It said that the spending of up to £2bn in the UK in 2019 will the company’s biggest-ever investment in the country in a single year.
As part of its strategy for growth, it announced plans for a new public electric charging service based within the company’s retail division. The new business will install fast chargers across the UK at strategic commercial locations from winter 2019.
The company also announced plans for a 50MW battery storage project at Whitelee, the UK’s largest onshore windfarm. The project will be the first of a series of storage schemes, mainly located at windfarms and at strategic points on the network. Scottish Power said that it believes the combination of renewable energy and flexible storage are the most cost effective low carbon solution for consumers.
In renewables, Scottish Power set out plans to develop a 1GW pipeline of onshore wind projects by 2025. Onshore wind remains the lowest cost technology for new electricity generation in the UK, said the company, and it sees substantial opportunities for the continued development of onshore wind projects across Scotland and other areas of the UK.
CEO Keith Anderson said: “Our first investment plan since leaving coal and gas behind is a historic milestone for ScottishPower and is a vote of confidence in the UK’s commitment to decarbonising the economy. In a time of uncertainty the UK needs to deliver its industrial and energy strategy and that’s what we’re providing with our biggest ever investment in a single year.
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Anderson added: "Consumers want and need access to reliable, clean and affordable energy. That is what ScottishPower is focused on delivering and as long as Government climate change commitments stay firm, with sensible policies to support them, this investment will continue.
“Now that we have sold our gas power stations our growth plans are about cleaner and smarter power that will help the UK to decarbonise faster and we have set out the part we will play in the transition to electrify the economy where it matters most now – in transport and in heating."
The company said that construction continues apace for the East Anglia One offshore windfarm located 43km off the Suffolk coast. It has also gained planning consent for East Anglia Three windfarm for up to 1,200MW and planning consultations on the company’s next two large offshore windfarms in the East Anglia zone have begun.
Investments will also target the digitalisation of the grid including artificial intelligence systems that will control and balance the network.
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