Hydrogen

Energy resources of Scotland

Stephen Richard — Mon, 18 Oct 2021 11:47:58 +0000

Energy resources of Scotland Stephen Richard Mon, 10/18/2021 - 12:47

Author or Creator

Common Weal

Scotland is blessed with remarkable renewable energy resources but has cold winters, a lot of inefficient housing, a very high reliance on gas heating and a particular reliance on transport. We need to tackle all of these. The hardest is heating – there is simply no easy solution to weaning ourselves off natural gas. Alternatives which use the same infrastructure (like hydrogen) are very expensive and alternatives like electric heating (also comparatively expensive) would require enormous amounts of work to replace existing household heating systems and would require a very big investment in both more electricity generation and the electricity grid. There is no quick, easy way to do this and retrofitting renewable heating (like Heat Pumps) to most existing houses isn’t realistic. So if we’re going to have to make a massive investment, let’s get it right.

The first step is that we must make our houses much more efficient so we don’t need to heat them so much in the first place, so a major programme of insulating and draft-proofing houses is the first step. Then we need to put in place a heating system which will last for many generations, is clean and efficient and inexpensive for households. The best option is a ‘district heating’ system, where heat is generated in lots of different ways (all renewable), collected in a heat store and then distributed to houses as they need it via a network of pipes. Households just need to switch their existing boilers for heat exchangers and the rest of their heating system should work as is. Make no mistake, this is a truly immense engineering project, but so is anything that heats our homes without feeding a climate emergency.

Electricity is more straightforward in Scotland because of our renewable resources – but we’re going to need more of it. To meet future demand and produce enough spare energy to ensure energy security we will need to double the amount of currently-installed renewable generation and put a lot of energy storage in place. But that’s not enough because if we also want to move to clean transport we’ll need more electricity again – in total about three times what we currently have. Thankfully this can all be achieved with onshore and offshore wind in Scotland, leaving our marine energy resources for other purposes. And if we do it right we can take not only all this new energy into public ownership but the existing energy as well – so we control our own energy system.

Which leaves transport. This too is a massive task – we need to replace the entire fleet of petroleum-based transport. It is almost certain the way to do this is to move to electric battery-power for smaller vehicles like cars and vans and to hydrogen for big vehicles like lorries and ferries. But to achieve that we’ll also need all that extra electricity, a source of clean hydrogen and major investment in charging and refuelling infrastructure.

So where do we get our clean hydrogen from? This is where Scotland’s marine energy comes in. At the moment almost all commercial hydrogen produces carbon dioxide, not when it is used but when it is created in the first place by breaking down natural gas. Clean hydrogen is made with electricity and water – but it needs a lot of electricity. Thankfully Scotland has massive wave and tidal energy opportunities and these can be used to make hydrogen for vehicle transport. Even more than that, it can give Scotland a world lead in hydrogen technology and because we have much more marine energy than we need for domestic transport it is also potentially an amazing export opportunity.

Keywords

Get the future of energy right

Stephen Richard — Tue, 14 Sep 2021 08:42:06 +0000

Get the future of energy right

Primary Author or Creator

Common Weal

Stephen Richard Tue, 09/14/2021 - 09:42

Alternative Published Date

2020

Category

Energy

Type of Resource

Video

Length (Pages, words, minutes etc...)

1:35 minutes

Fast Facts

Energy – electricity, heating and transport fuel – is crucial for the modern Scotland we live in. But it can also be one of our biggest threats if we don’t get them right. It can harm our environment and play a major role in causing the climate crisis. ‘Energy inequality’ can harm the health of those who can’t afford to heat their homes. Scotland is one of the few countries in Europe which does not own its energy publicly and the only one that doesn’t own its own National Grid.

Video 1:35 minutes

More details

Common Weal has published too much work on energy to link to all of it here (three key documents are Powering Our Ambitions, Just Warmth and Carbon-Free, Poverty-Free). But most of it is summarised in the Common Home Plan with sections on energy efficiency, electricity, heating and transport

So what is the vision? Scotland is blessed with remarkable renewable energy resources but has cold winters, a lot of inefficient housing, a very high reliance on gas heating and a particular reliance on transport. We need to tackle all of these. The hardest is heating – there is simply no easy solution to weaning ourselves off natural gas. Alternatives which use the same infrastructure (like hydrogen) are very expensive and alternatives like electric heating (also comparatively expensive) would require enormous amounts of work to replace existing household heating systems and would require a very big investment in both more electricity generation and the electricity grid. There is no quick, easy way to do this and retrofitting renewable heating (like Heat Pumps) to most existing houses isn’t realistic. So if we’re going to have to make a massive investment, let’s get it right.

