Daria Shapovalova opines on nuclear power as well. A similar approach was taken by the Scottish Government with regards to the new nuclear power stations in Scotland. Currently, the two remaining nuclear power stations in Scotland, Hunterston B and Torness, are scheduled for decommissioning in 2023and 2030 respectively. The UK Government expressed support for new nuclear energy developments in England, emphasising its importance as a low-carbon baseload electricity source. The State support for new nuclear projects, such the Hinkley Point C, include the Government Debt Guarantee Scheme and the Contracts for Difference. Notably,the strike price dened in the CfD for Hinkley Point is £92.5/MWh, compared to about £75 for offshorewind in the second CfD auction.
The Scottish Government does not object to life extensions for the existing plants, but opposes the construction of new nuclear power stations. The main arguments for the opposition relate to the lack of sustainable nuclear waste storage solutions and the commitment to achieve renewable electricity production equivalent to 100% of Scotland’s gross electricity consumption from renewable sources by 2020. This opposition to new nuclear was formulated in the 2008 Energy Strategy, and reaffirmed in the updated 2017 one. Although, as discussed above, nuclear energy is a reserved matter, under the 1989 Electricity Act, Scotland can refuse applications for new nuclear power developments by using its powers to licence large generating stations.
The Scottish Government said it would consider the applications and it has not yet used its licensing power to refuse new nuclear plants, but any attempt to do so could raise a similar challenge to that currently being considered in the fracking case of an administrative power being used inappropriately to advance a policy which the Scottish Government may not have been competent to adopt.
Some of the questions that remain unanswered are: a) how do these ambitions fit into the reality of today’s energy mix?, and 2) is the Scottish Governmentoverstepping its legal mandate by exercising control over the country’s energy sector?
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