A number of demonstrator projects for smart grid and storage technologies have been awarded funding under Scotland’s Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme (LCITP).
Announced today by the country’s leading politician, first minister Nicola Sturgeon, a total of 13 projects will receive a share of £43 million (US$55.37 million) worth of funding under the programme, designed to prove the feasibility of low carbon technologies in a range of applications.
One of the more notable projects to receive support is the development of a local energy system on Fair Isle, one of the most remote Scottish Isles, centred around the incorporation of renewables and storage.
The Fair Isle Unified Low Carbon Electricity Storage and Generation Project is to receive just shy of £1.1 million of LCITP capital support to construct a Class 1 wind turbine, storage system, fly wheel and solar generation to help meet the island’s energy needs.
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It is hoped that the success of the project could be used to develop a model that can be replicated across other island communities in Scotland, areas that have historically relied on fossil fuel generators.
Other projects to receive funding through the LCITP include a REStore demonstrator project which will pair an energy storage solution with the Shetland Tidal Array and the co-location of a lithium ion battery storage system with wind generators at the Hunterston National Offshore Wind Turbine Test Facility by SSE.
Announcing the funding at today’s All Energy conference in Glasgow, Sturgeon said that the projects had the potential to maintain Scotland’s position “at the forefront of low carbon and renewable innovation”.
“Scotland has some of the most ambitious emissions reduction targets in the world. Over the past 10 years, our pattern of energy consumption has changed considerably, helping us to meet – and exceed – our 2020 target for reducing energy consumption, six years early.
“We are determined to build on this success, and we are now seeking views on a new target through our draft Energy Strategy – for 50% of our energy consumption – spanning heat, transport and electricity – to be met by renewables by 2030.
“With Scotland’s world-leading expertise in renewables, which employs at least 11,000 people, and a growing workforce of at least 58,000 in the low carbon sector, I am confident of our future success,” she said.