There is no simple solution to our need to clean up our energy, but great opportunities if we do. All that investment creates lots and lots of jobs and economic opportunities in supply chains – but only if we do it right. That’s why we need a proper structure for doing all of this collectively, from the public purse and in the public interest. A National Housing Company can plan and deliver home insulation, a Scottish Energy Development Agency can plan and manage this entire transition and a Scottish National Energy Company can deliver the work and then own our energy system on the public’s behalf.

Resource Address (URL)

https://commonweal.scot/big-ideas/get-the-future-of-energy-right/

Keywords

Language English

21 For 21: The Climate Change Actions Scotland Needs Now

Stephen Richard — Sun, 12 Sep 2021 20:50:44 +0000

21 For 21: The Climate Change Actions Scotland Needs Now

Primary Author or Creator

Common Weal

Stephen Richard Sun, 09/12/2021 - 21:50

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Energy Policy Group

Date Published

Mon, 08/09/2021 - 12:00

Category

Climate change

Type of Resource

Policy Paper

Fast Facts

21 Policies that would enable Scotland to meet our responsibilities as laid out by the 2021 IPCC Sixth Assessment Report

More details

The 21 actions we are calling for are as follows:

1. Build a Green New Deal
Scotland needs a comprehensive, coordinated plan which delivers major social benefits while tackling climate change

2. Start our own energy company
A National Energy Company will let us build and control the infrastructure Scotland needs to decarbonise

3. Plan our energy future
Setting up a Scottish Energy Development Agency enables us to plan the infrastructure we need in the public good

4. Build what we need in the right way
By establishing a National Infrastructure Company we can ensure that the infrastructure we need is built to the highest standard and owned by the public

5. Leave no-one without a warm house
A proper, coordinated plan of increasing energy efficiency for all homes without exception will help householders and reduce carbon

6. Capture waste heat and use it
If we introduce a Heat Supply Act it can require large producers of waste heat to capture and recycle that heat for public use

7. Future-proof the electricity grid
We must commit to long-term investment in local electricity grid reinforcement, management and energy storage to prepare for a secure, renewable energy future

8. Fair connection charges for Scotland’s power
Renewable energy production in Scotland pays a very high cost for feeding it into the grid – this is unjust and must be reformed

9. End coal, end nuclear
Scotland has bountiful renewable energy resources and has no need for dangerous and polluting fuels and energy technologies

10. No new oil
Scotland must ban new oil and gas exploration and set out a route map for phasing out all fossil fuels

11. Train a renewables workforce
To transition people from the fossil fuel and nuclear industries and prepare them for a renewable future we should set up a ‘one-stop shop’ for retraining

12. Back a green hydrogen road-map
Scotland needs clear guidance on how we develop and use Green Hydrogen so we can built this new industry as quickly and efficiently as possible

13. Make energy efficiency meaningful
The way we measure the thermal performance of buildings is riddled with problems so we must reform Energy Performance Certificates so they reflect reality

14. Measure the whole-life energy of houses
Include embodied energy (the energy needed to build a house, not just run it) in the next revision of the Building Standards

15. Energy-efficient appliances only
The energy rating of electrical appliances is about to be revised, so choose now to ban the sale of appliances with ratings below the new C level

16. Make localism work
Prioritising localism has enormous energy-saving benefits so make all neighbourhoods ‘20-minute neighbourhoods’

17. Set a legal right to homeworking
Homeworking saves energy and time, so while not everyone can or wants to home work and no-one should be forced, anyone who does should be given the right to do so

18. Fewer cruise ships
Cruise ships are environmentally damaging and don’t help the economy so Scotland should introduce a quota for cruise ships entering Scottish waters and ports

19. Explore a flights quota
There is no green alternative to the way we fly available so we must limit our flights with flight quotas, a moratorium on airport expansion and investment in airships

20. Divest from fossil fuel
Require all public sector bodies to commit to divesting from fossil fuels in the next year

21. Clean politics
End the influence fossil fuel lobbyists have over our politics by signing up to the Fossil Free Politics campaign

Resource Address (URL)

https://commonweal.scot/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/21-For-21.pdf

Keywords

Renewable manufacturing

Hydrogen

Energy efficient buildings

Homeworking

Language English

Energy Strategy Consultation: Common Weal submission

Stephen Richard — Wed, 01 Sep 2021 13:11:24 +0000

Energy Strategy Consultation: Common Weal submission

Primary Author or Creator

Susan Brush

Stephen Richard Wed, 09/01/2021 - 14:11

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Iain Wright, Gordon Morgan, Common Weal

Alternative Published Date

2017

Category

Energy

Type of Resource

Policy Paper

Fast Facts

This paper

― Recognises the huge economic contribution North Sea Oil and Gas have made to the Scottish economy

― Urges the Scottish Government to add a “just and fair transition” of jobs to the low carbon economy as a priority, and to seek alternative sectors using the skills base and domestic supply chains we have. Alternative sectors are likely to include offshore renewable generation and on-land infrastructure (e.g. district heating, for which we currently import the pipework) as well as decommissioning mature oil wells.

