Onshore Wind Strategic Leadership Group minutes: July 2022

Attendees and apologies

• Megan Amundson, Sector Deal Deputy, Scottish Renewables
• Jasmine Killen, Head of Onshore Electricity Policy, Scottish Government
• Neil Douglas, Scottish Renewables Sector Deal Support, BVG Associates
• Graham Gow, Scottish Renewables Sector Deal Support, BVG Associates
• Heather Donald, G12 Representative, SSE
• Marcus Trinick KC, Planning Considerations Lead
• Sam Johnson, Techincal Barriers Lead, Renewable Energy Systems Ltd
• Paul Wheelhouse, Supply Chain, Skills and Circular Economy Lead, South of Scotland Enterprise
• John Boyce, G12 Representative, RES Group
• Chris Morris, Community Energy Lead, Local Energy Scotland
• Darren Hemsley, Land Use and Environmental Considerations Deputy, NatureScot 

Apologies

• Morag Watson, Sector Deal Lead, Scottish Renewables 

• Simon Gill, Legislative and Regulatory Barriers Lead, The Energy Landscape

• Robbie Kernahan, Land Use and Environmental Considerations Lead, Nature Scot

• Paul Cantwell, Circularity Lead, National Manufacturing Institute Scotland

Items and actions

Welcome and updates

The meeting was co-chaired by Scottish Government and Scottish Renewables. The SG chair set out the agenda and provided an update on key items since the last SLG. A replacement Deputy Director for Onshore Electricity Policy is not yet in place but will be shortly. Gillian Martin MSP, has temporarily taken on the role of Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy. Dr Alisdair Allan MSP is now covering the role of Minister for Climate Action.

The chair noted that since the last SLG, a new UK Government is now in place, and as one of their first actions have announced plans for a UK Government Onshore Wind Industry Taskforce. This taskforce includes representation from the Scottish Onshore Wind Strategic Leadership Group. The Energy Consents Unit (ECU) is expected to grow, to support the increase in volume of Section 36 and Section 36 applications. There is currently a recruitment campaign underway and two secondees have been brought in. 

Aviation update

Terms of Reference (TOR) for the new OnWard group are currently being drafted, with input from both the Scottish Government and DESNZ. A chair for the group should be confirmed soon and leads for each workstream have been appointed. There is potential to align this work with that of the new UK Onshore Wind Industry Taskforce. SLG members highlighted the importance of input from MOD, DESNZ and DfT and agreed the need to align with the UKG work.

Eskdalemuir update

The seismic array at Eskdalemuir fulfils the UK commitment to monitor seismic activity related to the testing of nuclear weapons, as set out in the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). To be effective there must be a limited amount of background noise. The vibrations from wind turbines could interfere with the array and so the MOD are consulted on applications for windfarms within 50km of the array. There has been an ongoing debate around the level of background noise which could be acceptable. If higher levels of background noise could still allow the array to function effectively, this could unlock up to 5-6 GW of new onshore wind developments within the array. This would have significant impact on achieving the Scottish and UK Government’s ambitions for wind generation and provide economic opportunities for the South of Scotland. The UK Government’s new taskforce will include a working group focussed on aviation and defence. The Scottish Government and the MOD will continue to work together to find a solution to enable more onshore wind developments within range of the array and will continue to collaborate with the UK Government, ensuring no duplication of efforts with the new taskforce.

Theme updates

The Community commitments are all progressing on schedule. Most Legislative and Regulatory commitments are on schedule, with one slightly delayed but still making progress. Eight of the nine Supply Chain and Skills commitments are due by the end of the year and all are on schedule. Some of the Planning commitments are delayed but are still progressing. There are some delays in the Technical commitments and these issues were discussed earlier in the meeting. There are some delays in the Land Use commitments. These are dependent on development with the data repository and progress is now being made on this commitment. Overall, the majority of work is moving forward on schedule.