The implications of this for Scottish independence are, of course, significant. If Scotland had to bear the full costs of CfD top-ups for Scottish wind farms - and if you want independence, that’s what independence *is* - the consequences for Scottish households would be ruinous.
In January, DESNZ published an update to its 2023 cost of renewables figures, skewering Scot Gov claims that Scottish renewables are “low-cost”. Civil servants are working on a briefing for ministers on these figures, but it won’t be done until after the election. How convenient.
Some seem to think powers over energy would be a stepping stone to Scot Gov nationalising energy. They clearly haven’t been paying attention to the ferries. Who wants an energy provider that delivers no energy for a decade, and then charges you 5x more than you were expecting?
Scot Gov does own (indirectly, via SNIB) a minority stake in a wind farm currently being developed. When complete, the electricity it produces will cost £216/MWh (uprated for inflation) for 20 years. That is ~3x higher than the wholesale electricity price in current price cap.
3/ And that’s before you even consider the system costs of Scottish renewables, which are very significant indeed. They are currently paid for by bill payers across GB. If Scotland had to bear its full system costs, the impact on Scottish households & businesses would be ruinous.
2/ He’ll say because Scotland’s renewables are low cost. They are not. CfD Allocation Round 7, which happened earlier this year, priced Scottish offshore wind at £89/MWh (fixed) and £216/MWh (floating) - higher than the ~£80/MWh wholesale price in current Ofgem price cap.
