Forth Ports and SSE in green power move

TWO of Scotland's biggest listed companies have formed a joint venture to develop a series of renewable energy projects across the UK including biomass power generators in Leith.

Ports-to-property group Forth Ports and power giant Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE) will invest tens of millions of pounds each, backed by debt, in developing wind farms, biomass energy plants and other renewable energy technologies currently in development. The projects will produce electricity for both Forth Ports' own operations and developments as well as being sold back to the grid.

The initiative, called Forth Energy, will start with a 12 million wind energy project at Forth Ports-owned Port of Tilbury in Essex. Forth Ports chief executive Charles Hammond told The Scotsman one of the projects will probably include a series of biomass-burning power generation schemes in Leith, where Forth Ports has submitted planning applications for a series of nine new residential villages.

The renewable energy projects will help Forth Ports meet Edinburgh city council planning rules on new developments generating 20 per cent of their energy needs via renewable energy sources.

Hammond said: "We are very conscious we are developing Edinburgh's largest regeneration scheme. It needs to be a 21st century expansion to the city, therefore it is logical we are looking to onsite generation."

Forth Ports also put out a positive trading statement yesterday, saying it expected first-half results to be "well ahead" of the same period last year. This is despite difficult conditions affecting the Forth Ports' property division, which incorporates its extensive land holdings and property development and regeneration programme on the Edinburgh waterfront at Leith.

The group reported a particularly good performance at its Scottish ports, with piped cargo tonnages at their highest level for four years and container volumes at Grangemouth up more than 10 per cent on last year.

As a result, Forth Ports shares ended the day's trading up 72p at 1,735p, a gain of 4.3 per cent. Meanwhile, SSE shares were up 12p to 1,403p.

The new Forth Energy initiative is expected to create up to 200 jobs and will produce 150 to 200 megawatts of energy.

Hammond said the initiative was a result of a study commissioned last year to look at how its assets, which includes seven UK commercial ports – Tilbury, Dundee on the Firth of Tay and Leith, Grangemouth, Rosyth, Methil and Burntisland on the Firth of Forth– could be exploited to produce renewable energy.

"In the port business we are used to moving materials in bulk and storing them so there is a good fit with the core business," Hammond added. "For some time we have been examining how we can develop a renewable energy strategy."