Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Energy Transition Projects in Scotland

Tuesday 18 April 2023 · 6 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The UK Government is supporting Scotland's energy transition through the North Sea Transition Deal.
  • The UK Government has allocated 81.1 million of funding to 81 locations throughout Scotland.
  • The Minister confirmed that 40 million of funding has been invested in the Acorn carbon capture project near Peterhead.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 John McNally SNP
Climate Scotland Energy
Context

Concern about the support for energy transition projects, especially in light of recent announcements and the impact on Scottish organisations.

Question

What steps he is taking to support energy transition projects in Scotland. The questioner noted that there are 44 renewable electricity projects contracted in Scotland out of a total of 161. He also highlighted the £81.1 million funding allocated to 81 locations in Scotland as part of the net zero innovation portfolio, and mentioned the commitment for Aberdeen energy transition zone and the global underwater hub.

Answer from Andrew Bowie

We are supporting Scotland's energy transition through the North sea transition deal. Additionally, 44 of the 161 projects awarded contracts for difference for renewable electricity are in Scotland. More recently, we have allocated £81.1 million of funding to 81 locations throughout Scotland—I have a list, but I will not go through them—as part of the £1 billion net zero innovation portfolio, from 2021 to 2025. Furthermore, we have committed to funding the Aberdeen energy transition zone by £27 million, and the global underwater hub aimed at diversification for the subsea sector by £6.5 million.

Answered
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Q2 Stuart McDonald SNP
Climate Energy
Context

The Acorn carbon capture project has received positive support, but there are concerns about the timing and certainty of funding for track 2 projects.

Question

There was a lot to take in there. Recent positive noises around the Acorn carbon capture project near Peterhead are obviously welcome, albeit with the caveat that we have heard a lot of this before. Can the Minister confirm what funds track 2 projects will get and when Acorn funding will be confirmed, or at least when such announcements will be made? Does he agree that track 2 projects must proceed much faster than track 1, both because of the climate emergency and so that we can seize the opportunity to be world leaders in that technology?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

The hon. Member is absolutely right that there was a lot to take in, because the UK Government are doing so much to support Scotland's energy transition. On Acorn, he does not recognise that this Government have already invested £40 million of funding in the project—most notably, £31.3 million under the industrial decarbonisation challenge. I have the breakdown of the funding, if Mr Speaker will allow me: £31.3 million from the industrial decarbonisation challenge for onshore and offshore front-end engineering design studies; £9.3 million of innovation funding for CCS innovation and advancing CCS technology and hydro supply programmes; and £250,000 for the development of Storegga's Dreamcatcher direct air capture plant.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The timing and confirmation of Acorn carbon capture project funding

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Q3 John McNally SNP
Employment Scotland Energy
Context

Recently, Harbour Energy announced job cuts in Aberdeen linked to the poorly implemented energy profit levy.

Question

I wish the Minister would slow his answers down—that was a bit of a blur. Just last week, Harbour Energy announced that it is cutting 350 highly skilled and valued jobs in Aberdeen, directly linking that to the poorly implemented energy profit levy. We warned many times that it would disproportionately affect Aberdeen and Scotland and, unfortunately, we have been proven right. Will the UK Government commit to matching the Scottish Government's £500 million just transition fund, and protect our energy workers?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

I am afraid I have to take all that with a massive pinch of salt. Now it turns out that the SNP is against a windfall tax on the oil and gas industry, when it had been campaigning for such a tax for weeks and weeks, months and months. We have introduced the energy profits levy to deal with the immediate crisis regarding energy bills, but we have built into that investment opportunities for companies to continue to innovate, create jobs and develop our offshore oil and gas fields, because we will be reliant on them as a transition fuel for many months to come.

How: Criticising Opposition Party

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Q4 David Mundell Con Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale
Scotland Energy
Context

Concern about knee-jerk actions to shut down the oil and gas industry in Scotland.

Question

I am sure the Minister will be able to give me a short answer to this question. Does he agree with me that what transition in Scotland definitely does not involve is some knee-jerk shutting down of the oil and gas industry, especially given that liquid gas supplied by tankers has two and a half times the emissions of gas produced in the North sea?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

Yes, I completely agree with my right hon. Friend. He is absolutely right on this issue. Indeed, shamefully, Scottish Government Minister Patrick Harvie, a member of the SNP's partner in Government, the Green party, said that oil and gas workers in Aberdeen should simply get on their bikes and look for other jobs, instead of investing in the industry, which this Government are doing.

How: Criticising Opposition Party

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Q5 Alan Brown SNP
Climate Scotland Business & Trade
Context

The need to establish new manufacturing facilities to support the growth of renewable energy sectors and supply chain security.

Question

If we want a proper just transition and greater supply chain security, we need new manufacturing facilities for renewable energy components. Which suppliers and manufacturers has the Minister spoken to about creating new manufacturing facilities in Scotland? How many new Scottish manufacturing and renewable energy jobs do this Government intend to create?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

We are absolutely committed to building a UK-based supply chain, and that includes, of course, new jobs in Scotland. I would be delighted to meet my Scottish Government counterparts and the hon. Gentleman to discuss how we can progress that further and faster.

Not addressed: Details on suppliers/manufacturers contacted or job creation plans

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Q6 Alan Brown SNP
Scotland Energy Business & Trade
Context

Concerns about lack of concrete support measures, such as matching the Scottish Government's £500 million just transition fund or firm commitments on timescales.

Question

Obviously, I am happy to meet the Minister and work with him, but what I heard right there was that there is no plan for manufacturing jobs in Scotland, no plan to match fund the just transition fund, no answer to the job losses at Harbour Energy and no firm commitments on timescales for Acorn, and that the tidal stream funding has been halved. There is nothing happening to match the Inflation Reduction Act in the United States and the EU support packages. Is it not the case that at the moment just transition are simply warm words for this Government and that much more needs to be done?

Answer from Andrew Bowie

Absolutely not. I have gone through in detail exactly what we are doing in Scotland. Indeed, his colleague, the hon. Member for Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East (Stuart C. McDonald) suggested that there was far too much in my initial answer to demonstrate what we are doing to support transition in Scotland.

How: Criticising Opposition Party

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