What will GB Energy actually do for Scotland's renewables future amid row over Aberdeen HQ jobs
GB Energy has pledged to create 10,000 jobs through projects it invests in, with the majority expected to be based in Scotland.
With promises of creating thousands of employment opportunities and finally giving the public a stake in green power, a row over jobs numbers risks GB Energy being used as a tool to criticise the UK Labour government. But with the organisation’s Aberdeen headquarters officially opening this week, questions have been raised over what the body can achieve for Scotland’s net zero and renewables future.
GB Energy was intended to give the British state a stake in energy developments as the race to net zero powers up. But with the UK government’s ambitious target set of achieving clean power by 2030, critics have argued that the body has been sluggish in getting going.
The organisation’s Aberdeen headquarters was officially opened by King Charles this week, but the base could become an underwhelming symbol of the energy transition if hopes are not realised.
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GB Energy’s base is located at the Marischal Square development, which sparked a public backlash when it was constructed. Sitting above a branch of Costa coffee and overlooking the closed Illicit Still pub, the flagship headquarters does not even have a sign visible to the public. You wouldn’t know it was there.
A row emerged this week over the number, or lack of, jobs tied to its Aberdeen headquarters - with an admission that positions are being scaled up at two per week.
But this has overshadowed the key aims of GB Energy - to help create thousands of jobs in the industry that is seeing hundreds shed by oil and gas giants.
What are the aims of GB Energy?
GB Energy has four key aims. The first is to “accelerate the overall deployment of clean energy” by establishing a portfolio that will deliver at least 15 GW of power through investment and ownership in clean energy generation and storage assets. The organisation hopes to mobilise £15bn of private finance between now and 2030.
Secondly, it hopes to support more than 1,000 local and community energy projects across the UK, boosting community ownership.
Thirdly, GB Energy intends to support jobs and the growth of British manufacturing and clean energy technology by funding projects to directly support at least 10,000 jobs.
It also hopes to build a portfolio which is generating income by 2030, and “be on a pathway to company-wide profitability”.
Big European energy companies have key stakes in projects across the world, including the UK’s North Sea. But Britain has failed for decades to own any of its own offshore projects. GB Energy intends to change that.
“We were really clear that we wanted to be an energy investor and generator”, UK energy minister Michael Shanks told The Scotsman.
Can GB Energy replicate Scandinavian state-owned power?
“The likes of Statkraft and Vattenfall and the other European state-owned companies that do this stuff - that's the format that we wanted to follow”, he added.
“All of these state-owned energy companies that have been around for decades, they of course all had to start from somewhere, but now there's a genuine stake in the energy future.
“Indeed, a stake in a lot of our energy infrastructure is owned by other European countries. That means the public in those countries has a stake in what's being built. That's what we want for Britain, for Great British Energy, and that's what we're determined to deliver.”
What projects has GB Energy supported?
GB Energy has been up and running for about a year and has invested in hundreds of community-led energy projects, including the funding of solar panels being placed on hospitals and schools.
Last November, GB Energy pledged a potential £50m investment which could be matched by funding from the Scottish National Investment Bank and the National Wealth Fund by acquiring initial shareholdings in the Pentland floating offshore wind farm, planned off Scotland’s north coast, with more than 1,000 jobs potentially created by the development.
“We need to give Great British Energy time”, Mr Shanks argued.
“It has made huge strides already, but it will continue to become even more important in our energy system in decades to come.”
GB Energy’s CEO, Dan McGrail, has confirmed that the majority of the thousands of jobs the body hopes to create in the energy sector are expected to be positions in Scotland.
“We’ve been given a budget to invest in the energy transition and to give a stake to the public in the energy transition”, he said.
“We want to crowd in £15bn of additional investment as a result of our activities by investing in 15GW, which is a huge amount of the energy system. We want to, as a result of that investment, create 10,000 additional jobs in the UK - the vast majority in Scotland.”
GB Energy unlocking projects in Scotland
In 2024, SNP ministers signed an agreement with GB Energy to allow it to work with Scottish bodies including the Scottish National Investment Bank and Crown Estate Scotland to identify investment opportunities.
READ MORE: GB Energy to take Scandinavian inspiration to become power company amid renewable slowdown alarm
But the SNP has been highly critical of GB Energy, accusing it of failing to deliver the jobs it promised.
“It’s not GB Energy, it’s Scotland’s energy and it should be in Scotland's hands”, argued Aberdeen Central MSP, Jack Middleton.
"The Labour UK government has put the bunting up to celebrate 40 jobs in Aberdeen when they promised 1,000”, he added.
Appeal for homegrown energy
Offshore Energies UK (OEUK), which has been highly critical of the UK Labour government for its policies on oil and gas, particularly calling for bringing forward planned reforms to the energy profits levy - has amplified its arguments for homegrown fossil fuels to be prioritised.
Enrique Cornejo, OEUK's energy policy director, said: “GB Energy has an important role to play in supporting the development of all our homegrown energies and helping turn the UK’s energy ambitions into investable projects.
“By working in partnership with industry, it can help unlock private investment, support skilled jobs and strengthen supply chains across the country.”
READ MORE: Flagship North Sea floating wind projects stall as SNP warned not to 'squander' renewables potential
A Great British Energy spokesperson said: “Scotland has a vital role to play in Great British Energy's mission to drive clean energy deployment, create skilled jobs and ensure the benefits of the energy transition are felt by communities across the country."
"From our headquarters in Aberdeen, we're using the skills, expertise and capabilities of North East Scotland to build an enduring public institution."
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