Transmission charges in an independent Scotland query: EIR release

Information requested

Speaking at FMQs on 22nd January 2026, John Swinney said this:

“Emma Roddick raises significant concerns about the West of Orkney wind farm that have been raised by the developer. It is a development that would bring enormous benefit to the people of Scotland, but it is being put in jeopardy because of the disproportionate transmission charges of the United Kingdom regime. The sooner that we can ensure that control of those issues is in the hands of the people of Scotland, so that we can benefit from the energy wealth of Scotland, the better. That can happen only with independence.”

The Scottish Government’s position is that generators would pay lower transmission charges in an independent Scotland. Please provide the following information:

What is the Scottish Government’s position on who would pay higher transmission charges in an independent Scotland? (Someone has to pay for the additional grid necessary to make wind farms in Scotland viable.)

Response

As the information you have requested is 'environmental information' for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.

This exemption is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is nopublic interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

As set out in the publication, A Fresh Start with Independence, following a vote for independence, a period of negotiations and a range of agreements will be required to set out the terms on which Scotland would become an independent nation state. That negotiation would include agreeing the division of assets and liabilities, and the terms of the future relationship with the UK. With independence, Scotland would decide its own energy market arrangements and how it interacts with neighbouring markets. Decisions on this would ultimately be a matter for the government and Parliament of that time, elected by the people of Scotland.

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