― Has concerns regards the primacy given to the development and commercialisation of CCS, and has questions regards its technical feasibility and cost effectiveness and the implication that fossil fuel plants could be retained longer than necessary. Nevertheless we welcome the EU funding of the Acorn project to test the feasibility of CCS at Peterhead

― Support, in principle, exploration of new non-fossil fuel energy sources, provided they come with safeguards of environmental protection, take cognisance of public opinion, especially of communities affected (both local and communities of interest), and a fair settlement is agreed with local communities.

― Has a specific concern about unconventional oil and gas which includes not only environmental matters and strong public opposition, but the licensing arrangements: that licenses are currently sold by Crown Estates, with no input at a local or Scottish level other than within the Planning process.

― Strongly supports exploration of alternative energy carriers, such as hydrogen.

― Supports the priority of increasing renewable generation.

― Views that the fifth priority, “increasing the flexibility, efficiency and resilience of a future energy system”, as fundamentally essential to underpin whatever future energy system we will have. This matter is complex and merits far greater discussion and we have addressed it at greater length below.

More details

Common Weal warmly welcomes publication of this draft energy strategy and its “Whole System View” that includes both short and longer term targets and visions.

We also welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to honouring climate change targets, showing Scotland is indeed playing a leading and responsible role in the world.

We welcome the quality of public discussion generated by the consultation and we are pleased to take the opportunity to respond to it.

Common Weal fully supports the principles set out in this strategy and agrees with the policy objectives it contains. However we would like to see the intended “Whole System View” adopt a greater degree of integration between energy and industrial development, for example, the creation of demand by energy-intensive users closer to production in northern Scotland. Finding ways to achieve this would reduce the need for the further investment in costly transmission infrastructure that will further drive up the cost of grid connections.

Transformation of the energy system is essential if Scotland is to meet its environmental objectives, so this draft energy strategy is to be commended in addressing the need to look beyond renewable electricity production and towards decarbonisation of transport and heating. In adopting an all-energy approach to strategy development, we believe the Scottish Government is following a path that is most likely to deliver the desired outcomes. In particular, we support an approach that avoids mandating a particular technology mix for energy production, as the strategy has a significant dependency on solutions that are not yet proven at scale. However this was also true of wind generation 15 or 20 years ago and there is no reason to suppose that new energy technologies will not similarly benefit from a supportive energy policy environment.

Common Weal is concerned that the UK Government has placed obstacles in the path of the Scottish Government achieving its carbon free objectives. These range from:

• The privatisation of the energy market in the 1980s which resulted for a long time in a lack of investment in grid infrastructure; • The fact that Energy Policy is a reserved power under the devolution settlement; • The short-sighted changes in energy policy and subsidies;

• The ban on on-shore wind development in England;

• The decision to proceed with the ludicrously expensive Hinkley Point C and other nuclear reactors;

• The lack of flexibility in the charging regime for grid connections which inhibit new Scottish generation in favour of the South of England.

Common Weal believes that these and more of the potential conflicts with the UK Government should be delineated in the strategy so as to make the case for full devolution of energy policy and or Scottish Independence. Indeed we have concerns that unless this is addressed, the ambitious goals set out cannot be achieved.

Nevertheless, Common Weal welcomes the priorities set out in the paper in particular the desire to transform the energy system to one based on carbon free energy and to encourage research and deployment of new sources of energy.

We strongly support the establishment of a Scottish Energy Company which can support local energy cooperatives and smaller public energy companies and provide a level playing field for energy pricing and investment. This should be backed by Energy Bonds and a public investment bank. Indeed if the model for the public energy company was the Danish Energy Agency, which administers energy and supply in Denmark, many of the problems associated with a privatised energy market could be addressed.

Energy is essential for social existence and Scotland is fortunate to have abundant natural resources of wind, wave, tidal, solar, hydro and geothermal to produce this carbon free energy. The challenge is to make it available to all whilst ensuring jobs, social inclusion and democratic control.

Q1 What are your views on the priorities presented in this chapter for energy supply over the coming decades? In answering, please consider whether the priorities are the right ones for delivering our vision. Common Weal wishes to make the following points as regards the priorities listed before addressing other priorities of a more general nature.

