The SNP has renewed its criticism of the UK Government’s plan for the early closure of a subsidy scheme for onshore wind projects after an impact assessment found it could increase carbon emissions by up to 63 million tonnes.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change (Decc) has announced it is ending the renewables obligation (RO) for onshore wind from April.
The industry claims the move could cost £3billion of investment and 5,500 jobs.
Aberdeen South MP Callum McCaig said the assessment showed the decision to close the RO a year earlier than planned could result in an “additional and unnecessary” 63 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.
He added: “In addition to this, we will see a loss of up to £1million a year in community benefit, most of which is likely to be in Scotland.
“This policy makes absolutely no sense from either an economic or an environmental point of view and will seriously damage Scotland’s position as a destination of choice for investment in renewables.”
Michael Rieley, senior policy manager at industry body Scottish Renewables, warned of a “ripple effect of uncertainty”.
He added: “We have consistently argued that this policy can only hinder the UK’s efforts to meet binding climate change targets.
“What we need now is for the UK Government to set out fair and reasonable grace periods as soon as possible for those projects that will fall outwith the scope of this decision.”
The winding-up of the scheme is being legislated for in the Energy Bill, which is currently passing through the Westminster Parliament.
A Decc spokeswoman said: “We believe our proposed changes to onshore wind support through the RO draw the line in the right place.
“We have engaged with industry and other stakeholders, including devolved administrations, to understand their views and will continue to as we confirm our final position.”