Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the announcement in November 2021 that two 2GW high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electricity ‘superhighways’ will be established between Torness and Hawthorn Pit (Scotland to England Green Link 1) and between Peterhead and Drax (Scotland to England Green Link 2), what estimate he has made of the amount of energy that will be transferred via these links each year; and whether his Department plans to make payments to (a) the Scottish Government or (b) Scottish communities in relation to the scheme.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government welcomes strategic network projects such as the Torness and Peterhead links, and their acceleration to support 2030 offshore wind ambition, as set out in in Ofgem’s Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment framework. National Grid ESO estimates that these links will facilitate the transmission of an additional 5 TWh of energy from North to South in their first year.
Following a commitment in the British Energy Security Strategy, the Government is also looking to consult on community benefit options for communities hosting transmission network infrastructure.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what provision will be made under the Energy Bills Discount scheme for businesses dependent on unregulated fuels.
Answered by Graham Stuart
As per the current Energy Bill Relief Scheme, those receiving gas or electricity delivered over public networks from non-licensed providers will also benefit from comparable support under the further schemes if necessary. The Government is seeking evidence from organisations unable to access the EBRS because they are non-licensed providers of energy or provide energy to businesses in non-standard ways. The Government welcomes energy providers’ responses by the closing date of 20 January 2023.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the annual amount of energy that will be to be transmitted by the electricity superhighways from Torness and Peterhead in Scotland to Hawthorn Pit and Drax in England.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Ofgem, as the independent energy regulator, uses the price control process to determine the amount of funding allocated for network infrastructure projects, including the Torness and Peterhead projects. This includes regulating the cost of their build, ownership, operation and maintenance. The Government welcomes such strategic network projects and their acceleration to support the 2030 offshore wind ambition, as set out in Ofgem’s Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment framework. National Grid ESO estimates that these links will facilitate the transmission of an additional 5 TWh of energy from north to south in their first year.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department will (a) operate and (b) meet the maintenance costs of the electricity superhighways from Torness and Peterhead in Scotland to Hawthorn Pit and Drax in England.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Ofgem, as the independent energy regulator, uses the price control process to determine the amount of funding allocated for network infrastructure projects, including the Torness and Peterhead projects. This includes regulating the cost of their build, ownership, operation and maintenance. The Government welcomes such strategic network projects and their acceleration to support the 2030 offshore wind ambition, as set out in Ofgem’s Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment framework. National Grid ESO estimates that these links will facilitate the transmission of an additional 5 TWh of energy from north to south in their first year.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department will provide funding for the construction of the electricity superhighways from Torness and Peterhead in Scotland to Hawthorn Pit and Drax in England.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Ofgem, as the independent energy regulator, uses the price control process to determine the amount of funding allocated for network infrastructure projects, including the Torness and Peterhead projects. This includes regulating the cost of their build, ownership, operation and maintenance. The Government welcomes such strategic network projects and their acceleration to support the 2030 offshore wind ambition, as set out in Ofgem’s Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment framework. National Grid ESO estimates that these links will facilitate the transmission of an additional 5 TWh of energy from north to south in their first year.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what guidance his Department has provided to energy suppliers on the provision of the £200 Alternative Fuel Payment to households.
Answered by Graham Stuart
In advance of households receiving the Alternative Fuel Payment in February, the Department has been working at pace with stakeholders including energy suppliers. The Department has shared draft guidance for the scheme, which will be published in due course.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an estimate of the number of households that have legacy prepayment meters in (a) Scotland and (b) the UK.
Answered by Graham Stuart
Ofgem is the regulator for the GB Energy Market. According to Ofgem figures for Q3 2022, there were 294,459 traditional prepayment meters in Scotland and 2,028,179 in GB.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will make an estimate of the number of households that have both (a) legacy pre-payment meters and (b) rely on alternative fuels in (i) Scotland and (ii) the UK.
Answered by Graham Stuart
In Scotland in Q3 2022, there were 497,943 customers on prepayment meters, of which 203,484 are smart meters and 294,459 are traditional meters.
In the UK in Q3 2022, there were 4,069,814 customers on prepayment meters, of which 2,041,635 are smart meters and 2,028,179 are traditional meters.
170,000 homes are using alternative fuel for heating in Scotland and over 1.2m homes do so across Great Britain as a whole.
The Government does not hold data on how many households have both.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 29 November 2022 to Question 95943 on the Energy Charter Treaty, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the findings of France’s High Council on Climate’s Report on the Modernisation of the Energy Charter Treaty, published in October 2022.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The UK has been closely monitoring the situation surrounding the Energy Charter Treaty’s modernisation process, including the positions taken by other Contracting Parties. The Government will continue to do so as part of its engagement with the Treaty’s modernisation process.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent assessment he has made of the compatibility of the UK’s membership of the Energy Charter Treaty with commitments made under the Paris Agreement.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The UK has been an advocate for the Energy Charter Treaty modernisation on the basis that the modernised Treaty would be compatible with the Paris Agreement. The UK is monitoring developments on the modernisation process, including the positions taken by other Contracting Parties.