GB Energy to be headquartered in Aberdeen

The headquarters for a new UK government-backed energy company will be in Aberdeen, BBC Scotland understands.

GB Energy will not supply power to homes, but will help fund new and existing clean technology, as well as small and medium-sized renewable energy projects.

It is also planned for the body to have smaller satellite offices in other parts of Scotland – possibly including Glasgow and Edinburgh.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Energy Security and Net zero said no final decision had been made on where the headquarters would be located.

She added: “We do not comment on speculation. Decisions on Great British Energy’s location will be announced in due course.”

Aberdeen is already home to much of the UK’s oil and gas and offshore wind industries.

GB Energy was one of Labour’s key election pledges and was always planned to be based in Scotland.

However, the exact location was not initially known and was not included in the King’s Speech at the start of Sir Keir’s government.

Labour had previously promised the plan would bring “a huge number” of skilled jobs to the country.

Under its remit, GB Energy would invest in wind and solar projects, as well as newer technologies including floating offshore windfarms, hydrogen and carbon capture and energy storage.

During the election campaign, Labour was forced to clarify that GB Energy would generate power in its own right, but would not be a retailer.

It would be funded through an extended windfall tax on oil and gas firms, which Labour claimed would raise about £8.3bn over the next five years.

The party has said previously it would not issue new oil and gas licences, but also said it would not overturn existing permits.

The Scottish government had previously pledged to establish a publicly-owned, non-profit company to sell gas and electricity by 2021, although that was later scrapped.

First Minister John Swinney said the firm would be a “bodyblow” to the Scottish economy, arguing it would not bring bills down for households and risk reducing employment in the north east of Scotland.

The SNP’s Westminster leader, Stephen Flynn, said confirmation of the headquarters’ location was welcome, but echoed concerns over its impact on local jobs.

He also called for more clarity on GB Energy’s role.

Mr Flynn said: “Nobody sensible was seriously suggesting that a new energy body should be based outwith Aberdeen so to have this belated certainty is helpful.

“Now we need to try and understand what this new energy body will actually do, and how it will benefit the people of Scotland given the scale of our resources.

“In that context, it’s only reasonable to expect any wealth created from Scotland’s resources to flow directly back to our communities and it’s important to be clear that this body being in Aberdeen is no mitigation to the damage that is likely to be caused to investment and jobs in our existing energy sector by Labour’s recently implemented tax regime.”

The Scottish Conservatives also voiced concerns over the impact on jobs, accusing Labour of “wanting to turn off the North Sea”.

Rosie Hampton, of Friends of the Earth Scotland, added the projects GB Energy invested in would be more important than where it was based.

She added: “GB Energy can and must bring our energy generation back into public hands.

“Anything else risks being a continuation of the status quo with profiteering energy companies allowed to carry on with business as usual.

“The deliberate ambiguity around GB Energy means it is still hard to judge when it will be functional or whether it will be creating jobs for offshore energy workers or investment managers.”

Meanwhile, Russell Borthwick, chief executive of Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, said: “Aberdeen has been Europe’s energy capital for half a century – home to energy companies large and small, a thousand supply chain firms, vast renewables potential off our shores and the highly-skilled workforce who will deliver the UK’s transition to net zero.

“While we await confirmation from the government, and further detail on the functions and focus of a new publicly-owned energy company, we will continue to campaign for a well-managed transition that protects jobs, delivers energy security in the here and now and guarantees a bright future for our energy industry for decades to come.”