Latest news with #MercedesVillalba
Scotsman
22-06-2025
- Business
- Scotsman
Acorn carbon capture: Crunch talks as Scotland wind farm chiefs poised to wrestle over seabed
Sign up to our Politics newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... SNP ministers have been told to 'get a grip' of the energy transition after it emerged crunch talks are being held between wind farm bosses and those developing Scotland's Acorn carbon capture project because the two proposals want to use the same area of seabed. The Scotsman can reveal that bosses behind Scotland's proposed carbon capture project in St Fergus are holding discussions with wind farm chiefs as two key energy developments are poised to overlap in the North Sea. The area is located around 47 miles off the Aberdeenshire coast, with both projects having been granted permission to use the same strip of seabed. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Shell and Scottish Power are brining forward the MarramWind proposals Concerns have been raised the proposed Acorn carbon capture and storage (CCS) project, which has been pushed forward after the UK government handed it £200 million of funding in Rachel Reeves's Spending Review earlier this month, will partially overlap in the North Sea with the MarramWind floating wind development. Two licences for same plot of the seabed Crown Estate Scotland issued licences to Pate Blue Dot for the Acorn storage site, as well to Shell and Scottish Power for the MarramWind project that will produce around 3GW of renewable energy. The Acorn storage site, called its 'foundation store', will make use of the seabed, where the harmful carbon will be injected deep into the rocks. The MarramWind project proposes up to 225 floating turbines that will also be moored to the seabed. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad But those behind the Acorn CCS project have insisted any overlap will not derail the long-delayed proposals that will be based onshore at the St Fergus gas terminal near Peterhead - despite a significant part of one of the project's two storage sites falling in the same plot of the seabed leased to the MarramWind project. The MarramWind proposals and the Acorn CCS storage site overlap on the seabed | Crown Estate Scotland The Acorn CCS project is expected to have capacity to store up to 10Mt of CO₂ per year. If all goes to plan, both the Acorn and the MarramWind projects are expected to be up and running in the early 2030s. SNP ministers under fire A scoping report produced as part of the MarramWind proposals, published in January 2023, highlighted 'seabed obstructions', including 'carbon capture storage projects'. Scottish Labour North East MSP Mercedes Villalba said: 'The lack of oversight from the Government here is staggering. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Labour MSP Mercedes Villalba "It is frankly absurd that under the SNP's watch, two incompatible projects can be granted seabed rights on the very same plot. This is yet another case of the SNP selling off Scotland without a care for the consequences.' She added: "Our energy transition will continue to be disorderly, with workers paying the price, until the Government gets a grip on offshore development. READ MORE: Rosebank and other North Sea oil and gas fields could be given green light under new guidelines "That starts with technical due diligence of projects such as these and transparent accounting of what exactly public funding grants are being spent on." Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Scottish Conservative shadow energy secretary Douglas Lumsden said the revelation was 'just the latest example of SNP incompetence'. Conservative MSP Douglas Lumsden | supplied The North East MSP added: 'How they have managed to sell the same bit of seabed to two different parties is anyone's guess – but they need to resolve this mess fast, while also ensuring the taxpayers' best interests are served. Acorn deem overlap 'manageable' A spokesperson for the Acorn project said: 'We are aware of recent questions regarding a potential overlap between the Acorn CO₂ storage site and the proposed MarramWind offshore wind farm. 'This is a known and manageable spatial interaction. Any area of overlap is limited and does not affect Acorn's ability to develop, operate, or monitor the CO₂ store. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The Acorn carbon capture project will be built next to the St Fergus gas terminal (Photo: Paul Campbell/PA Wire) | Paul Campbell/PA Wire 'Interactions of this kind are not uncommon, and the wind and carbon storage sectors are actively collaborating across the UK to manage them. The Crown Estate's co-locate forum is one example of how such overlaps are being addressed constructively. While this case is in Scottish waters, the same principles of early engagement and joint resolution apply. 'We are also working closely with Crown Estate Scotland, with whom we hold the necessary agreements, to ensure all required arrangements are in place to support Acorn's continued development. 'We remain fully committed to progressing Acorn at pace towards a final investment decision, working in partnership with the UK and Scottish governments and other key stakeholders. We are equally supportive of the successful delivery of all projects that contribute to Scotland's just transition and net zero ambitions.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Belfast-based Green energy supplier, North Channel Wind has announced a major milestone in Northern Ireland's quest for 100% clean energy, following the Department for the Economy's publication of the Offshore Renewable Energy Action Plan A spokesperson for MarramWind said: 'We are engaging directly with Acorn on relevant co-location considerations for a small part of the proposed MarramWind site.' A spokesperson for Crown Estate Scotland told The Scotsman it 'has a responsibility to consider the requirements of a range of sectors'. The spokesperson said: 'ScotWind option agreements were awarded in accordance with the spatial parameters provided by the Scottish Government's sectoral marine plan for offshore wind energy. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'We have worked closely with the Acorn project and relevant ScotWind projects to facilitate co-existence by including suitable provisions in the ScotWind agreements. These provisions relate not only to the area of seabed immediately related to the Acorn Project area, but also to the wider areas required to monitor operation of the planned Acorn Project storage areas.' Research into 'co-location' 'Crown Estate Scotland's determination to ensure co-location issues are resolved is reflected in our sponsorship of the offshore wind and carbon capture and storage (CCS) co-location forum. The forum's work includes research by scientists at the University of Aberdeen, who are investigating the best approach to testing and demonstrating the co-location of offshore wind and CCS activities in the future.' A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'Crown Estate Scotland are working on the spatial planning of sites and it is the Scottish Government's understanding that any potential overlap of the Acorn carbon capture store and the Marram offshore wind development is limited and will not impact on Acorn's ability to develop, operate or monitor the CO₂ store. 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The Herald Scotland
