Kenneth Gibson has welcomed figures from the UK Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) which show that Scotland has exceeded the SNP Government’s target of having half of Scottish electricity consumption from renewables by 2015. The figures published by DECC show that 57.7% of Scottish electricity consumption came from renewables in 2015, up 7.9% on the year before and 7.7% ahead of target.
Growth in the UK is somewhat slower and only a quarter of electricity comes from renewables, although progress is being made. The figures also show that 2015 was a record year for both wind and hydro generation, with wind output up 21.2% and hydro up 7.2%.
Commenting, Kenneth Gibson said:
“These are encouraging figures and show that Scotland is well on course to reach our target of 100% of electricity from renewable sources by 2020.
“The SNP Government’s consistency of energy policy has enabled businesses to make long-term investment decisions in Scotland, whereas the UK Government consistently shifts its position, creating uncertainty.
“Only the re-election of an SNP Government in May will ensure a steady increase in renewables activity with increased investment and employment in the years ahead.”
