Renewing Our Offshore Success

When we think about the renewable projects the North East has to look forward to finally coming to fruition it’s peculiar to think their impact has had wide enough reach for discussion by not one, but two, very well-known US politicians.

One you will be familiar with for his dogged determination to axe the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre project led by Vattenfall at Blackdog from marking the shores which lie in front of his golf course.

The other, got pipped to the post by former US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton for the democratic nomination in last year’s election.

I am of course talking about Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders.

In the past few weeks Mr Sanders has heralded Scotland’s success with renewables as well as looking to point out Trump’s opposition.

He said: “Again and again, we see other countries rising to the challenge of climate change. In Scotland, wind turbines have generated 57% of their total energy needs during the first six months of 2017.

“In the month of June alone, Scotland managed to generate over one million megawatt hours of electricity, enough to power 118% of Scottish homes. Their goal is to reach a 100% renewable energy system by the year 2020.

“Just a few years ago, Trump sued Scotland because an offshore windfarm would ruin the view from one of his golf courses.”

It may simply be political point scoring on Sanders part but it is right Vattenfall’s project should produce such discussion because it reminds us the technology which is being used is in fact a world first.

Aberdeenshire is producing a project which will be a world-first in new technology. We have much to offer in this sector and our ability to support and lead on these projects is clear.
Which brings me to my next point of discussion.

And that is to toast the success of Peterhead Port Authority who have been awarded a contract which will see them play a prominent role in the final stages of the project’s development.

Both the turbine foundations and one of the world’s largest floating cranes to be used for the project are to be marshalled at the harbour.

The agreement means the company will harbour the suction bucket jacket foundations for the 11-turbine scheme.

The crane, which is one of the world’s largest, will have a maximum lifting capacity of 5,000 tonnes and up to six barges which will transport the 11 foundations.

This is an exciting venture for Peterhead Port to be involved in and it is terrific to see it, and others, gain key contracts for these renewable projects.

The North East can truly be at the centre of renewable technology and we clearly have the backing of the companies leading the way in this regard.

As Iain Laidlaw, the chief executive of Peterhead Port Authority said, Peterhead has indeed been an integral part of the UK’s energy industry.

But he added that EWODC represents a “new chapter” in the vital role the energy sector plays in supporting the national economy.

He is right of course, we are on the cusp of something new and exciting and we are helping to lead the way.

Threat to our energy industry

The north-east has had a challenging three years brought on by the impact of the global oil and gas downturn.

Pace is slowly but surely picking up once more and many businesses are hinting that the worst could be over.

But it is this very industry, which has proudly led to the region being dubbed Europe’s oil capital over the past five decades, which could now be hit once more by Brexit.

A new report was published recently by the think tank Centre for Cities which showed the profound effect of our exit from the European Union.

The findings were stark in revealing the north=east will be faced with very real economic challenges from either a hard or soft Brexit.

The analysis echoes warnings which have already come from industry body Oil and Gas UK.

In a report on Brexit only a couple of months ago its chief executive said there could be an additional £500 million every year because of changes to trade agreements.

Sectors including oil and gas, food and drink and the health and social care sector will all have considerably more difficulty in a post-Brexit economy.

And the damaging effect of a hard Brexit on our universities and colleges will further impact on the local economy.

We are currently in a state of limbo where we are unsure of what the future holds for many of our sectors.

The UK’s Brexit department has claimed they have bold and ambitious plans for a free trade deal.

Andrew Carter, the chief executive for the Centre for Cities, said Aberdeen will see the biggest reduction in economic output because of the oil industry’s dominance in the city.

The financial and business services which support the sector will also be hit hard by the tariffs.

As we have learnt in recent years, it is diversification which is needed to improve our economy in the coming years.

It will be this continuing challenge to widen our industrial structure in the years ahead which will help as we try to be less reliant on one sector.

This is going to be crucial in order for the north-east to continue to thrive once we leave the EU.

But the most important thing is that the UK Government does it all it can to minimise the economic shocks by securing the best possible trade deals we can do with the European Union.

North-east businesses must have assurances that any trade deals are also as similar to the current relationship we have with the European Union as possible.