Category: Scotland

Scotland wants to British representatives to explain moves to lessen the government support for onshore wind energy developments. UPI/Pat Benic LONDON, June 24 (UPI) — The Scottish government said it wants the British energy secretary to come to its capital to explain the reasons behind a cut in wind energy subsidies. "The Scottish government has been clear that onshore wind should be able to compete with other technologies," Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said in a statement Wednesday. London announced plans to end public subsidies for new onshore wind farms starting in April 2016. Last year, the $1.2 billion in government support helped onshore wind power generate 5 percent of total British electricity and bring the region closer to its climate change goals, the British government said. The Scottish government countered that London’s proposal was stacked against it as nearly 70 percent of the installed onshore wind power is […]

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Royal Society of Edinburgh calls for review of reserve potential and concerns associated with hydraulic fracturing. Photo by photostock77/Shutterstock EDINBURGH, Scotland, June 22 (UPI) — Hydraulic fracturing in Scotland could give the Edinburgh government some autonomy over the energy sector with few environmental impacts, a policy paper read. The Royal Society of Edinburgh, the premier scientific academy in Scotland, said the controversial drilling practice known also as fracking offers Scotland important options for onshore natural gas. "Onshore production of unconventional gas would allow Scotland control over all regulation surrounding extraction and production," the paper read. Fracking involves the use of water, abrasives and a trace amount of chemicals to coax oil and natural gas out of shale deposits. Critics argue the practice carries with it a significant amount of risk, ranging from an increase in minor earthquakes to contamination of regional water supplies. The society’s paper said the environmental […]

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Sean Murphy, an Aberdeen oil-rig supervisor, has been looking for work for months. ENLARGE Photo: JO HANLEY FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ABERDEEN, Scotland—When he was laid off in December, Sean Murphy thought he would easily find a new job with his 30 years of experience as a supervisor on oil rigs all over Europe’s North Sea. Five months and more than 200 résumés later, Mr. Murphy has lost confidence. So, too, has this once-buoyant city. Often called Europe’s energy capital for the high number of oil-and-gas firms operating here, Aberdeen is a victim of the sharp drop in oil prices since last year. More than 1,000 oil workers have been laid off in the region since the downturn began last year. Local businesses, from taxi cabs to hotels and restaurants, report fewer customers and fear worse is to come. The property market, once one of Britain’s hottest, has […]

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North Sea oil rig or gas platform Scotland could be shielded by the rest of the UK from the impact of low North Sea oil revenues even if it gains the “full fiscal autonomy” demanded by the Scottish National party, former SNP leader Alex Salmond has claimed. The suggestion that Scotland could continue to benefit from billions of pounds in fiscal transfers from the UK even if it takes full control over all its revenues is likely to outrage SNP critics south of the border. Pro-union parties have already put pressure on the SNP over its call for devolution of all taxes in Scotland, saying that slumping oil revenues would mean a massive fiscal crunch for Scottish governments that would no longer receive a large proportion of their funding from London. But in a column  for the pro-independence The National newspaper, Mr Salmond suggested the “no detriment” principle adopted […]

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As it is a finite resource, by definition, we will run out of Oil at some point. Around the year 2000, Scotland (and the UK Continental Shelf as a whole) reached “peak oil” (Oil and Gas UK 2014).  So what is “peak oil”, and what are the implications of it? Peak oil is the point at which the highest rate of oil production is achieved, and beyond which oil production enters terminal decline. This could be due to many reasons – be it due to conscious policy choices by world governments to leave oil in the ground, or it becoming impossible or undesirable to extract what oil remains. The reason it is so difficult to anticipate when peak oil will occur is because new technology becomes available which either makes it possible to extract more difficult and remote fields, or it becomes possible to get more oil from fields […]

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Scottish government places moratorium on fracking, citing need for more research. Photo by Steve Oehlenschlager/Shutterstock EDINBURGH, Scotland, Jan. 29 (UPI) — The Scottish government will take a cautious look at shale oil and gas extraction during a moratorium period, the energy minister said Thursday. "I am announcing a moratorium on the granting of planning consents for all unconventional oil and gas developments, including fracking," Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said in a statement. The ban comes as those in the British government press ahead with its shale ambitions despite frustration surrounding the frontier natural gas sector. Authorities in Lancashire County in England, said to hold vast shale natural gas deposits, are reviewing drilling applications submitted by Cuadrilla Resources. Ewing said the moratorium was enacted so Scottish legislators could take time to review public health or other concerns associated with hydraulic fracturing, known also as fracking. "We recognize that local […]

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Challenge: Aberdeen is centre of the UK oil sector The British government has ordered an urgent review of the North Sea oil industry after a collapse in prices that has prompted hundreds of job losses and raised fears for the survival of ageing fields. BP’s UK arm told staff in Aberdeen on Thursday that it would cut 300 staff and contractor jobs from its 3,500-strong North Sea business — the latest in a series of job losses and pay cuts in the sector. More On this story On this topic IN UK Economy During a visit to Aberdeen to discuss the impact of slumping oil prices, Ed Davey, the energy secretary, said he had instructed Andy Samuel, the chief executive designate of Britain’s new Oil and Gas Authority, to “lead an urgent commission, working with industry, to identify the key risks to [UK] oil and gas production”. Mr Davey […]

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Friends of the Earth says Scottish air pollution levels creating a regional health crisis. UPI/Maryam Rahmanian EDINBURGH, Scotland, Jan. 12 (UPI) — Though Scotland has one of the most ambitious renewable energy programs in the world, Friends of the Earth said the country’s pollution is a health concern. Friends of the Earth said its review of 2014 government data show air pollution is responsible for as much as $2.5 billion in annual healthcare costs for the Scottish people. "Scotland’s streets are shown to have dangerous levels of toxic pollution which are breaking legal limits that were due to be met in 2010," campaigner Emilia Hanna said in Saturday statement. Scotland aims to draw more on renewable energy to power its economy, while looking toward oil and gas reserves in the North Sea as a source of revenue . Renewable electricity capacity has grown at an average rate of 660 […]

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Scottish government accuses British rivals of mismanaging North Sea oil and gas sector. (UPI/Shutterstock/James Jones Jr.) EDINBURGH, Scotland, Jan. 9 (UPI) — The Scottish government wants reforms in the tax regime of the North Sea oil and gas sector to ensure long-term sustainability, the energy minister said. Scotland pegged its future during a bid for independence on revenue from oil and gas reserves in the North Sea. The bid failed last year, though Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said frustration endured in the sector. "The oil and gas industry is a strong success story for Scotland and will continue to be," he said in a late Thursday statement. "However, because of the mismanagement of oil and gas fiscal policy by the U.K. government, challenges remain and we must tackle the on-going cost pressures and the fall in oil prices head on." Ewing said the region’s energy sector needs a […]

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Scottish Deputy First Minister John Swinney says oil prices may drag on parts of the economy. (Photo: Scottish government) EDINBURGH, Scotland, Dec. 30 (UPI) — Scotland is concerned about how low oil prices may impact North Sea operations, but is confident about future growth, the deputy first minister said Tuesday. The Scottish government said its economy is on pace to turn in its strongest performance in seven years as well as marking its second straight year of continuous growth. Deputy First Minister John Swinney said the labor market in particular was strong. "Scotland is leading the way with the highest employment and economic activity rates and lowest unemployment rate of the home nations of the United Kingdom," he said in a statement. Though fiscal year 2016, the government said it expects to see $7 billion in new infrastructure investment. Despite the mid-term growth expectations, the government said low oil […]

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