THE UK Government's energy minister has hailed Scotland as "leading the way" in creating 'clean power' following a site visit to Ayrshire earlier this week.

Michael Shanks, Labour MP for Rutherglen, visited Hunterston to learn more about the massive XLCC manufacturing project under way at the HVDC (high-voltage direct current) converter station, where electricity is transported from Scotland to Wales via a subsea cable.

Operated by Scottish Power Transmission and National Grid Electricity Transmission, the subsea connection has the highest rated direct current cable in the world – capable of transferring up to 2.25GW continually between the two countries.

Once completed, the £1.7 billion North Ayrshire cable factory project will have capacity to produce thousands of kilometres each year of leading edge HVDC cable, and is expected to create around 900 permanent jobs including more than 200 apprenticeships.

Subsea HVDC cables built at Hunterston will be capable of transporting energy over long distances with significantly increased efficiency.

As such, it is said that they will play a 'fundamental role in the upgrade of the grid required for the energy transition'.

(Image: UK Government) Mr Shanks, who was appointed parliamentary under-secretary of state at the department for energy security and net zero in July, also stopped off at BESS developer and operator Zenobe’s grid-scale battery energy storage site in Wishaw, which opened in November 2023 as the first battery system to connect directly to the transmission system in Scotland.

He said: “This week the independent National Energy System Operator confirmed that our clean power by 2030 mission is not only achievable, but can create a system that is cheaper and more secure.

“Scotland is already leading the way with around 13GW in wind power capacity alone, alongside rolling out new technology in energy transport and storage that will maximise our clean homegrown power and boost our energy security.

“Thanks to projects like Zenobe’s grid-scale batteries and Scottish Power’s subsea electricity connection here in Ayrshire, we are putting the UK firmly on the path to building a decarbonised energy system that will help to protect billpayers from volatile fossil fuel markets for good.”

We reported last month that the creation of the largest liquid air energy facility in the world is the latest industrial development set to come to Hunterston, set to support 1,000 jobs onsite during construction and 650 jobs in the supply chain by 2030.

The major long-duration energy storage project, once completed, will make a substantial contribution to the Scottish renewable energy sector, offering much-needed storage and grid stability at a crucial location within the UK’s transmission network.