Common Weal:

• Recognises the huge economic contribution North Sea Oil and Gas have made to the Scottish economy;

• Urges the Scottish Government to add a “just and fair transition” of jobs to the low carbon economy as a priority, and to seek alternative sectors using the skills base and domestic supply chains we have. Alternative sectors are likely to include offshore renewable generation and on-land infrastructure (e.g. district heating, for which we currently import the pipework) as well as decommissioning mature oil wells;

• Has concerns regards the primacy given to the development and commercialisation of CCS, and has questions regards its technical feasibility and cost effectiveness and the implication that fossil fuel plants could be retained longer than necessary. Nevertheless we welcome the EU funding of the Acorn project to test the feasibility of CCS at Peterhead;

• Support, in principle, exploration of new non-fossil fuel energy sources, provided they come with safeguards of environmental protection, take cognisance of public opinion, especially of communities affected (both local and communities of interest), and a fair settlement is agreed with local communities.

• Has a specific concern about unconventional oil and gas which includes not only environmental matters and strong public opposition, but the licensing arrangements: that licenses are currently sold by Crown Estates, with no input at a local or Scottish level other than within the Planning process.

• Strongly supports exploration of alternative energy carriers, such as hydrogen;

• Supports the priority of increasing renewable generation; • Views that the fifth priority, “increasing the flexibility, efficiency and resilience of a future energy system”, as fundamentally essential to underpin whatever future energy system we will have. This matter is complex and merits far greater discussion and we have addressed it at greater length below;

• Sees Scotland as a potential net energy exporter, but would prioritise meeting Scotland’s own energy and economic needs over large-scale exports. Common Weal wishes to make the following observations about more general priorities.

Integration of Industrial Strategy

The consultation recognises the importance of ensuring security of supply and this would be our overriding priority in the process of delivering the level of transformational change to Scotland’s energy system that this consultation envisages. However, we believe that the value of such an ambitious strategy would be enhanced by a greater emphasis on how a comprehensive energy policy can be used to support wider economic objectives.

Common Weal’s vision for future would include locating energy-intensive industries that can utilise energy with variable output, close to generation sites; allowing supply by direct line from the generator, avoiding the need for a gridconnection, or for a carrier fuel.

So we believe that exploitation of energy resources, of all kinds, should be managed in the context of an industrial policy that seeks to develop energy-intensive industries, such as ammonia/hydrogen production, in a way that avoids incurring Transmission Charges wherever possible. Currently these frequently make the difference between a proposed scheme being viable and not.

This industrialisation strategy is one that has been pursued by Iceland; developing aluminium production and renewable energy resources in tandem. While there are significant differences between a dispatchable, geothermal/hydro-based system and the variable output/distributed generation system in Scotland/GB, the overarching principal of exploiting resource availability to leverage economic development should be the same. Whilst heat generation and storage can take up some of load as per Iceland, the only differences being the likely need for a carrier fuel/ substantive storage in Scotland, to redistribute energy over time.

Resource Address (URL)

https://commonweal.scot/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Energy-Strategy-Consultation…

Keywords

Language English

The Future of Low Carbon Heat For Off-Gas Buildings

Stephen Richard — Tue, 31 Aug 2021 15:45:12 +0000

The Future of Low Carbon Heat For Off-Gas Buildings

Primary Author or Creator

Common Weal

Stephen Richard Tue, 08/31/2021 - 16:45

Additional Author(s) / Creators

Glaagow Caledonian University, Energy Poverty Research Initiative

Date Published

Tue, 09/17/2019 - 12:00

Category

Energy

Type of Resource

Policy Paper

Fast Facts

― We have identified no examples of low-carbon heating being taken up on a large scale without government assistance.

― The primary barrier to the roll-out of low carbon heat is financial. Efficient schemes like renewably powered district heating will have to be government financed.

― Without significant government planning, individual households are likely to decarbonise their heat using heat pumps which, while an improvement over fossil fuels, have significant downsides – not least, their collective impact on the electrical grid.

― Biofuels like biopropane or biokerosene may play a significant role in rural heating where they can seamlessly replace off-grid heating without the need to install new infrastructure.

― However we remain cautious about the roll-out of hydrogen which will require almost as much new infrastructure as district heating, will deliver less good outcomes and will encourage the use of “blue” hydrogen derived from fossil fuels as much as it will encourage “green” hydrogen from renewable sources.

Resource Address (URL)

https://commonweal.scot/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Low-carbon-heat-submission.p…

Keywords

Housing

Energy efficient buildings

Language English