Blog: 2020 days to 2020 and counting

Today (Midsummer’s day 2014) is numerically interesting because it is now 2020 days until the year 2020; a year that has become burdened by targets and aspirations; a year that was set up as an important milestone along the journey to a sustainable energy future.

Scotland’s main target is to be producing the equivalent of 100% of its electricity from renewables by then. This looks likely to be achieved and should be a source of real pride when Scotland gets there. It will be the result of sustained multi party effort, in a supportive regulatory environment, in an area rich in renewable resources. It is led by a vision, and a need to deal with climate change, sustainable jobs and the scale of new opportunities becoming visible. Achieving this target is not going to be easy, but this IS going to be possible.

And it will be a remarkable achievement.

It was not many years ago that wind and PV were fringe technologies. When I became interested in energy in the 80s these were known as ‘alternative energy’ not ‘renewables’ and there were a lot of earnest people in jumpers at  the small and infrequent exhibitions. Now these technologies are just seen as energy sources and it is just business. You no longer have to do-it-yourself; you can buy from a dazzling array of renewables products that fill every niche from charging boat batteries up to supplying a whole town with power. Now there are more business suits than sweaters, the conferences are bigger and more frequent, and the products come with warranties rather than self help bulletins. Renewables grew up and got real. It took time, it required patience and the right conditions, but it happened.

So we can achieve remarkable things over time. In the last 2020 days, the installed capacity for wind in the UK has more than trebled (from 3,288MW at the end of 2008, to 10,531 at the end of 2013), and here in Orkney last year we generated over 100% of our electricity needs from renewables for the first time

And this week saw a (literally) concrete example of how timely early public sector involvement will help this happen for marine. The new pier at Coplands Dock in Stromness was officially opened by the First Minister Alex Salmond MSP on Monday. This pier is part of Orkney Islands Council’s 3 Port Strategy to ensure there is sufficient provision of pier and harbour space for marine renewables. It was a brave and visionary move by the Council (the smallest local authority in the UK) shortly after the Crown Estate’s announcement of the Pentland Firth & Orkney Waters leasing round in 2008.Believe it or not that announcement was 2086 days ago. So we are nearer to 2020 than we are to the date of the announcement.

Was it right for the council to commit public money? Well last year we saw one of the other piers (Hatston) host frantic activity by 4 different tidal developers at the same time all getting ready to deploy their tidal turbines. And let’s be clear: without the decision to build the pier there would be no pier. Without the pier the machines would not be in the sea. It is another perfect illustration of how with the right, timely, investment progress becomes possible. Brave early steps lead to opportunity.

So where will we be just over 2000 days from now? By 2020 I know that marine renewables will be a solid energy source and the additional sub-sea cable presently in planning will be filling up with the second generation arrays. I know the present piers will be becoming congested again and further expansions will be on the cards. But most importantly I know that there will be even more people working hard in these challenging conditions to bring about a sustainable future and generating wealth for the area. We’ll be doing our bit to deliver.

Who else will be on our winning team by then?

Any volunteers?

Neil Kermode, managing director of the European Marine Energy Centre