Work together to secure grid connections — Carmichael

Northern Isles MP Alistair Carmichael has spoken about the need for governments, regulators and the private sector to work together to secure grid connections for Orkney and Shetland.

Speaking at the Green Investment Bank conference this week, Mr Carmichael explained that any failure to act on grid issues post-referendum would be a “missed opportunity of tragic proportions”.

Mr Carmichael also highlighted that since the Coalition Government came into power in 2010, renewable electricity capacity has more than doubled across the UK.

Speaking at the event on grid connections, Mr Carmichael said: “Last year the coalition government also announced a specific strike price for Scottish Islands which will help to unlock their renewable potential.

“That was a welcome and necessary step and it established an important principle. It provides, however, only a mechanism for supporting generation capacity once it is installed.

“Without grid connections for the islands we shall never see that capacity installed and the potential for the generation of tidal and wave power will not be realised — or at the very least it will not be realised here.”