A delegation representing Orkney Islands Council and renewables developers will be at Holyrood on Wednesday (April 18) when the Scottish Parliament debates proposals for grid transmission charges from the energy regulator Ofgem.

The Council is concerned that the cost of exporting electricity could end up far higher in Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles when compared to transmission charges on the Scottish Mainland.

Ofgem has held a major review called Project TransmiT over the last 18 months and is expected to announce its planned principles for transmission charging within the next few days.

MSPs will hold a Parliamentary debate on Project TransmiT on Wednesday afternoon – a move welcomed by the Council.

OIC been closely involved in the review and, in a submission to Ofgem, has warned that high transmission charges jeopardize the harnessing of the huge renewable resources in and around the islands.

Jeremy Baster, who is advising the Council on grid issues, will be joined in the public gallery during the debate by Andrew Scott, from Pelamis Wave Power, Mike Davies, from Future Electric, and Dennis Gowland, from Fairwind (Orkney) Limited. Later, they will hold talks with Energy Minister Fergus Ewing, along with Orkney MSP Liam McArthur and other Parliamentary colleagues.

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"Orkney is only six miles from the Scottish Mainland, but under proposals already put forward by Ofgem, our transmission charges would be six times higher than they’d be in Caithness," said Mr Baster.

"That would have a big impact on the viability of commercial wind, wave and tidal energy projects in the islands – putting Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles at a serious disadvantage compared to the rest of the UK."

Andrew Scott, Senior Project Development Manager at Pelamis Wave Power, said: "The marine sector is exceptionally fortunate to have the grid connected facilities of the European Marine Energy Centre on Orkney, and this has been instrumental in Pelamis achieving the success it has to date.

"The projects we now see under development off Orkney’s coast using Pelamis technology represent a route to commercialisation and the grounding of our supply chain here in the UK.

"Ensuring we can export electricity from these projects at sensible costs via stronger grid connections to the UK network is a fundamental pre-requisite to achieving this success."

Martin McAdam, Chief Executive Officer of Aquamarine Power – developer of the Oyster wave energy technology – has also welcomed the debate.

"Scotland’s islands could be a green powerhouse for the rest of the UK – but only if transmission charges are reformed by Ofgem," he said.

"Transmission lines should be viewed as a national asset, to carry green energy from the periphery of the UK to our main centres of population.

"We urge Ofgem to do the right thing and introduce fair charges for Scotland’s islands."

Once the Ofgem announcement is made, there will be further consideration of the plans by an industry working group. The Council, together with other stakeholders, plans to be fully engaged in this process.

(GK)