15 minute read
Aim high to realise low carbon ambitions
Following COP26, we look at how the Highlands and Islands are well positioned to secure lasting benefit from the energy transition, and will help deliver net zero and build regional prosperity.
Across the Highlands and Islands there are many examples of individual communities and businesses that are already making a difference in the world of energy transition and low carbon.
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From small-scale hydro schemes to companies innovating in solar and tidal power through to local wind generation and not-for-profit enterprises in the circular economy, the move to delivering net zero is gaining real pace at a community level.
The significant, arguably unrivalled, natural resources of the region, from wind, wave and tidal through to our peatlands and coastline, mean that large multinational companies involved in energy transition innovation are seriously looking at the Highlands and Islands as a location to deploy at scale or to manufacture for a global market.
Across onshore and offshore wind, solar and hydro power, bioenergy, green hydrogen production, tidal and wave energy, and more recently carbon sequestration, the Highlands and Islands are home to a range of collaborative energy transition and net zero projects which will be vital in terms of creating next generation employment opportunities and helping to maintain and strengthen communities across the region. Below, we capture some of these headline projects along with some personal reflections following on from COP26.
A RENEWED FOCUS, A RENEWED MOMENTUM
During COP26, companies and projects from the Highlands and Islands featured in a wide range of events, including those held within Scotland’s Climate Ambition Zone. Hosted by Scottish Enterprise, in partnership with HIE, South of Scotland Enterprise and the Scottish Government, the programme of 24 events over the two weeks of COP26 attracted 1,066 in-person delegates and 1,631 virtual delegates. A total of 90 companies from far and wide showcased their net zero credentials via a virtual exhibition which all participants in the programme could access. With HIE leading and contributing to some of the key sessions, notably on offshore wind, hydrogen and marine energy, it was an opportunity to put the spotlight on the spectrum of opportunities that exist within the region and now driven by the global commitment to net zero.
Hosted in partnership with Wave Energy Scotland, the marine energy session provided a platform to highlight the important role that wave and tidal have to play in the transition.
“Since it’s based on natural tide patterns, we can accurately predict the output of any tidal marine energy system long before it’s installed,” explains Neil Kermode, managing director of the Orkney-based European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC). “That makes tidal power a hugely valuable renewable energy source – and it’s important to share an ambitious vision at sessions like these to inspire people to see the vast possibilities.”
HIE’s director of energy transition and net zero, Audrey MacIver, adds: “The Highlands and Islands have played a lead role in getting marine energy technology to where it is today. We’re already worldleading in the sector with innovative technology developers launching new concepts in our coastal waters, and an experienced supply chain that has evolved to support them. But we need to ensure that we continue to build on the work done over the past decade.”
Significantly, in recent months, increasing private sector investment in the marine energy sector has been very encouraging and HIE remains committed to working with its partners to move the sector to the next level by supporting a step change to commercialisation and beyond. The recent confirmation of tidal energy support within the UK Government’s next low carbon energy auction round represents a major boost for the industry.
#NetZeroHeroes
Individual businesses and communities from across the Highlands and Islands are leading the way towards a sustainable future. We feature quite a few in this issue of FOCUS, but you will find many more inspiring stories on a dedicated section of our website – here.
Photo credit: Orbital Marine Power
#GaisgichNetZero
Tha gnothachasan is coimhearsnachdan fa leth bho air feadh na Gàidhealtachd ’s nan Eilean a’ treòrachadh na slighe a dh’ionnsaigh seasmhachd san àm ri teachd. Tha sinn a’ sealltainn àireamh dhiubh san eagran seo de FOCUS, ach lorgaidh sibh mòran a bharrachd sgeulachdan brosnachail ann an earrann ainmichte air an làrach-lìn againn – an seo.
Commenting on the announcement, Andrew Scott, chief executive officer at Orbital Marine Power on Orkney, said: “We have long called for this sort of ringfenced funding to develop this important technology and to further build a homegrown industry around it.
“Having this clear, positive signal from UK Government gives us the platform to grow the investment in our pioneering business and unlock the vital investments we need to make in our supply chain and projects to deliver an exciting, new renewable energy sector that can help turn the tide on climate change. This will see sustainable, green jobs created in the UK along with predictable, low carbon electricity generated to help deliver net zero against the backdrop of a global export market." Underlining that ambition, Orbital Marine Power who are currently testing their technology at EMEC on Orkney, recently agreed a strategic partnership with TechnipFMC. Having launched the world’s most powerful tidal turbine in 2021, Orbital Marine Power will have access to TechnipFMC’s industrialisation capabilities to help further develop their technology and deliver the first commercial scale floating tidal array.
