GB Energy must urgently get to work on saving north-east economy from coal industry-style collapse
Avoiding ‘cliff edge’ job losses in the North Sea oil and gas industry is vital
It was definitely in the ‘worst-kept secret’ category, but Keir Starmer has finally confirmed that the government will base its new publicly owned company, GB Energy, as expected, in Aberdeen. It could not have gone anywhere else. For decades, Aberdeen has been the UK’s oil and gas capital and it should now become its undisputed renewable energy capital too.
As North Sea oil workers lose their jobs – an inevitable consequence of dwindling reserves – many will move elsewhere if they cannot find similarly well-paid employment. The wealth of expertise in marine engineering built up over the years simply cannot be squandered if this country is to become a world leader in offshore renewables.
Time running out
The planned closure of the Grangemouth refinery next year spells out the need for GB Energy to hit the ground running. It may have once felt like time was on our side, but this is no longer the case – both from a climate perspective and an economic one.
If the UK is going to make the transition to renewable energy and net zero that everyone is talking about – and profit from doing so – all the key players need to start focussing on making it happen.
A shared task
This means GB Energy, the Scottish and UK governments, the renewable sector and also, crucially, oil and gas firms all need to work together with a common aim in mind: ensuring a managed transition that prevents the sort of mass redundancies and devastated communities seen during the closure of coal mines in the 1980s.
In his speech to the Labour conference, the Prime Minister said GB Energy would be “the vehicle that will drive forward our mission on clean energy... this is how the work of change happens. A decisive, mission-led government.”
In a speech that sought to strike a more optimistic tone, this was perhaps the most encouraging line. However, we still need to see the full details of how GB Energy will work before judging whether it really can kickstart a genuine transformation. As the world continues its journey into a new industrial age, nothing less than a revolutionary impact – on the north-east, Scotland and the UK – will do.
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