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8. Supporting actions
Research, development and demonstration
Scottish energy research is world class and world-recognised. Our acknowledged research strength in energy includes power networks and petroleum engineering but also now includes cutting-edge research and demonstration in renewable wind, wave and tidal power, and low carbon energy solutions such as carbon capture and storage.
The work of our leading universities in energy research is informed by the Scottish Government's policy objectives in pursuit of sustainable economic growth and the development of the knowledge economy, taking advantage of new economic opportunities and access to overseas markets.
Collaboration is at the heart of Scotland's research success. The recently formalised Energy Technology Partnership ( ETP) focuses on universities in the cities of Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh but also draws together all the key Scottish university based research and development teams involved in energy technologies (eg fuel cell research in St Andrews) and is linked to key universities in England and abroad. The Partnership is founded on the principle of research pooling, and acts as a common platform for seeking funding from UK and international funding bodies and industry.
The Partnership is supported by an advisory committee on which industry bodies are represented. A supervisory body involving Government, other parts of the public sector and key industry figures is also being established.
Scotland's world lead in the development of low carbon energy technologies places us at the heart of delivering the EU's new Energy and Climate Change policies. The European Commission and Scottish Government are supporting the establishment of a Scottish European Green Energy Centre ( SEGEC), tasked with the development of pan- EU joint projects in green energy research and deployment, EU-wide dissemination of research findings, obtaining research funding, and engaging industry in the formulation of EU-wide solutions to the demanding energy and climate change targets.
The work of the universities, ETP and SEGEC is also complemented by the intermediate technology institute for energy - ITI Energy - which identifies technologies required to address future global market opportunities then funds and manages research and development programmes and the subsequent commercial exploitation of new intellectual property.
Scotland's Renewable Energy Test & Demonstration
Supporting actions: Infrastructure
The shift to a renewable future poses significant issues for Scotland's electricity infrastructure. The grid at present does not provide significant capacity in areas where Scotland's renewable resource, especially our wave and tidal potential, is at its strongest.
New investment has been authorised by OFGEM and further proposals are under consideration (eg islands connections). The Government's draft National Planning Framework identifies these proposed grid reinforcements as being national strategic developments. The framework will be considered by Parliament. Where such a strategic developments are included in the final document this will establish need. This will mean that individual applications to, for example, transmit or generate electricity (under the Electricity Act 1989) will not need to demonstrate need for the development with assessment focusing on more detailed locational issues.
While the National Planning Framework will assist the development of electricity infrastructure (and potentially of large scale thermal generation) the Scottish Government is concerned that current mechanisms for promoting and regulating the electricity grid do not sufficiently encourage the development of emerging technologies. The Scottish Government is in dialogue with the UK Government on promoting a more strategic approach to investment in new capacity as well as better management of access to existing networks. The Scottish Government listens carefully to industry and engages with BERR, OFGEM and National Grid. This includes pressing for changes to the current charging regime which provides a disincentive to investment in Scotland and responding to the Transmission Access Review.
The Scottish Government is also looking forward to the grid infrastructure which will be required to allow the full development of renewable energy and in particular development of marine and offshore wind energy. The Government is undertaking scoping and feasibility studies into offshore grids between Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland and between Scotland and other nations bordering the North Sea. We work with those with related interests including the Crown Estate.
Supporting actions: Skills
We recognise the need to support the continuing development of our workforce within the energy sector and are therefore supporting a range of initiatives in this area. For example we supported the recent announcement of the Sector Skills Councils (" SSCs"), of which there are 25, are UK wide independent organisations developed by groups of influential employers in industry or business sectors of economic or strategic significance. The Scottish Government's skills strategy set clear expectations for SSCs in Scotland: to identify and articulate employers' skills needs; to work with employers and stakeholders to develop skills solutions; to produce robust labour market intelligence for their sector; to contribute to the development of vocational qualifications.
The Alliance of Sector Skills Councils ("the Alliance") will co-ordinate and support SSC led activity across the UK. The Alliance is a new organisation (1 April 2008) comprising all 25 of the SSCs, and it provides a forum for them to come together as a network to address common issues and share good practice. Scotland will have its own arm of the Alliance, which will support the network of SSCs in Scotland.
A Sector Skills Agreement (" SSA") is developed by the SSCs in consultation with employers and other key stakeholders. It is the vehicle used to outline the skills needs in the sector, and the steps which have to be taken to address these. SSCs lead on the delivery of the actions identified in the SSAs, working in partnership with key stakeholders such as Skills Development Scotland and further and higher education institutions.
SSAs have been developed for Scotland by Cogent, the SSC which covers the nuclear and oil and gas industries, and Energy & Utility Skills the SSC which covers the electricity, gas, waste management and water industries.
OPITO: the academy for the oil and gas industry.
In December 2007, a training academy for the oil and gas sector in the UK - OPITO - was launched. OPITO is an employer led and funded initiative, and it works in partnership with Cogent to ensure that the training available at the oil and gas academy meets the needs of the sector and complies with national occupational standards.
OPITO has established a global reputation, and has subsidiary operations in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, operating in 23 countries through a network of 66 learning providers. They have also reached landmark agreements with the Governments of Thailand and Indonesia.
Supporting actions: Protecting the environment
Our commitment to renewable energy and sustainable economic growth needs to be balanced against environmental and social considerations. We need more renewables but not at any price - the best applications to generate or transmit electricity are those that take care to resolve environmental and planning concerns in advance. To help this process a new Scottish Planning Policy on Renewable Energy ( SPP6) was issued in 2007 to give clarity and purpose to the planning and consenting system for renewable energy. Planning authorities are now drawing up supplementary planning guidance on locational issues in respect of renewable energy in their areas.
The Government has also announced new plans to streamline its own role in the consenting process. Working with the industry, the Government's aim is to make decisions more quickly by improving the quality of applications, introducing more certainty about turnaround times and ensuring that more robust procedures are implemented. By introducing a target time of nine months - where there is no public local inquiry - Ministers are keen to ensure that the various consultation processes are completed as quickly as is possible while ensuring that all parties have the opportunity to make representations. A number of other innovations are being introduced to improve the quality of applications, including new scoping guidance which will give applicants a clear steer on the issues they have to tackle in their application before it is submitted.
Since May 2007, and at August 2008, the Scottish Government has determined 18 applications for consent to generate electricity.
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