WJM Brings Together Business Leaders as Record Numbers Attend Renewable Energy Seminar

Nearly 200 developers, consultants and renewables experts from across the country descended on Glasgow as leading law firm Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie LLP (WJM), in partnership with Irwin Mitchell, hosted its annual Renewable Energy Seminar.

The signature event brought together experts from across Scotland to discuss “Where are we now?” in the country’s renewables sector.

The conference held at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall attracted its largest attendance to date, and delegates were addressed by speakers including Finley Becks-Phelps, UK Head of Development at Nadara, on repowering; WJM Managing Partner Fraser Gillies on planning; RES Group’s Energy Networks Director Patrick Smart on the grid; while aviation was covered by Sam Johnson, Senior Aviation Manager at RES Group and WJM’s Head of Renewable Energy, Andy McFarlane.

The one-day event explored developments since NESO and the challenges faced by the industry post-Gate 2, planning reform and investment, and the impact of The Sector Deal so far.

Fraser Gillies, Managing Partner at Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie said: “We started this event more than 10 years ago and it has grown from strength to strength, such that it is now a really important fixture in Scotland’s renewables calendar.”

Giving his annual address at the firm’s conference, this year Fraser focussed on the Planning and Infrastructure Bill and discussed the latest developments relating to NPF4 and Section 36 applications with regards to Schedule 8.

WJM Partner Esme Macfarlane, event chair, welcomed the speakers and whetted the appetite of the delegates as she encouraged the sharing of ideas to help build out the capacity to make a significant contribution to energy security for the future and was mindful of the steps required to retain investor confidence.

Sam Johnson from RES guided delegates through the recent developments in aviation since the sector deal and why they are signalling real progress towards removing long-standing constraints on onshore wind deployment, notably on aviation and Eskdalemuir.

She also touched on the Onshore Wind Strategy, which provides real momentum to help to unlock capacity and accelerate deployment in the sector, with frameworks now in place to break barriers down.

WJM’s Andy McFarlane scrutinised the practical considerations of dealing with aviation issues, urging developers to “begin with the end in mind” when it comes to projects with aviation considerations. He also called for guidance and industry pushback on transparency and no cap indemnities.

Patrick Smart guided attendees through the latest grid developments and what the coming years may look like as he emphasised that, while recent grid reform had been all consuming and painful, it had been necessary and should result in a more refined grid queue.

Looking beyond Gate 2 and future NESO rounds, he reminded everyone that Reformed National Pricing had not gone away and would be back on the agenda shortly, with industry needing to engage on constraints and local charges.

Finley Becks-Phelps led the conversation surrounding repowering with his talk, ‘Rust or Revolution?’, speaking of the “vast opportunity to create something new in the industry”.

In repowering ageing wind farms, he highlighted the opportunity for job creation and energy security, but also examined the challenges and opportunities of repowering, and asked a vital question: “When is it time to decommission — and how can we embrace that decision as part of a sustainable energy future?”.

The successful event concluded with an audience Q&A and networking session as WJM’s Andy McFarlane reflected that the speakers had really tackled “this is where we are, this is where we want to go and this is how we are going to get there. We will look forward to next year and continuing to address the issues that matter to developers and investors”.