Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S4W-26252

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 4 August 2015

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met officials from the Department of Energy and Climate Change to discuss the Cockenzie power plant and its potential replacement with a combined-cycle gas turbine plant.

The coal-fired power station at Cockenzie closed in March 2013 and is currently being decommissioned. The Scottish Government granted consent for a new combined-cycle gas turbine plant at Cockenzie on 5 October 2011. In terms of new thermal generation in Scotland, the Scottish Government sees an important role for clean thermal generation progressively fitted with carbon capture and storage.

In a recent letter to the Scottish Parliament’s Public Petitions Committee in January 2015 Hugh Finlay, Scottish Power’s Generation Director, made it clear that “There continues to be a number of obstacles in the way of the construction of the Combined Cycle Gas Turbines (CCGT) development, undoubtedly the biggest being the continuation of the Transmission Charging regime that discriminates against new generation in the north.”

We recognise the concerns expressed by companies including Scottish Power and numerous respondents to the Economy Energy and Tourism inquiry into security of supply that the current transmission charging regime acts as a disincentive to new thermal generation in Scotland. While specific investment plans for new generation at a particular site are primarily a matter for the companies concerned, Scottish Ministers have raised these regulatory barriers at the highest levels in the UK Government.

Question reference: S4W-26238

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 27 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to encourage the UK Government to maintain its announced timeline to announce the carbon capture and storage (CCS) commercialisation competition so that a CCS hub at Peterhead can be delivered alongside the upgrading of existing pipelines to carry CO2 from other parts of Scotland.

I visited the Peterhead power station on 23 April 2015 to meet the carbon capture and storage (CCS) project team and tour the facility.

Tracking the development of CCS and the progress of the UK's CCS commercialisation competition is managed through the Thermal Generation and CCS Industry Leadership Group (ILG).

The ILG is co-chaired by myself and DECC UK are members of this group. The ILG last met on 23 June 2015 where an update on the Peterhead CCS project was given by Shell and SSE (promoters of the project). A significant milestone was reached on the Peterhead CCS project when planning permission was granted by Aberdeenshire Council on 18 June 2015.

The Scottish Government took the opportunity at the ILG to express our continued support for this exciting project and to highlight the need for the UK Government to ensure that the competition timeline be maintained.

The Scottish Government believes that it is crucial that the UK Government also press ahead with contract for difference negotiations for follow-on (Phase 2) CCS projects such as the Summit Power project proposed for Grangemouth. On 27 March 2015 the Scottish and UK Governments announced joint funding of £4.2 million for the Summit Power project.

Question reference: S4W-26240

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 27 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the UK Government on deep offshore underground coal gasification (DOCG) and devolving DOCG access rights in light of the Smith Commission recommendation to devolve shale gas mineral access rights.

Question reference: S4W-26247

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 21 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to simplify any regulations under its responsibility relating to underground coal gasification projects and what representations it has made to the UK Government regarding simplification of UK-level regulations.

Question reference: S4W-26249

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 21 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government when ministers last met the Coal Authority to discuss the potential for Scotland to develop a deep underground coal gasification sector.

Question reference: S4W-26248

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 21 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will (a) calculate and (b) issue updated estimates of the coal resource that could be suitable for deep underground coal gasification development in Scottish locations as identified by the Coal Authority.

Question reference: S4W-26243

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 21 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the potential economic impact on Scotland’s petrochemicals sector of developing underground coal gasification.

Question reference: S4W-26254

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 21 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what synergies it considers exist for the development of offshore underground coal gasification alongside surface gasification projects to boost jobs and Scottish industry.

Question reference: S4W-26241

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 21 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government to advance the recommendations in the DTI study, Creating the Coalmine of the 21st Century: The feasibility of UCG under the Firth of Forth (DTI/Pub URN 06/885), regarding developing underground coal gasification (UCG) projects in the Firth of Forth to strengthen Scottish energy security.

Question reference: S4W-26250

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2015
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 21 July 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) discussions it has had with HM Treasury and (b) estimate it has made regarding potential tax revenues from the (i) development and (ii) operation of deep offshore underground coal gasification projects from licences issued in Scotland by the Coal Authority.