02-06-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Land reform Bill: Labour MSP in bid to introduce 500ha cap
The MSP is to lodge amendments that would introduce a presumptive cap on land ownership. Her proposal would prevent any individual or entity from buying, selling or owning more than 500 hectares by default. READ MORE: MSPs backed the general principles of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill in March. Holyrood's Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee is set to begin Stage 2 scrutiny on Tuesday, considering hundreds of proposed amendments. The Bill has two parts. The first would place a duty on the owners of the largest landholdings to engage with the local community about the use of the land. It also proposes mechanisms to make it easier for community groups to purchase land when it is put up for sale. The second part addresses the agricultural and environmental use of leased farmland. Ms Villalba's amendment would mean any transaction exceeding the 500 hectare threshold would trigger a forward-looking public interest test, assessing whether the sale benefits local communities and Scotland more broadly. Where estates fail the test, ministers could require them to be divided and sold in smaller parcels—a measure aimed at curbing further concentration. She also plans to amend the Bill's definition of 'large-scale' landholding to account for total land owned, rather than just contiguous holdings. This is intended to prevent landowners from avoiding regulation by holding multiple, smaller, separate parcels. A further amendment would stop ministers from raising the acreage thresholds without full scrutiny by the Scottish Parliament, amid concerns future governments could dilute the reforms. Ms Villalba said more ambitious action is needed to dismantle Scotland's entrenched 'land monopoly'. Mercedes Villalba outside the Trump course in Balmedie (Image: Contributed) Despite over two decades of land reform legislation, the country is often cited as having the most unequal land ownership in the western world. Research published last year by former Green MSP and land reform advocate Andy Wightman found that half of Scotland's privately owned rural land—some 3.2 million hectares—is held by just 433 owners, including estates, corporations and trusts. Community bodies, by contrast, own only around 2.8% of rural land. Campaigners argue that this extreme concentration has remained largely unchanged since the early 20th century, resulting in 'localised monopoly' power in some areas. However, in response to the Scottish Government's consultation, Scottish Land and Estates argued there is no substantial evidence that the scale of landholdings negatively impacts the country. They said scale and concentration should be treated as separate issues. 'There appears to be no evidence that there is a detrimental impact on Scotland due to the scale of land holdings,' they said. ' The Scottish Land Commission's own evidence points to the issue being potentially one of concentrated land ownership in specific areas, rather than scale itself. Therefore any measure of scale will always be an inappropriate instrument in dealing with any adverse impacts on communities or the prosperity of Scotland in a wider context.' READ MORE Ms Villalba said:'To deal with the serious problem of concentrated land ownership, we need a radical shift that prioritises community benefit and empowers local people to shape the future of their land, rather than merely tinkering round the edges. 'Today, Scotland's land is concentrated in the hands of the new nobility—asset managers, foreign billionaires, and the inheritors of huge estates. Just 0.025% of the population own 67% of our countryside. 'This Bill presents a chance to change that, break the ultra-wealthy's grasp on Scotland's resources and build a fairer, more prosperous Scotland for all of us. But currently it simply does not meet the scale of the challenge. 'That is why the proposals must include a presumed limit on ownership over 500 hectares, unless it is in the public interest. 'Without a meaningful public interest test, we risk allowing land to be sold or managed in ways that benefit private interests at the expense of the public good. We need a mechanism that ensures that decisions about land are made with the long-term wellbeing of our communities at heart.'
The National
25-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
Fears 'rigged' Scottish Labour voting system boxes out left-wing MSPs
Anonyvoter, a controversial computer voting programme involved in a Met police fraud probe, is used by the party alongside traditional in-person and postal voting. But The Sunday Mail reports there are concerns it is being rigged following a selection for the Dundee West constituency. Earlier this month, Scottish Labour MSP Mercedes Villalba – who is considered more left-wing – lost out to Michael Marra, who is often seen as party leader Anas Sarwar's right-hand man and potential successor. READ MORE: High street in Scottish Highland town closed due to alleyway fire Villalba won the vote in the room but lost out after online votes through Anonyvoter were taken into account. It comes amid concerns over the past few years that Labour leadership have actively been purging the party of its left-wing members and politicians. The Sunday Mail reports that several members have contacted the party with concerns. One said: 'I emailed our local branch secretary last month as I was concerned about the fact we were having to use Anonyvoter but I didn't get any reply. 'I know someone else who also contacted the party's leadership team directly and was told that there had been no problem with Anonyvoter in Scotland and it was being used here. End of discussion. 'People are very sceptical of the system and don't understand why we are still using it when there were such problems before.' Mercedes Villalba Another member added: 'I'm worried that what we saw for the Westminster selections is now going to happen for the Holyrood ones. It seems to be already happening - just look at the situation in Dundee.' A former Labour staffer, meanwhile, told the newspaper: 'I can say that in standard parliamentary selections, ballot counting is carried out by staff but with clear oversight from CLP officials to ensure transparency and trust in the process. 'With Anonyvoter, that critical layer of local oversight is simply missing. We've already seen serious concerns raised about its accuracy and flaws, most notably in Croydon where the situation escalated to the point of police involvement.' Anonyvoter has previously insisted that its software was unrelated to the incident in Croydon and said Labour's database was to blame A Scottish Labour spokesman said: 'We have full confidence in the integrity of both selection processes and the use of Anonyvoter. 'Labour candidates are selected by the votes of local members who select the person they believe should represent them. 'All selections are carried out in line with rules and procedures agreed and overseen by Scottish Labour's Executive Committee.'
