Scotland’s next generation of onshore wind farms could be at least 20% cheaper if the Scottish and UK governments work with industry and regulators to remove barriers, according to Scottish Renewables.
In a study, released today, Scottish Renewables said industry could cut onshore wind costs by more than £150m a year by making a series of changes.
For example, installing the latest generation of wind turbines could cut costs by £11/MWh, while extending the life of existing ones would also make onshore cheaper, the report said.
The research, which was carried out by consultants Everoze for Scottish Renewables, also found savings could be made by introducing more flexible ways to connect onshore wind to the grid and reducing the amount developers have to pay to connect.
Other changes that could be made include: making the consenting process more coherent; developing guidance on how to maximise the potential benefits from redeveloping, replanting and repowering existing wind farms; adopting smart grid connections; and deploying energy storage.
Scottish Renewables senior policy manager Lindsay Roberts said: “The report sets out just how competitive onshore wind in Scotland can be, and shows that it makes no sense for the UK government to exclude the technology from long-term contracts for clean power.”
Image: Hill of Towie wind farm in Scotland (reNEWS)
