Letters / Staggering sums of money
The report Up to 100 jobs could be created from £32m electricity network improvement project (Shetland News, 7 April 2025) omits the real reason behind this “upgrade” of the Shetland electricity grid.
Up to 100 jobs could be created from £32m electricity network improvement project
This is actually the project to connect Sullom Voe Terminal to the Gremista power station. Improvements to the wider Shetland grid are likely to be limited.
Up to 100 jobs created is also misleading. Most of these jobs will go to non-locals and will be short term. Also not mentioned is the significant disruption that this work will cause.
In places the cabling is proposed to be laid under the main road and yet more traffic lights will be the order of the day.
Should it not be the case that EnQuest pay for this work and also for the ghastly battery park proposed for Gremista? I believe that EnQuest may have paid for a new diesel generator for the Lerwick Power Station, but I expect that the bulk of the £32 million quoted for this project will ultimately be paid for by long suffering energy consumers.
As far as the power supply to SVT is concerned it would probably be far cheaper to refurbish the existing power station there. This would be a far more secure and reliable way of providing power to the terminal and which has worked perfectly well for many years.
The quite staggering sums of money being spent on the transition to green energy, mostly at consumer expense are certainly contributing to Britain’s energy costs being amongst the highest in the world.
Ofgem allowing what must be approaching £1.5 billion of consumers’ money to be spent here in Shetland is scandalous.
Even after all this money has been spent, we are likely to have an energy provision that is less reliable than we have at present.
Frank Hay
Sustainable Shetland
Weisdale
