Industry data has revealed that Orkney and the Western Isles are the top spots for schemes such as solar panels and ground-source heat pumps. Scotland as a whole is also ahead of the rest of the UK for uptake of small-scale renewable systems. Part of Scotland’s success has been driven by “necessity”, according to experts, with Scots living in remote areas which are off-grid more likely to fit their homes with alternative power sources. The highest proportion of installations can be found in two of Scotland’s most remote locations: In Orkney around one in five households has some form of renewable energy, closely followed by the Western Isles, where one in seven homes has a green power scheme. Among its achievements, Orkney ranks number one for ground-source and water-source heat pumps and solar thermal. The region comes in at number two for air-source heat pumps and sits within the top 10 for biomass, as a percentage of homes. The report also shows some parts of Scotland are lagging behind when it comes to micro renewables – notably Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee and Aberdeen. However, Stirling bucks this trend, with the second-highest level of solar PV installations.
Scotsman 25th March 2021 read more »