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Onshore wind can help meet growing demand and rollout of EVs
ScottishPower Renewables has called on the government to do more to support onshore wind as it publishes a new report, which highlights the economic benefits of windfarms.
The company’s chief executive, Keith Anderson, said more onshore wind is “essential” if the government is serious about reducing carbon emissions and having enough power to support the rollout of electric vehicles.
“One new onshore wind turbine could power around 7,000 electric vehicles, but we need to act now to meet growing demand,” said Anderson.
“We have seen competitive auctions deliver huge price reductions in offshore wind, and we expect onshore prices to tumble as well.
“Including onshore wind in a similar system would drive fierce competition in the industry and ultimately bring down costs for consumers,” he added.
“At this level only the most competitive projects would be viable and Scotland in particular still has a significant untapped stream of projects, in the right locations, ready to be delivered.
“If the industry was given a level playing field with other technologies a further 2,000MW could be built in Scotland by 2020,” insisted the chief executive.
The report, which was written by BVG Associates, looks specifically at the economic benefits from ScottishPower Renewables’ portfolio of eight windfarms, which have a total capacity of 474MW.
According to the report, the windfarms will generate around £1,276 million in gross value added for the UK throughout their operational lifetime.
The report adds this figure includes £297 million in local value added.
The eight windfarms will also generate £59 million in community benefit funding during their lifetime, according to the report.
Commentating on the report, the founder of demand response aggregator, Flexitricity, Alastair Martin, said: “While I agree that it’s highly likely that consumers’ shift towards electrical vehicles will happen much more quickly than the Government expects, I do not believe this transition will require the investment in rewiring and infrastructure Scottish Power anticipates.
“Instead, what we need to do is ensure smart charging becomes the norm from now on.”
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