Exclusive:MingYang tables 'Plan B' if Keir Starmer continues to drag feet over Highlands turbine factory approval
The Chinese company has suggested it take take its £1.5bn factory plans elsewhere if Keir Starmer does not make a decision over allowing the facility to be built in the Highlands.
Chinese wind turbine producer MingYang has drawn up a “Plan B” of sites in continental Europe if the UK government blocks plans to open a flagship factory in the Scottish Highlands.
The admission that the firm could walk away from investing in Scotland comes after reports suggested that Keir Starmer is poised to delay a decision over whether to give the proposed £1.5 billion MingYang factory, earmarked for Ardersier Port, the green light over national security fears.
The Prime Minister is currently visiting Beijing and it was expected a decision on whether to allow the MingYang factory to proceed would be made as part of the trade mission.
But reports quoted Whitehall sources stating a decision is being delayed over fears of allowing Chinese companies control of critical energy infrastructure.
Speaking in China, Sir Keir said: “No decision has been made in relation to MingYang. There’s no decision on that yet, one way or another, but obviously uppermost in our minds is the national security of the United Kingdom.”
Despite the previous UK government signing a memorandum of understanding with MingYang in 2021 to enter the energy market, which has now expired, the Conservatives and other political opponents have hit out at the Labour administration for not ruling out Chinese investment in wind power infrastructure because of cyber and national security concerns.
Chinese companies have invested in UK nuclear power developments, as well as battery storage projects.
The Scottish Government has called on the UK government to make a decision one way or another.
Two flagship ScotWind developments have been shelved since November, while several developers told The Scotsman’s sister title Scotland on Sunday they would support MingYang being allowed to open its factory in the Highlands.
As well as the proposed 1,500 jobs, Scotland building its own supply chain for offshore wind could unlock billions of investment in the coming decades.
Yesterday, First Minister John Swinney warned the decision from the UK government over MingYang has “been dragging on for quite some time”.
He said: “We have to have an approach to China that takes into account both the opportunities to collaborate economically and the need to ensure that we take the necessary actions to protect our national interests and our national security.
“There is a careful and sensitive balance to strike, but it is a balance that is unavoidable and inescapable.
“There’s consideration given to an investment proposition from MingYang which requires the authorisation of the United Kingdom government. We await an answer on that question.
“I’m keen we get an answer to that question sooner rather than later as it’s been dragging on for quite some time.”
Speaking at Scottish Renewables’ offshore wind conference in Glasgow yesterday, Aman Wang, head of MingYang’s UK and European operations, warned that although a factory in the UK was a priority, the company has drawn up a shortlist of five other ports on continental Europe if the UK government continues to drag its feet.
Mr Wang questioned whether the narrative a decision has been delayed was “completely accurate”, insisting the company was “never given a specific date of decision”.
READ MORE: Kate Forbes demands UK decision on MingYang wind investment to end 'vacuum' amid 'frustration'
He added that the Prime Minister’s trip to Beijing can “hopefully a positive turning point in the UK-China relationship”.
“I think it’s about time to do so”, he added.
Asked about alternative plans if the Labour government continues to ponder whether to allow the factory plans to proceed, Mr Wang said: “The UK is an integral part of our European strategy. We do have a plan B on the continent.”
He suggested there was a “shortlist of ports” as a “Plan B”, confirming that “the five are on the continent”.
He insisted that the company take “very seriously” the issues of national and cyber security, stressing MingYang is pursuing a “very pragmatic approach”.
Mr Wang added: “All of our clients have very strict cyber security requirements when it comes to providing digital turbines for them.”
But he pointed to a “perception” about whether the technology being manufactured by a Chinese company would be secure, warning that “we alone cannot address that”.
He told the conference at the SECC in Glasgow that MingYang has “struck a strategic alliance with Octopus Energy UK, particularly around cyber security”, which will include “three layers of control” and would allow the company to “hopefully jointly design the future solutions”.
Octopus Energy UK was contacted for comment.
Mr Wang did not want to breach confidentiality with the UK government, but suggested there has been “a lot of support” from Westminster that MingYang was “taking the right approach to addressing the problem”.
But he acknowledged that the issue was “uncharted water”.
A Downing St spokesperson had said it had never been planned for an announcement to be made as part of Sir Keir’s trip to China.
The Prime Minister headed to Beijing on Tuesday night. He is the first British prime minister to visit the country since Theresa May in 2018.
The controversial decision removed a diplomatic hurdle in the relationship with the Chinese Government, clearing the way for Sir Keir to make his visit to China.
But Downing St said last week that this did not make the approval of the Ming Yang plant more likely.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesperson said: “No, this is a decision that has been taken in a quasi-judicial process. It is entirely self contained, and as I've set out, it's a decision that's been independently taken.“And the letters this morning attest to that.”
Asked by The Scotsman earlier this month when the UK government will make a decision on Chinese firms being able to contribute to renewables manufacturing, energy minister and Rutherglen MP Michael Shanks said: "We are making a decision and we will say more about Chinese developers in due course, but I am mindful of the issue."
Chinese wind turbines can be half the price of their European competitors. Their development has been heavily subsidised by the Chinese state.
Europe’s largest turbine makers have been hit by President Donald Trump halting leases for offshore wind projects under construction in the US.
The UK Government has been warned that allowing the Ming Yang plant to go ahead would make the UK entirely reliant on China.
Security services have reportedly been asked to produce a report on the risk of allowing the deal to go ahead. Mr Trump has been a vocal critic of wind farms and threatened 100 per cent tariffs on Canadian imports after it announced a deal with China to reduce levies.
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