Renewable Energy Generation in Scotland Assignment

Renewable Energy Generation in Scotland - Assignment Example This research will begin with the statement that the amount of renewable energy generated in Scotland is increasing day by day, with onshore-wind energy being the single largest contributor. The present trends in renewable energy generation indicate that it would technically be feasible to achieve the Scottish Executive’s target of 40% energy generation from a range of renewable resources by 2020. While renewable energy generation will undoubtedly help meet Scotland’s commitment to addressing climate change, it also places a lot of constraints on the existing grid and power distribution system due to the intermittent generation of electricity from wind-mills, which calls for adequate interconnectivity build-up of the Scottish grid with its neighboring grid systems besides necessitating the introduction and implementation of energy storage and demand side management technologies. In addition to onshore-wind, other renewable technologies such as offshore-wind, wave and ti dal energy also hold out promises of energy generation though to lesser degrees. This paper attempts to address some of the basic issues in renewable energy generation as applicable to the Scottish context. The influence of renewable energy generation on demand management, the effect of rise or fall in renewable energy generation on the Scottish grid, the accessory storage facilities and technologies required for renewable energy industry and their possible sites are also discussed. According to FREDSThe government of UK has set a target to cut CO2 emissions by 60% by 2050 to achieve which 30-40% of electricity would have to be generated from renewable energy resources. This requires that Scotland generate 40% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. The Friends of the Earth Scotland point out that demand scenarios can be either of demand growth or of demand reduction. In the Demand Growth scenario, demand is expected to grow again in 2011 as the present recession is about to be over and the projected demand will attain a steady growth of 12.2% corresponding to 45,900GWh annually by 2030. In the Demand Reduction scenario, the demand will start diminishing from 2012 resulting in an annual electricity consumption of only up to 35,180GWh by 2030.The projected values for demand growth and demand reduction in a Low Renewable scenario and High renewable scenario are shown at Table-1 while renewable energy generation as a percentage of total consumption is shown at Table-2.