Hundreds of Fife jobs could be lost as Scotland’s lights go out with the future of the Longannet power station hanging in the balance, it has been warned.
A decision on the plant’s future is expected to be taken next month.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has written to Prime Minister David Cameron claiming coalition energy policies led to the electricity-generating station’s potential premature closure.
That suggestion was rejected by Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael during Scottish Questions at Westminster.
Conservative Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Murdo Fraser later used a Holyrood debate to call on the Scottish Government to consider a new gas-powered generator at the Longannet site.
After receiving a response to an initial letter, Ms Sturgeon has again written to Mr Cameron asking the UK Government to assess the impact of policy and regulatory regime on electricity generation in Scotland and place the full details of a National Grid study into Scotland’s supply security into the public domain.
During a Conservative-led debate at Holyrood, Mr Fraser attacked the SNP administration for putting “all its eggs” in the basket of “intermittent” wind power.
Last year it emerged the station may be forced to close due to what the operator Scottish Power described as “disproportionately high” transmission charges to connect to the main grid network.
Scottish generators, including Longannet, account for roughly 12% of the capacity connected to Britain’s high- voltage electricity network but pay around 35% of the charges, the Scottish Government said.
Mr Fraser said: “If Longannet, the existing station, is having to close, and sadly that looks inevitable whatever happens to transmission charging, then let’s see a replacement in that corner of Fife.”
Dunfermline MSP Cara Hilton said workers were worried about their jobs, mortgages and families.
Energy Minister Fergus Ewing told MSPs that Scotland needed a balance to its electricity mix to ensure security of supply.
He said: “There are few things of more immediate importance than the future of Longannet because that future is under imminent threat.
“Setting political disagreements aside, we all want to see a solution that will allow Longannet to continue to operate for several years to come.”