Scotland boasts of energy security

EDINBURGH, Scotland, April 7 (UPI) -- The Scottish government said Monday energy policies from its counterparts in London means the balance between energy supply and demand is getting narrower.

A paper from Edinburgh on British energy policy and Scotland's contribution to energy security finds the government in London hasn't done enough to reduce the margin between electricity supply and demand.

"The laws of supply and demand and the cost of bringing more expensive power plants onto the grid to meet peak demand will drive up household energy bills the closer the U.K. gets to having no spare generation capacity," Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said in a statement.

Ewing said the Scottish gap between supply and demand is about 10 times more secure than the United Kingdom as a whole.

The Scottish government said it could support itself financially through its oil and gas reserves while relying on renewable energy reserves for most of its domestic power demands. A referendum for independence from the United Kingdom is scheduled for September.

"Scotland’s huge natural resources mean that we can supply electricity reliably and affordably. This is the case now, and will be the case in the event of independence," Ewing said.

The government of British Prime Minister David Cameron said the energy sector would be better if Scotland stayed in the United Kingdom.

[Scottish Government]