Lerwick Power Station closure plan postponed

Lerwick Power Station was built in 1953 and had been due to close in 2021

Lerwick Power Station will remain open for at least another five years after a change to an EU emissions directive.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) said it wanted to close the plant in 2021, replacing supply with a subsea cable to the UK mainland.

But EU emission targets that were due to apply to the power station in 2020 have been pushed back to 2030.

Energy watchdog Ofgem has rejected the proposal for the cable, as a result of the power station developments.

SSEN's plan was to supply Shetland with electricity using the underwater cable, which would have run from the north coast of Caithness.

The cable was to be backed up by diesel generators.

But the change at EU level in the Industrial Emissions Directive means that smaller power stations like Lerwick, which was built in 1953, can keep running past 2020.

'Targeted investment'

Also, big renewable projects in the islands - like the proposed Viking Energy wind farm - have been given permission to apply for UK government-funded "state aid" contracts in 2019.

If successful, they would need a much larger power cable installed to sell electricity to the national grid.

SSEN said that in light of these developments, it would keep Lerwick Power Station running until at least 2025, which it said it could do with "targeted investment" and "additional supporting measures".

Ofgem is due to publish a document setting out its decision in more detail next week.