SCOTLAND'S renewable energy industry is worth nearly £1 billion a year and could triple in size by 2030, according to a new report.

Scottish Renewables’ Supply Chain Impact Statement revealed wind energy could see its capacity increase by 231% in the next eight years. It found the sector contributed £889 million to the economy as the third largest most valuable renewable source. The more long established onshore wind and hydropower industries were found to be worth £2.4bn and £915m respectively during 2019.

The research looked at 32 firms working across Scotland’s renewable energy industry, which employs 22,660 people.

Organisations in the report have worked on and delivered many projects over the past year including: Scotland’s first fifth-generation heating network; a pioneering zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell train project; multiple low-carbon transport hubs, the UK’s largest community-owned hydro scheme; the world's most powerful tidal turbine; floating offshore wind farms,;specialist renewably-powered remote monitoring solutions and innovative artificial intelligence control systems.

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Claire Mack, chief executive of Scottish Renewables, said: “Renewable energy projects across Scotland deliver many benefits to our urban, rural and island communities, providing low-carbon heat, transport and electricity as well as creating employment opportunities for the people who live there.

“Scottish Renewables’ Supply Chain Impact report highlights the positive impact renewables projects can have and these case studies show that the strength of Scottish suppliers is being recognised not only in the Scottish market but globally.

“Both the onshore and offshore wind sectors, which provide so much of the economic benefit highlighted in this report, are pushing hard for huge growth, including from the 17 new offshore projects which came through the recent ScotWind Leasing round.

“That means the potential future pipeline of renewable energy projects in Scotland has never been stronger, and the time is now for both governments to work with industry to build on the successes highlighted in this statement by investing in innovation, infrastructure and technology to support supply chain development to make the most of these opportunities.

“Our native supply chain already boasts innovative start-ups and evolving established organisations which are working to create unique added value for green energy projects while also driving economic activity here in Scotland. The companies celebrated in the document demonstrate only a small proportion of the complex supplier network required to deploy net-zero technologies and there is increasing opportunity on the horizon for further supply chain growth.”