Scotland to set up government-owned energy company

Table of contents

• Will the ‘publicly-owned, not-for-profit energy company’ announced by Nicola Sturgeon take the form of an energy services company (ESCo)?
• Has there been any elaboration as to what form the company may take, what renewable technologies may be utilised to produce the power sold by the company and who may be the ‘owners’ of the company?
• What are the likely implications of a GOEC for the Scottish consumer?
• How would such an arrangement work in practice?
• Are there any other points of interest worth mentioning here?

Article summary

Energy analysis: On 10 October 2017, Nicola Sturgeon announced in her speech at the SNP annual conference that the Scottish government plans to establish a publicly owned energy supply company. Discussing what form this energy supply company might take and how it is likely to operate, Keith Patterson, partner and co-head of renewables at Brodies LLP, and Laura Sefton, a solicitor in the firm’s energy and infrastructure team, suggest there are areas where a government-owned energy company (GOEC) could have a positive impact beyond the Scottish retail consumer market.