Scotland’s wind power output got “off to a flying start” in January, environmental groups said today.
Analysis by WWF Scotland of data provided by WeatherEnergy found that for the month of January wind turbines in Scotland alone provided 1,125,544MWh of electricity to the National Grid, enough to supply, on average, the electrical needs of 123% of Scottish households (2.98 million homes) – this represents a decrease of 14% compared to that of January 2015, when wind energy provided 1,314,479MWh.
Furthermore, wind turbines generated enough output to supply 100% or more of Scottish homes on 22 out of the 31 days of January.
Scotland’s total electricity consumption for January was 2,354,117MWh. Wind power therefore generated the equivalent of 48% of Scotland’s entire electricity needs for the month.
WWF Scotland’s director Lang Banks said: “2015 proved to be a big year for renewables, and the latest data makes clear that 2016 is already off to a flying start, with wind power alone meeting nearly half of Scotland’s total electricity needs during January.
“I have little doubt that 2016 will be another record year for renewables. However, what happens in the longer term will be down to our political leaders. That is why, as we approach the Holyrood elections, we’d like to see each of the political parties commit to ensuring Scotland becomes the EU’s first fully renewable electricity nation by 2030. This is an ambition with real vision that would mean Scotland captures the full benefits of its renewable potential.”
Karen Robinson of WeatherEnergy said: “2016 has begun very much like 2015 ended, with wind power helping to supply large amounts of electricity to Scotland’s homes and businesses. All this renewable output is helping to avoid carbon emissions, something more important than ever as we begin to see the damaging impacts of climate change.”