Meanwhile, Scottish tidal energy companies Nova Innovation and SIMEC Atlantis Energy have now entered an agreement to deliver more UK-built tidal turbines. The tidal collaboration will focus on SIMEC’s MeyGen site in the Pentland Firth and will see the partners work together to deliver their complementary technologies for the tidal industry, Scotland and the UK. Such developments in marine energy are particularly encouraging when seen against the backdrop of major commercial initiatives focused on realising the huge potential of wind energy and green hydrogen across the Highlands and Islands.
Proposals from the likes of Opportunity Cromarty Firth and Offshore Wind Power Ltd have underlined the region’s ambition to be a major producer of green hydrogen.
In December 2021, the First Minister’s announcement of a £110m plan to build the UK’s largest offshore wind tower factory at Nigg made international headlines. A joint venture by Global Energy Group and Spanish firm Haizea Wind Group, the new factory is expected to create hundreds of high value green jobs.
In Shetland, the ORION Clean Energy Project led by Shetland Islands Council in partnership with the University of Strathclyde, the Net Zero Technology Centre, and HIE, aims to create green hydrogen for export (from both on and offshore wind) and transform Shetland’s current reliance on fossil fuels to affordable renewable energy. A number of proposals are being developed, including two multi gigawatt offshore wind farms proposed by Aker Horizons and Cerculean Winds which would produce green hydrogen and link into repurposed facilities at Sullom Voe Terminal. While in Orkney, plans to redevelop the Flotta oil terminal as a large-scale green hydrogen facility have been announced by Offshore Wind Power Limited (OWPL), a consortium formed by the Green Investment Group, TotalEnergies and RIDG Group, in partnership with the terminal operators Repsol Sinopec and Uniper. The OWPL consortium has submitted a proposal to the Crown Estate Scotland’s offshore wind leasing round (ScotWind) to develop the West of Orkney Windfarm which would deliver renewable power to the facility at Flotta.
The potential scale of these multi-billion-pound projects is not only exciting for the contribution they could make to meeting Scotland’s net zero targets, but also the potential to repurpose oil and gas facilities, and to make use of existing skills which will be important to ensure a just energy transition that helps to protect local jobs and communities.
NEW IDEAS, OPPORTUNITIES AND CONNECTIONS
Elsewhere, HIE continues to support many other businesses and organisations to develop new low carbon opportunities across the energy transition.
In Argyll and Bute, HIE is leading a major project to explore and quantify commercial opportunities associated with carbon sequestration across the local authority area. Having secured £260,000 for the project from the UK Government through the UK Community Renewal Fund, the aim is to put the region at the forefront of efforts to absorb and store carbon from the atmosphere, in ways that also generate economic and community benefits. Commenting on the project, entitled ‘Optimising carbon sequestration for community wealth building’, Dr Zoe Laird, HIE’s regional head of communities, says:
“After COP26, the need for action to address climate change and achieve our ambitious net zero targets has never been clearer. Carbon sequestration will form an important part of that process. We believe there is considerable potential for Argyll and Bute to benefit from this, not just environmentally but socially and economically.”
Also timed to coincide with COP26, the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland’s (NMIS) event in November was attended by businesses from the UK who were urged to pursue more environmentally sustainable manufacturing operations.
Entitled ‘Manufacturing a net-zero future’, the event brought together many major industry players with small innovators and developers. One attendee from the Highlands and Islands, was Proterra Energy, which specialises in the design, installation and maintenance of renewable energy systems, and in particular micro hydro schemes.
Terry Stebbings, director, Proterra Energy, says:
“For us, as a small business in the Highlands, it is all about visibility, and it was a great event for that. We had conversations with government ministers from Sri Lanka, representatives from the defence sector, and from Volvo who were interested in the potential of using small scale hydro to charge JCB electric diggers in the field.
“It was very interesting to hear how bigger businesses are now talking about their willingness to share their net zero learnings, to discuss what solutions they are looking at, and then urging us to take advantage of those insights. As a small business it is encouraging to hear the likes of Volvo say we’re prepared to help you because we need to do this together.”
The Lochluichart wind farm, Highlands of Scotland
#NetZero Hero: Renewable Parts
Wind farms are among the most recognisable elements of the growing renewable energy industry in Scotland, and Lochgilphead-based Renewable Parts is on a mission to make the turbines themselves as environmentally friendly as the energy they produce.
“The energy is green,” explains Matthew Chapman, marketing manager, “but the supply chain is brown.”
While the operational lifecycle of a wind turbine is around 25 years, each of the 8,000 component parts within each turbine must be inspected and serviced every 6-12 months and replaced when they become worn down. Rather than sending those parts to landfill and sourcing new parts, which results in waste and increased carbon emissions, Renewable Parts is pioneering new refurbishment and remanufacture processes to safely upgrade pre-used components. To date, Renewable Parts has prevented around 70 tonnes of components being sent to landfill and, by supplying the client with refurbished parts instead of new, has also prevented over 130 tonnes of carbon emissions.
