Question reference: S5W-25995
- Asked by: Tom Arthur, MSP for Renfrewshire South, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 28 October 2019
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Current status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 29 October 2019
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the actions that it is taking to deliver its target to meet 11% of non-electrical heat demand from renewable sources by 2020.
Answer
I am pleased to announce that I have laid a report in Parliament today that provides an update on the actions that the Scottish Government is taking to reach our renewable heat target. The report is now available on the Scottish Government website (at https://www.gov.scot/9781839602726 )
An estimated 6.3% of non-electrical heat demand was met by renewable sources in 2018, an increase of 14% from 2017 figures. Renewable heat capacity also increased by 4%.
Since 2013, the Scottish Government has invested around £40 million in renewable heat schemes through the Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme and the District Heating Loan Fund, helping to reduce emissions and tackle fuel poverty. It is encouraging to see that a number of projects have recently come on line and there are a number in the pipeline, which will contribute to an increasing proportion of our heat coming from renewable sources in the next few years. However, investment in renewable heat in Scotland slowed down as a result of UK Government changes to the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) which have caused uncertainty within the sector.
The Scottish Government recognises that we must go further to support and encourage the uptake of renewable heat. We recently launched the £30 million Scottish Low Carbon Heat Funding Invitation for local and industrial heat projects and are committed to working with stakeholders to develop regulations to ensure that new homes consented from 2024 use renewable or low carbon heat. We are now almost three quarters of the way towards our ambition to connect 40,000 homes to heat networks by 2020. Next year we will bring forward legislation for a Heat Networks Bill which will stimulate the market for heat networks, de-risking investment and increasing consumer awareness and acceptance.
In addition, next Summer we will publish a Heat Decarbonisation Policy Statement setting out a new pathway for reducing emissions associated with heating our buildings, in line with our climate change targets.
In addition to the report I laid today, the Energy Savings Trust have published the report Renewable Heat in Scotland 2018 , which provides further insight into these figures. The Energy Savings Trust report is now available at ww.energysavingtrust.org.uk/renewable-heat-scotland-2018 .