Scottish Labour’s Lewis Macdonald has warned the SNP Government that a new coal-fired power station at Hunterston would send out all the wrong signals about Scotland’s commitments on climate change.
 
Ayrshire Power wants to build a coal-fired power station likely to produce upwards of 6 tonnes of carbon every year, in place of the existing nuclear power station. Labour supports the development of carbon capture and storage as demonstrated by Ed Miliband’s announcement last week of a UK demonstration project at Longannet, but believes Hunterston is the wrong option.
 
Scottish Labour Energy Spokesman Lewis Macdonald:
 
"If Scotland is going to make a significant contribution to cutting carbon emissions it makes no sense to start by building a coal fired power station in place of nuclear electricity. If this goes ahead it will set back Scotland’s prospects of meeting our commitments on climate change.
 
"Carbon capture and storage could play an important role in tackling climate change in the future, which is why the British Labour Government is investing many millions of pounds in proving the technology at Longannet.
 
"But a new plant at Hunterston now is the wrong technology in the wrong place at the wrong time.
 
“This is a direct result of the SNP ruling out new nuclear for the future. We need a balanced energy policy and this proposal gets the balance wrong.  The SNP's environmental credibility is now in tatters as they are failing to deliver on energy efficiency and local renewables for householders."

15 March 2010