Posts by TheRabs80

Datacenters planned for Scotland could end up draining a loch of power

@Catkin, I did a bit of research and here's what I've come up with:

The Eastern Green Link projects are built by the transmission companies (SSEN Transmission and National Grid), but the costs don’t stay with them — Ofgem approves these as regulated investments, and the money is recovered through UK-wide transmission charges, which ultimately flow into consumer bills.

Key points with sources:

Ofgem has formally approved Early Construction Funding and capital allowances for EGL2/3 under the Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment framework. These costs are recouped through Transmission Network Use of System (TNUoS) charges paid by suppliers and generators.

Source: Ofgem announcement — “Ofgem unlocks early investment…”

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/press-release/ofgem-unlocks-early-investment-slew-fast-track-clean-power-projects

In 2025, the UK National Wealth Fund provided £600 million to ScottishPower for major Scottish grid upgrades including the EGL links, as part of a £1.35bn financing package with commercial lenders.

Source: Offshore Energy — “£713.5m to back two Eastern Green Links…”

https://www.offshore-energy.biz/e713-5m-to-back-two-eastern-green-links-and-five-other-uk-grid-upgrade-projects/

Transmission owners (the “PLCs”) do not pay the project costs themselves. They receive an Ofgem-regulated return, and the cost is recovered via the charging regime. Because network charges vary by region, Scottish consumers and generators pay proportionally more — hence the higher standing charges in Scotland.

Source: Ofgem — transmission charging methodology

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk

So yes, customers across UK contribute — but not equally, and it is a mix of funding sources..

Scotland sits in the highest-cost transmission zone, so Scottish households and generators bear a disproportionately larger share of the EGL cost recovery, which seems a little unfair for energy generated in Scotland but consumed in England.

Hope that clarifies!

Re: Energy generation mix

@codejunky thanks for the reply!

I was trying to make the point that the grid is not fit for purpose anymore, and that we need to decouple generation from consumption.

There are battery technologies that are cheaper and better suited to grid-scale storage, as well as other storage mediums such as salt. That way we could stop paying folk to switch off windfarms when we don't need the energy. I think I read that they have been paid around £1.5 billion this year to switch off alone. That would go some ways to plug the gap.

I totally agree that there is madness going on in the world of nuclear. Why does the UK have to take an already proven reactor design and increase cost by many billions?

We need to plan for the future and not just right now and for profit. Energy generation is not the only sector this is true for. Too many knee jerk reactions for political gain and votes, in my humble opinion.

As for fish discos... What the actual? Off to write some funky fish tunes...

We already export more than we consume to England. And we're building another interconnector, which we are paying for!

Madness!

Energy generation mix

Scotland produces far more electricity than it consumes, and the VAST majority from renewables. There is only a single large-scale gas-fired power station in Scotland.

"Estimating emissions from the datacenters is difficult, since few developers have volunteered this information. But according to NESO, generation of energy from fossil fuels in Scotland is expected to reach zero sometime between 2035 and 2040 as energy from renewable sources rises to replace it.

It should therefore follow that the new facilities will also be emitting zero greenhouse gases by then, if they are powered from the grid. That still leaves 10 to 15 years of potential emissions in the meantime, however."

Hence, not sure where this comes from?

As for discounts to bit barn builders and operators for energy... Em, why? Surely these people should subsidise the energy consumption of the general populus for whom the energy should be produced! We are the ones receiving increases in our bills, due to a lack of investment by energy companies in the grid. My understanding was that standing charges were meant to pay for maintenance and investment in the grid and transmission infrastructure. Yet, as has been announced today, we are going to receive an increase in our bills to cover the cost of a multi-billion investment in the grid, etc.

Just no! It's high time that these companies should be held accountable to their lack of investment. Put a cap on their profits. Put a cap on what they can pay out as dividend. Force them to invest in what is a piece of critical infrastructure for everyone.

The grid itself is badly designed to support the energy generation mix we have nowadays, as it is. Wind farms should be connected to storage systems, with the storage systems connected to the grid. That way we can use the energy when we need it and store it when we don't. Think Dinorwick. Power on demand and keep a constant base.

It's not difficult people!!!

BOFH: The Boss meets the unbearable weight of innovation

So... do you think that everyone who works at Nike is an athlete?

Had a former boss who swooshed into the IT Dept. one fine day, with a visiting dignitary, only to start proclaiming we were doing everything in Java - this was circa 1998. We were an AS/400 shop! Java? No, but we can show you some nice RPG

BOFH: Don't sell The Boss a firewall. Sell him The Dream

Re: That reminds me of "The Plan"

And that, my friend, is brilliant!

Stolen!