Asked by: David Duguid (Conservative - Banff and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support companies to facilitate the creation of new civil nuclear power in Scotland.
Answered by Greg Hands
The Government’s goal is to have a domestic nuclear market that maximises commercial opportunities in all parts of the UK including Scotland. The Government is committed to ensuring that all of the UK supply chain has the opportunity to compete for high-value contracts, that new nuclear developers share supply chain information with industry early, and to creating the right environment for UK companies to prepare to bid for these opportunities including Scotland. Companies from across the UK have an integral role to play in the creation of new nuclear power and the Government is focussed on supporting them to do so. Scotland has an excellent civil nuclear tradition, and the Government wants to see that continue.
Asked by: David Duguid (Conservative - Banff and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what funding the Government (a) has provided and (b) is planning to allocate to offshore wind projects in Scotland.
Answered by Greg Hands
The UK is a world leader in the deployment of offshore wind and development in Scottish waters, as supported through the Contracts for Difference Scheme and the Renewables Obligation Certificate. The Crown Estate Scotland’s recently announced “ScotWind” seabed leasing round, which released almost 25GW of additional capacity in Scottish waters, including 15GW of floating offshore wind. This places Scotland in a good position to continue benefitting from the growth of offshore wind into the 2030s and beyond.
To continue to capitalise on this booming sector, the Government is investing up to £160 million for new large-scale floating offshore wind ports and factories. This funding, boosted by private sector investment, will develop industrial capacity capable of mass-producing floating offshore wind turbines and installing them out at sea, creating thousands of new jobs in the UK’s industrial heartlands. This investment also presents huge opportunities for Scotland’s coastal communities as well as communities up and down the UK, and will build on Scotland's lead as a technology hub for offshore wind.
Asked by: David Duguid (Conservative - Banff and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to increase network resiliency in response to Storm Arwen.
Answered by Greg Hands
My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has commissioned a post-incident review into Storm Arwen to identify lessons and best practice for system resilience, consumer protection and additional response support. The terms of reference are available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/storm-arwen-electricity-distribution-disruption-review.
Asked by: David Duguid (Conservative - Banff and Buchan)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions his Department has had with the devolved Administrations on electricity network infrastructure in response to Storm Arwen.
Answered by Greg Hands
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy engaged with the Scottish and Welsh Government throughout Storm Arwen.
The Scottish and Welsh Governments, as members of the Energy Emergencies Executive Committee, will be engaged in the post-incident review of Storm Arwen that has been commissioned by my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.