Scottish Energy 2020

The analysis presented in this report was undertaken by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in response to the Scottish Government’s declaration that by 2020, 20% of the total energy demand in Scotland would be met from renewable resources. This exceeds the 15% target that the EU Renewable Energy Directive (2009) requires the UK to meet as a whole. More recently the Government also announced that 100% of electricity generation will come from renewables by the same date. The Institution’s findings suggest that the original renewable energy target split for Scotland of 50% electricity, 11% heat and 11% energy for transport, making the overall 20%, and subsequent revision of the electricity generation target to 100%, did not appear to be supported by a rigorous engineering analysis of what is physically required to achieve a successful outcome in the timescale available.