#NetZero Hero: AES Solar
AES Solar has been at the forefront of solar technology in Scotland since first established in the Findhorn eco-community in 1979. The first firm in western Europe to manufacture solar thermal collectors, AES Solar design, install and maintain solar energy systems producing both heat and electricity for domestic and commercial customers.
AES Solar has installed over 7,000 solar panels, across properties ranging from the Balmoral Estate to the 2018 Grand Designs House of the Year. Producing over 91,000 megawatt hours to date, those panels have prevented 22,418 tonnes of carbon emissions – the equivalent to offsetting over 22,000 commercial transatlantic flights. With the AES Solar team having doubled in size in the past five years, managing director George Goudsmit is determined to increase the use of solar in Scotland too.
George says: “The more energy you can get from solar without having to draw from the grid, the better.”
JOINING THE UN’S RACE TO ZERO
Organisations from across the Highlands and Islands are also among thousands from around the world who have pledged to support the UN ‘Race to Zero’ campaign, building momentum towards a decarbonised economy by allowing nongovernmental bodies to drive forward the zero-carbon agenda.
With more than 120 countries and over 3,000 businesses represented, signatories to the Race to Zero pledge account for over 50% of GDP around the world as well as 25% of global CO2 emissions.
Among those signatories is Inverness-based 4c Engineering. Formed by engineers with professional interests in renewable energy, they frequently help clients enhance their own sustainability.
“We naturally gravitate towards client projects with a sustainability angle, and carefully consider the sustainability of the materials we use and recommend, so it was a natural extension for us to commit to sustainability behind the scenes as well,” explains director Andy Hall.
“Working through the pledge commitments helped us feel confident that in many areas, such as office lighting and insulation, we’re running about as sustainably as we can be.
“The biggest eye opener for us was realising that just one short trip for two members of our team to meet a client in Bilbao before the lockdown accounted for 37% of our entire carbon emissions for 2020. So as travel opens up again, we’ll be a lot more mindful of how we engage with our clients. We’ve invested in top-of-the-line remote collaboration software and will prioritise train travel when we do need to meet face to face. We’re also turning our attention to less obvious gains and are in the process of switching our pension funds to providers with a stronger sustainability ethos.”
Other Highlands and Islands businesses that have already signed up to the UN Race to Zero pledge include Orbital Marine Power, Orkney-based Aquatera, and Isle of Barra Distillers Ltd.
As two thirds of the world’s countries commit to net zero, I believe we should view COP26 as a positive step in the right direction and be encouraged by the scale of the opportunity rather than daunted by the enormity of the challenge.
Scotland’s Climate Ambition Zone at COP26, which was hosted by Scottish Enterprise, in partnership with South of Scotland Enterprise, HIE and the Scottish Government, was an opportunity for our businesses and communities to demonstrate the many positive steps already being taken and to showcase their will, determination and tenacity to lower their carbon impact and to collaborate with others in doing so.
The ambition was well received, whether that be multiple gigawatts of renewable generation across on- and offshore wind, rapid scaling of hydrogen production, removing fossil fuels as a source of home heating, securing our leading role in marine energy developments, or enhancing the value of carbon sequestration in our region. But the overriding question was: how will this all be delivered at the scale and pace required?
The zone was a very welcome opportunity to nurture publicprivate partnerships in addressing that challenge, and many of the events put the two pillars of innovation and investment at the centre of our combined efforts to accelerate the just transition to net zero. To achieve the scale and pace of development required to meet net zero targets, collaboration between communities, businesses, academia and the public sector on key areas of technology, investment, regulation, and market development is critical. Given so much of that was evident at the Climate Ambition Zone (and beyond), there’s reason to be hopeful that the necessary action can and will be mobilised. But we can’t be complacent. Here at HIE, we’re absolutely committed to being an integral part of the journey to net zero, helping mobilise action across our communities and businesses, taking inspiration from others (including our Net Zero Heroes!) and leading by example. Whilst a key focus over the last couple of years has been providing businesses and communities with COVID-19 resilience and recovery support, we have also been working to ensure that net zero is firmly embedded within our own organisation, making it mainstream, and part and parcel of our thinking.
We’re reviewing and adapting the tools we use to support our businesses and communities. We’re strengthening the role of procurement in stimulating our suppliers to take action, and committing to embed net zero within our own property investment decisions. We’re upskilling our staff to become climate change champions, making key net zero investments in businesses and issuing community asset decarbonisation funding calls. It is clear that net zero is already becoming the golden thread throughout the organisation and our work to develop the region’s economy. As we look ahead and develop HIE’s next three-year strategy we will continue to sharpen our focus on net zero as a key driver of sustainable economic growth. We can and will play a leading role along with partner agencies, committed businesses and inspirational communities, to put into action our collective plans to deliver a vibrant, net zero Highlands and Islands.
