Letters / Don’t throw out da tuskar yet
It has been reported that EnQuest’s plans to produce e-methanol from hydrogen and oxygen at SVT, whereas ammonia from Tagdale (and Scatsta) requires hydrogen and nitrogen.
The common factor hydrogen needs lots of expensive energy – from where? The oxygen and nitrogen elements are more easily fractionated from air.
Tagdale plans to use hydrogen firstly produced via local wind turbines using electricity to split water. However, Statkraft will need an uninterrupted 24-hour power supply, (to ensure 24-hour ammonia tonnage production) from the electricity grid (from Scotland), which will also apply to Scatsta.
Are the proposals economic, and of benefit to Shetland?
Ammonia shipments from Tagdale or Sullom will be more expensive when discharged by ship in the Antwerp/Rotterdam area when compared against cargos delivered there, from Statkraft’s Narvik ammonia plant, which has the considerable added input price advantage of using much cheaper electricity supplied from Norwegian Hydro-electric plants, not from expensive electricity generated from wind turbines in or offshore Shetland.
However perhaps Statkraft may seek “incentives” – subsides from the UK exchequer and tax system to “allow” Tagdale/Scatsta to compete against their other supplies from Narvik. Perhaps “free” rent, rates or port charges in Sullom and or Lerwick Port Authority.
Conclusion – a very few jobs gained and with very little contributed or value added to Shetland’s and or UK coffers.
Equinor/Statkraft, have reportedly decided to sever any further connections to the worldwide offshore wind turbine projects in the renewables sector, and by implication and association those located onshore. (Why therefore continue with any or more on or offshore Shetland turbines?)
The proponents of these schemes rely on obtaining electricity from offshore wind turbines east of Shetland – and in time perhaps from the west, if Ceres is included – (not cheap – all very expensive).
Very recently a licensee of the Arven area has withdrawn from the project as it could not justify the investment because the economics don’t add up.
The other participants in the licenced areas east of Shetland will probably be asking themselves if it is now worthwhile investing in offshore schemes and subsequently also withdraw.
I refer to an article about that over two years ago which reported that the Zero Carbon Banking Alliance was withdrawing from financing any offshore turbine developments worldwide.
The scepticism of investors (which includes the likes of your/readers’ pension funds) continues two years since. After the Arven participant handed back the licence to the Scottish Government, SSEN have stepped into the game and is actively promoting the massive second HVDC to Shetland to land at Braewick, in Eshaness, supporting further development of yet more unwanted wind turbines in Northmavine to supplement those in Yell.
In due course it may also promote a junction box to divert/supply electricity to the oil and gas fields northwest of Shetland, to justify laying HVDC2 in the first place, all of which will be of questionable benefit to Shetland.
Whilst the project to produce methanol at SVT has considerable merit to (kerosene and transportation, for local use and for export etc), Shetlanders should be extremely wary of even considering an HVDC2 request by SSEN or both governments, to land at Eshaness (it is within the SICs 12 mile work licence restriction authorisation to deny and say-so) or anywhere else in Shetland for that matter.
Faroe would not allow the creeping but continual industrialisation of its islands by Denmark. Neither should Shetland allow Scotland to do so. Voters take heed.
That raises a question – what are the benefits of being in thrall to Holyrood. Some candidates opine we should vote to remain for yet another five years within Hollywood’s grip and, even permit or concur further consolidation and centralisation by the Scottish administrations, whose sole raison d’etre, is independence – from whom, but to what legitimate purpose – as Shetland has already experienced 555 years of that, resulting in having no control over anything whatsoever.
Crown Dependency like Falklands, Isle of Man, the Channel Islands would be more suitable to keep control within Shetland, but none of the present candidates or their parties are prepared to recognise Shetland’s serfdom to Holyrood/Westminster now or in future.
The UK electricity supply grid has to operate within tight parameters of voltage and frequency which at the moment are only provided by the Torness nuclear and the Peterhead gas plants, but if the latter goes down when the former is decommissioned, we are all in serious trouble.
No amount of wind turbines/renewables/batteries or hot air rhetoric at the electoral hustings or podcasts will add to that security, or boil a kettle in Unst. Therefore, don’t throw out da tuskar.
That being so it confirms the continuous need to supply Peterhead plant with gas, which in turn should provide the SIC enough ammunition and leverage to demand electricity for local consumption at zero cost to Shetland customers.
That in turn confirms and justifies the absolute requirement to bring on stream the Rosebank, Victory and Cambo.
However serious consideration should be given for the UK Government to connect a new small nuclear plant to safeguard the integrity supply and reliability of the UK national electricity grid, which could be located conveniently in northern Shetland to the benefit of all.
It would provide a continuous uninterrupted electricity supply to obtain hydrogen from water – considered cheap when financed and used over the next 100 years, very suitable for methanol-ammonia-calcium ammonium nitrate, fuelled not by uranium but by thorium, the latter producing little radioactive waste.
What do the eight hopeful candidates for Holyrood and the SIC cognoscenti have to say about it?
Surely their contributions will be of better quality than the recent shargin about who should get the credit for the comfort of passengers and cabins travelling on the Nort boat to Scotland. Dundee anyone?
Cecil Robertson
Inverness
