The future of Longannet Power Station is in doubt over the massive bill it must pay to connect to the National Grid.
While ScottishPower bosses stress they “do not want to close Longannet”, they say the plant faces serious disadvantages in Westminster’s auction to supply electricity generating capacity for the winter of 2018/19.
The Kincardine plant is one of the biggest power stations in Europe and the largest in Scotland, employing 260 full-time staff.
ScottishPower says it has been forced to keep Longannet out of the auction because of disproportionate transmission charging penalties.
It says Longannet’s location greatly disadvantages the station against others in the south of England, due to the current transmission charging regime.
Managers say the Fife plant faces a transmission penalty of £40 million per year, solely because of its location.
ScottishPower’s energy retail and generation chief executive, Neil Clitheroe, said: “We do not want to close Longannet, and I would stress that there are no plans to do so.
“We have invested over £200m in recent years to improve both environmental and operational performance at Longannet, and we want to secure a longer term future for the station.
“However, to avoid closure within the coming years, changes to the plant’s financial situation must be achieved.”
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