Letters / Oot da Nort Mooth
The deal with Statkraft to lease land at Scatsta is not just disappointing – it’s an insult to our community and a betrayal of the principles in the council’s own ‘Fair Share for Shetland’ policy.
A ‘fair share’? Differing views on Scatsta community benefit agreement
An annual rent of £1.13 million plus a ‘community benefit’ of £2 million for one of Europe’s most valuable industrial sites is, frankly, a giveaway.
Compared to the profits Statkraft stands to make, this is a drop in the ocean. Instead of the profits going “oot da Sooth mooth” this time they will be “heading oot da Nort mooth” and straight over to Norway.
When the council made the original deal with the oil industry in respect of Sullom Voe, the public income was tied to how much oil flowed through the pipeline – a model that reflected actual economic activity.
In contrast, the Statkraft deal is based on the turbines’ rated capacity, not the electricity they’ll actually produce. It’s a model that leaves Shetland short-changed yet again.
The council leadership often talks about ‘greater autonomy’ and building a more self-sufficient Shetland. But when faced with a real opportunity to do just that, they’ve rolled over.
Have no lessons been learned from the Viking Wind Farm fiasco? Had the community obtained a shareholding in this venture, the profits could have been used to build the tunnels our islands so desperately need.
A successful Statkraft negotiation would have gone some way to redress the mistakes made with Viking. However, rather than driving a hard bargain on behalf of the community, the council leadership has sold another part of Shetland for almost nothing.
It’s time for Shetland to find its confidence again. To stop underselling ourselves. To be more ambitious, more demanding, and more forward-looking. Just look to the Faroe Islands – they would never allow such a lopsided deal on their land. They know their worth. So must we.
This has to change not just in policy, but in mindset. Shetland deserves better, and we must start expecting better.
Hannah Mary Goodlad
SNP parliamentary candidate
