GMB Scotland Media Statement

Scottish Renewables Lobby And Politicians Should Be ‘Cringing Not Celebrating’ As Beatrice Wind Farm Opens

Responding to the opening of the £2.65 billion Beatrice offshore wind farm project in Caithness today (Monday 29 July), GMB Scotland Secretary Gary Smith said:

“Amid the fanfare from the renewables lobby surrounding the opening of the Beatrice wind farm, spare a thought for the communities of Burntisland and Methil and the one thousand displaced workers whose yards were broken by this project.

“It’s a great day for the Danish and Far East financiers who bankrolled the guts of the project and for their state backed Belgian and Dutch contractors in the manufacturing supply chain who enjoyed the bulk of the jobs and value from it.

“But the Scottish renewables lobby and every politician that’s promised a green jobs revolution should be cringing not celebrating, given that Scotland’s manufacturing share of Beatrice was less than 4 per cent of the total project value.

“How can it be that a country which possesses a quarter of the continent’s offshore wind resource is left fighting for scraps of work and prosperity from its own market? This is what industrial and political failure looks like. It's a scandal and it shows no signs of changing."

ENDS

Contact: Peter Welsh, GMB Scotland Communications, on 07976 447077.