Scotland Could Get 50% Of Its Power From Renewable Sources By 2015, Says First Minister Alex Salmond
Scotland’s first minister Alex Salmond recently revealed the government’s new target to get half of Scotland’s electricity from renewable sources by 2015.
Scotland beat its 31% target for 2011 by about 4%.
“When I became first minister in 2007, I inherited a target for 50 percent of Scotland’s electricity to be produced by renewable sources by 2020,” said Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond. “We now know that we can achieve much more than that, more quickly, having already exceeded our 2011 target.”
As the first minister said, the renewables industry is really a “massive economic opportunity,” not something that would be a negative for the country.
The new target could add up to the 11,000+ green energy jobs in Scotland, especially after this last year, a ‘bumper year’ for investment, with an estimated £2.3 billion investment in renewables projects.
Scotland plans to meet these ambitious goals by further development of offshore wind farms and wave and tidal power projects. The country is also aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 42% by 2020.
Source: Business Green
Image Credits: Scotlandvia Wikimedia Commons
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