Ofgem rejects subsea power line for Shetland Islands

Lerwick’s diesel power station [image credit: BBC]

The plan was to link a power cable to the UK mainland and have new diesel generators as back-up. But now they will rely on imported diesel and medium fuel oil as before, and wait to see if wind power appears on the scene.

Diesel plant will remain open until 2025 after EU emissions limits relaxed, reports Utility Week.

Ofgem has rejected plans to install a 60MW power line between the Shetland Islands and mainland Britain.

The regulator said the subsea cable is no longer needed as the loosening of emissions limits means the islands’ ageing diesel power plant can remain open for longer than previously anticipated.

SSE’s 67MW Lerwick Power Station was due to close by 2021 due to tougher emissions limits introduced under the EU’s Industrial Emissions Directive (IED).

In 2014, Ofgem instructed the system operator for the islands, Scottish and Southern Energy Networks (SSEN), to hold a competitive tender to ensure security of supply following the plant’s closure.

In May, SSEN selected proposals by National Grid Shetland Link and Aggreko to install a 60MW high voltage direct current (HVDC) cable to mainland Britain and build new backup diesel generation on the islands. Ofgem launched a consultation on the costs in July and concluded that the companies had presented a good business case to develop the link.

However, the regulator has now said that two major developments since then have undermined the case for the project.

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