Implementation Lead(s): Scottish Government

Locations: All Scotland

Further reading:
Scottish Government Energy

Environmental Mitigation: Mitigation measures include: monitoring the deployment of renewable energy; ongoing work on minimising air quality implications of biomass; develop opportunities for unused excess heat from large scale thermal plants; development plans should consider social and environmental issues associated with energy from waste; progress energy storage.

Scotland’s Renewable Energy Routemap Strategic Environmental Assessment

Mitigation measures identified in SEA of Electricity Generation Policy Statement.

Ongoing Activity and Milestones:
Development Plans to reflect the approach to renewable energy as set out in Scottish Planning Policy

Consents for electricity generation made under the Electricity Act (Scotland) 1989 to consider development plans and reflect the approach set out in Scottish Planning Policy

Implement Electricity Generation Policy Statement

2013 –  Renewable sources delivered 44.4% of gross electricity consumption in 2013 – up from 38.8% in 2012

2013 – Scotland generated 53,071 giggawatt hours of electricity,  with renewable electricity generation delivering 16,967 giggawatt hours.  Renewable output was up 16.3% on 2012 (previously a record year for renewables) and accounted for a record 32% of total generation, which for the first time was the same proportion as generated from fossil fuels

2013 – December – The Scottish Government published the second annual update to our 2020 Routemap for Renewable Energy in Scotland. This further update published on 17 September 2015 provides a progress report on developments across the sector and towards our targets, as well as considering the further collective actions needed to unlock Scotland’s full renewable energy potential. http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Business-Industry/Energy/RoutemapUpdate2015

2014 – Electricity generation from renewable sources is estimated to be 3,003 giggawatt hours in quarter 3 2014.  This is an increase of 4.3% (125 giggawatt hours) from 2013.  Also, generation over the first three quarters of 2014 is 21% higher than over the same period in 2013

2015 – March – Published provisional statistics show that the equivalent of 49.6% of Scotland’s gross electricity consumption came from renewables in 2014

2015 -September –  On December 19, 2013 the Scottish Government published the second annual update to our 2020 Routemap for Renewable Energy in Scotland. This further update published on September 17, 2015 provides a progress report on developments across the sector and towards our targets, as well as considering the further collective actions needed to unlock Scotland’s full renewable energy potential.

2015 – December – Figures published by the UK Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) on December 22, 2015 confirm that renewable sources delivered 49.7% of Scotland’s gross electricity consumption in 2014.

2016 – December – Figures published by UK Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) on December 22, 2016 confirm that we met our interim target for the equivalent of 50% of our electricity consumption to be sourced from renewable sources by 2015. The final figure for 2015 was 59.4%

2017 – January – Scottish Government published our draft Energy Strategy, detailing how we plan to decarbonise the energy system. The consultation closed in May. This draft proposes a 50% energy target from renewable sources by 2030.

2017 – July – provisional figures published by BEIS indicate that 2016 is likely to show our progress towards our renewables target at 54%, and that 2017 will be a record year for renewable electricity generation.

2017 – December – Scottish Government published the Energy Strategy and the document can be found here: www.gov.scot/energystrategy

2017 – December – Figures published by UK Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Stratgy (BEIS) on December 21 2017 confirm that 54.0% of gross electricity consumption came from renewable sources in Scotland in 2016 – down 5.5 percentage points from 59.5% in 2015. Renewable electricity generation was estimated at 19,693 GWh for 2016, down 10% from 21,764 GWh in 2015. This decrease from 2015 is largely attributed to reductions in both average rainfall and wind speed in 2016 compared to 2015. Scottish renewable generation made up approximately 24% of total UK renewable generation in 2016 (previously 26% in 2015).

2018 – September – Statistics for 2016 published by UK Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) on September 28 2018, show that progress towards the renewable energy target has dropped from 17.2% in 2015 to 16.0% in 2016. The reasons underlying this are a fall in both hydro and wind generation due to lower rainfall and lower average wind speed, and the closure of a single significant user of renewable heat in 2016.

2018 – September – The provisional quarterly statistics for Q2 2018 published also show that renewable electricity generation in Scotland was 4,886 GWh in Q2 2018.  This means that in the first six months of 2018, renewable electricity is slightly higher (1.9%) than at the same point in 2017 (12,431 GWh in 2018 compared to 12,194 GWh).  Renewable electricity generation in Q2 2018 has, however, decreased by 7% (367 GWh) from the same quarter in 2017.  Most of this decrease is seen in wind generation; the average wind speed was lower for Q2 2018 compared to Q2 2017 (down by 11%). At the end of Q2 2018 there was 10,336 MW of installed renewable electricity capacity in Scotland, and increase of 8% (742 MW) over the year from Q2 2017.

2020 – The equivalent of 100% of Scotland’s gross annual electricity consumption generated from renewable sources