GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions from the international shipping transportation with its targeted objectives and specific countermeasures.

Scotland Electricity and Gas Network Vision for 2030 – Key Points

(https://www.gov.scot/publications/vision-scotlands-electricity-gas-networks-2030/)

In 2017, Scotland’s gas and electricity networks delivered around half of all the energy we used in Scotland; in that year £2.25 billion worth of Scottish electricity generation entered the networks, more than 50% of which came from renewables, and gas valued at more than £5 billion entered the gas transmission network at the St. Fergus Gas Terminal.

Their critical importance will remain as we look at opportunities to accelerate progress to decarbonise both our heat and transport systems. We expect electric vehicles to create significant new demand for electricity and lead to new challenges for electricity distribution networks. In particular, new solutions will be needed at the edges of the grid where network capacity may currently be insufficient for unmanaged EV charging. We expect there to be a need for significant investment in these distribution networks, but it is important that capacity is used efficiently.

The ability to deliver low carbon gases, including hydrogen, through the gas networks represents one option for the future of low carbon heat provision, and for transport as a fuel for road, rail and shipping. Repurposing the gas network in this way would allow us to continue using the flexibility and reach that the gas network provides. In the years ahead we propose to explore further opportunities for the generation of low carbon hydrogen, and the use of the gas networks for its distribution and storage.

Whatever their ultimate shape, it is certain that we are going to see huge changes to the ways in which networks are planned and operated. These changes have to be delivered quickly and carefully. We believe that they must be designed to meet the interests of both consumers and businesses, be consistent with our desire to reduce fuel poverty, and reflect the needs of vulnerable customers across mainland Scotland and our islands.

Paul Wheelhouse MSP,
Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands

neal.rafferty@gov.scot

Across the three terminals – South Hook, Dragon and Isle of Grain – there is enough capacity to store 1.25BCM of gas, a similar amount to all the UK’s Medium Range gas storage. However, despite the strongest average daily sendout since 2011, storage at the three terminals is rapidly filling and there is limited scope for demand to increase to absorb further LNG on to the grid.

Scotland has huge volume of natural gas resources available in North Sea gas fields within close proximity, an area with vast access to plenty of natural gas available in gaseous form.

Scotland LNG project is primarily not about the use of LNG in order to produce gaseous form of natural gas for final users because the regasification will make the final product more expensive.

12. Markets

12.1. Supply of LNG to the energy demand in Scotland and United Kingdom.

12.2. Bunkering of sea going ships into the area.

developed as for continental Europe.

12.4. Same as 12.2 and 12.3 but for the Baltic area. See point 13.