Ayrshire Power should not qualify for EU funding pot

Commenting on the announcement that Ayrshire Power is in the running for EU ‘New Entrants Reserve’ funding that could be directed towards innovative renewables, Juliet Swann, Head of Projects and Campaigns at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said:

“Ayrshire Power’s proposal to build a new coal fired power station that may capture some of the carbon on part of the plant is simply not deserving of this funding. Where Scotland has the advantage in the energy market is renewables – we have the potential to produce far in excess of our own needs and thus could reap the economic benefits of exports. Investment in Scotland’s energy infrastructure must therefore be directed towards innovative renewables.

“Directing limited EU funds towards the new coal fired power station that Ayrshire Power propose in Hunterson is foolhardy at best and economically and environmentally dangerous at worst.”

ENDS

For media enquiries, please contact:

Per Fischer, Press Office, Friends of the Earth Scotland
t: 0131 243 2719

Notes to Editors

DECC press release available here
www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/news/pn11_013/pn11_013.aspx

The Power of Scotland Secured – research showing how Scotland could phase out all fossil fuel and nuclear power by 2030, maintain a secure electricity supply and generate significant revenue from renewable exports.
www.foe-scotland.org.uk/power-secured