Salmond bravely goes where Brown will not

Posted by bex - 18 July 2008 at 10:15am - 3 Comments

Avedore CHP plant in Denmark

Remember how we said last month that industrial combined heat and power (CHP) plants could save us money, increase our energy security and help slow climate change?

Well, we've just heard that plans are afoot for just such a plant in Scotland. The Tullis Russell paper mill plans to reduce its annual carbon emissions by around 250,000 tonnes a year by switching to biomass CHP for its electricity and steam.

Up until now, the mill has been using coal to provide the steam and electricity it needs, but RWE npower has announced plans to build a 45 MW biomass plant on the site - 45MW being the equivalent of the electricity needed for around 50,000 homes.

(Last month, we commissioned research which showed that industrial CHP plants could generate about enough electricity to meet the annual needs of two thirds of UK households – about 14GW.)

Assuming the biomass for this new plant comes from sustainable sources, it's excellent news for the climate, and a pretty good metaphor for the energy revolution we need across the UK: a transition from fossil fuels to a decentralised energy system founded on CHP, renewables and efficiency.

What's more, the project has enjoyed robust support from the Scottish government. Not only is an £8.1m grant helping to fund the project, but Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond has been waxing lyrical about biomass CHP with an enthusiasm that Gordon Brown seems to reserve for nuclear power and coal:

"The new biomass plant in Markinch... pays testament to our competitive advantage in terms of skills and workforce and the development of energy supplies that are cleaner, greener and economically competitive," he said.

"This announcement points the way to the future and shows the resilience of the Scottish economy in the face of international financial pressure."

Here’s hoping Brown learns a thing (or two) from Salmond.

Article tagged as: alex salmond, CHP, climate change, decentralised energy, RWE, scotland

Comments Commenting is now closed

Just two weeks ago, Salmond trumpeted a new deal to supply coal for generation for at least the next 5 years. He commented that the deal "shows that coal is a fuel of the future and not the past".

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7487184.stm

He's still way out in front of Brown, but that ain't hard.

By sussedasaduck - 22 July 2008 at 5:11pm

Just two weeks ago, Salmond trumpeted a new deal to supply coal for generation for at least the next 5 years. He commented that the deal "shows that coal is a fuel of the future and not the past". http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7487184.stm He's still way out in front of Brown, but that ain't hard.

By sussedasaduck - 22 July 2008 at 5:11pm

Your earlier article - 'A surprising solution to our energy needs' - sensibly suggests that we make use of unused heat from thermal electricity generation and other industrial processes that currently operate in Britain. However this article ('Salmond bravely goes where Brown will not') conflates this earlier proposal with the construction of new, large-scale biomass-powered electricity generators. The two issues are worlds apart. Currently there are proposals for 5 very large biomass burners in Scotland, and at least one that I know of in England. Collectively they will burn upwards of 6 million tonnes of biomass each year, consisting mostly of imported virgin timber. For each tonne of timber that is burnt, you get 1.5 tonnes of CO2. Of course if you replace the trees that are cut down, they will eventually re-absorb this carbon. However that will take at least 50 years. This is a particularly critical moment in the story of global warming. We are very close to a tipping point, from which there will be no return. However there are other, more mundane effects of mass destruction of forests. UK paper and board makers will find the cost of raw materials forced up, thereby threatening their competitiveness. In short, jobs will be lost, and in much greater numbers that will be created by the new incinerators. Let's be under no illusion. The companies behind the current proposals are not inspired by the desire to save the planet - they are out to make maximum use of European subsidies for biofuels. GAIA (Global Alliance for Incineration Alternatives), has produced a damning report on these misguided subsidies - http://www.no-burn.org/downloads/GAIA_When_EU_Waste_the_Climate.pdf Although the bulk of the fuel used by the proposed incinerators will be virgin timber, they will also burn a considerable quantity of waste paper and card. As you know, it takes the same amount of energy to make a tonne of paper as it does to make a tonne of steel. In general, it has been calculated that burning waste recovers only a tenth of the energy used to make it. As Alex Salmond himself said recently, Scotland has the potential to power itself 7 times over from wind and wave energy. This, I would suggest, is the real way forward in the quest for renewable energy.

By Michael Gallagher - 28 November 2010 at 2:38pm