old power station video

No, not Robert Palmer in the 80s, but the old power station in Portobello prior to its demolition. There's also a cool photograph of it on flickr, which I've posted a link to after the vid. Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flickr pic here -  according to the accompanying info, this building was demolished in the late 70s, so I guess that's when the cine film would have been shot.

Check back in the coming months for more stuff on old power stations from Scotland and beyond.

Posted
 

Scottish and Southern buys stake in Fab Burntisland!

Windmills_on_coastline

Firstly, let me apologise for not updating the blog for a while, the business of life took over for a little while, anyway - im back now and not a moment too soon as there are several good stories in the Scottish energy scene, not least the news from a couple of days ago that SSE has bought a 15% stake in Burntisland Fabrications (BiFab). This is an interesting deal for a couple of reasons, firstly it secures the future for a Scottish company manufacturing in the energy sector: As BiFab managing director John Robertson told The Herald:

“The big advantage for the 400 to 500 people at Methil will be long-term certainty of employment because we can see 10 to 12 years ahead. That is very unusual in the fabrication industry.”

The company will now be able to open a new factory and more than double its production of jacket substructures for wind turbines. SSE is committed to buying at least 50 jackets every year from 2014.

Secondly it signals the intentions of SSE to further expand its offshore wind energy capabilities, Ian Marchant the SSE Chief Exec had this to say on the deal:

“It is essential that SSE is able to establish a reliable supply chain, particularly for those elements where manufacturing bottlenecks have already been identified as a significant risk. This investment in BiFab secures a reliable supply of offshore structures for our SSE Renewables business.”

Posted
 

Sunday Herald Interview With SSE Boss

Incase any of you didn't manage to pick up a copy of this weekends Sunday Herald (Dec 6th), there was an excellent (and rare) interview with the boss of Scottish and Southern Energy Ian Marchant. He details his role as the head of the Climate Change Business Delivery Group (CCBDG), a collaboration of eco-conscious Scottish Business leaders who lobby the government and his hopes for the future of energy supply in Scotland. SSE includes Scottish Hydro Electric, SWALEC and Southern Electric in its portfolio.

Amongst some of the best quotes from the interview are:

  • “When (Climate Change Minister) Stewart Stevenson came for our meeting, I presented him with a copy of The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy and said, ‘Here we are. The answer to your conundrum on climate change is on p.187, which is where the answer to the universe – 42 – is revealed.”
  • “To crack renewable heat in the same scale as electricity is the real opportunity”
  • “To have a sustainable business in the long term, you have to be meeting society’s needs. Society does not need me to screw the planet"

Read the full interview here.

What do you think about the interview, are you impressed with what Mr Marchant has to say?

Posted
 

Glendoe Won't Be Up and Running Until 2011, Oh Dear

Not the best news to start this site off with but anyway, some things can't be helped. Scottish and Southern Energy has announced that its Glendoe hydro electricity scheme will not be producing any power at all until 2011. This is due to repair needing done on the August rockfall which blocked one of the main tunnels providing water to one of the turbines. On a slightly more positive note SSE has announced that it will be seeking planning permission for two new hydro electric power schemes at Coire Glas (Loch Lochy) and Balmacaan at Loch Ness - the first of their kind in Britain since 1974. We look forward to all of these hydro schemes getting up and running ASAP.

Read thre full story over at the BBC website.

Here's a video of what Glendoe will be like when it gets going!

Posted