Six projects currently under development in Scotland will more than double the UK’s pumped storage hydro capacity to 7700MW, a report by Scottish Renewables and BiGGAR Economics has found.
The report also found that the projects would create almost 15,000 jobs and generate up to £5.8bn for the UK economy by 2035.
The Economic Impact of Pumped Storage Hydro studied the economic impact of six pumped storage hydro projects currently in development in Scotland.
These projects, if constructed, would add 4.9GW to the UK’s existing capacity of 2.8GW to go over halfway towards achieving the 15GW of capacity that is expected to be needed by 2050, according to the report.
Scottish Renewables is calling on the UK Government to urgently deliver the measures it has promised to enable investment in large-scale, long duration energy storage so developers can deliver the existing pipeline of “shovel ready” pumped storage hydro projects.
No pumped storage hydro facility has been commissioned since 1984.
Pumped storage hydro is similar to a giant battery as it can store energy and then release it when needed.
Each facility uses two water reservoirs at different elevations and power is generated when water moves down from one to the other passing through a turbine.
When demand for electricity is low, water is pumped back up to the upper reservoir where it is stored for future use.
To meet the UK Government’s net-zero targets substantial increases in clean energy are required.
However, since many technologies, such as offshore wind, are variable in their output, storage assets will be essential to support demands placed on the electricity network, Scottish Renewables said.
Many of the best locations for pumped storage hydro are in the north of Scotland, where there are plans for a significant increase in the generation of clean power with the construction of onshore and offshore wind farms.
Significantly more projects than the six studied for this report will need to be delivered in order to reach the 15GW of storage capacity that the UK Government expects to be the minimum amount required to meet the needs of the energy system in 2050.
The report found that once these additional projects are in development pumped storage hydro will generate up to £14.8bn for the UK economy and create up to 9,400 jobs annually.
The six projects studied in the report are the Cruachan Expansion and Balliemeanoch, both in Argyll and Bute, Corrievarkie in Perth and Kinross, Glenmuckloch in Dumfries and Gallowayand Red John, Coire Glas, in the Scottish Highlands,
Andrew MacNish Porter, policy manager for economics and markets at Scottish Renewables, said: “From this report we know that pumped hydro storage is uniquely placed to deliver socio-economic benefits to communities across the UK and, as an established and proven technology, it will play a crucial role in achieving the UK Government’s net-zero ambitions and delivering energy security for consumers.
“However, an investment framework is needed to secure the massive capital investment required for these projects.
“We therefore urgently need the UK Government to clarify its support for pumped storage hydro and deliver the required policy support to unlock the huge value these projects promise to deliver.
The Economic Impact of Pumped Storage Hydro report by Biggar Economics, a leading independent economic consultancy, was jointly funded by Buccleuch, Drax, Foresight Group, Intelligent Land Investments Group and SSE Renewables.