• 3 minutes e-car sales collapse
  • 6 minutes America Is Exceptional in Its Political Divide
  • 11 minutes Perovskites, a ‘dirt cheap’ alternative to silicon, just got a lot more efficient
  • 54 mins GREEN NEW DEAL = BLIZZARD OF LIES
  • 7 days If hydrogen is the answer, you're asking the wrong question
  • 1 day How Far Have We Really Gotten With Alternative Energy
  • 11 days Biden's $2 trillion Plan for Insfrastructure and Jobs

Scotland has a Plan to become World Leaders in the Smart Grid Sector

Scotland has set itself the renewable energy target of producing 100% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020. A problem with renewable energy over traditional fossil fuels is that the power level generated varies greatly dependant on several factors, and this can put great stress on existing electrical grids, and cause problems of matching supply with demand for grid coordinators.

Smart Grids are digitally enabled grids that can accommodate changing patterns of demand and electricity generation. They help to easily and efficiently balance the different power levels coming from the renewable energy sources connected into the network. The increased efficiency reduces the price to the consumers and increases the reliability of the supply.

Smart Grids will be very important for Scotland’s renewable energy ambitions, and for this reason there are numerous world class Smart Grid research centres already exist in Scotland such as the Power Networks Demonstration Centre in Cumbernauld, the Electrical Power System Protection Laboratory of the University of Strathclyde and the Hydrogen Office in Fife; with even more currently in development, including the Clyde Gateway which is part of the Sustainable Glasgow initiative.

In May, at the All Energy conference in Aberdeen, First Minister Alex Salmond announced a new Smart Grid Strategy which plans to capitalise on the knowledge, expertise, and experience created during Scotland’s transformation to a renewable energy economy, in order to export that knowledge and experience and create a new sector of which Scotland will naturally become the world leader.

He predicts that nearly 12,000 jobs could be created by 2020 by developing just a few key areas such as including encouraging innovation, maximisation of the impact of pilot and demonstrator projects in Scotland, increasing awareness of energy management, development of a supply chain to seize economic opportunities for Scotland and improving dialogue and engagement across the sector and with related sectors.

By. Joao Peixe of Oilprice.com



Join the discussion | Back to homepage



Leave a comment
  • Ramakrishnan Haridas on June 11 2012 said:
    IT's quite an eye opener for the energy starving world economies. We should appreciate the brave and innovative move made by the Scotland towards the formation of new energy grid.

    when the current fossil fuel politics is pausing threat to the near future economics and world's power distribution strategies, it is the most appropriate move to create a parallel energy grid to balance the energy politics and energy economics.

    It is again appreciable that they have initiated at the right time. May more of the world economies be followed this great move.
  • Mike Haseler on June 11 2012 said:
    Just like Scottish Politicians all grids are smart ... when there's not enough wind blowing to create the electricity, they turn off.

    Likewise politicians, when there's not enough votes in renewables ... they stop.

Leave a comment

EXXON Mobil -0.35
Open57.81 Trading Vol.6.96M Previous Vol.241.7B
BUY 57.15
Sell 57.00
Oilprice - The No. 1 Source for Oil & Energy News