The Labour Government is speeding up the delivery of a “skills passport” to support oil and gas workers to move into renewable jobs.
The digital tool will “allow offshore workers to move flexibly back and forth between both industries in the years and decades to come.”
It comes as Energy Secretary Ed Miliband visits Aberdeen – where publicly-owned energy company GB Energy is headquartered – today.
The Government is also set to sign an agreement with the SNP Government to boost GB Energy’s efforts to support clean energy supply chains and infrastructure.
The publicly owned energy company is to develop partnerships with Scottish public bodies to speed up clean energy projects.
The passport will align standards, recognise transferable skills and qualifications, and map out career pathways. It is set to be piloted by January 2025.
Miliband said: “Scottish energy workers will power the United Kingdom’s clean energy future – including in carbon capture and storage, in hydrogen, in wind, and with oil and gas for decades to come as part of a fair transition in the North Sea.
“Unlike in the past, we’re also working closely with the Scottish Government with a new agreement to ensure our publicly-owned company Great British Energy is primed to accelerate clean energy investment in Scotland.”
Acting SNP Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy Gillian Martin said: “Scotland already has a strong pipeline of clean energy and supply chain opportunities, is at the forefront of floating offshore wind development, and has a depth of knowledge and experience on community and local energy.
“We look forward to working with Great British Energy to ensure it delivers real benefits for the people of Scotland and a just energy transition.”
And she said: “To make sure that no offshore energy workers are left behind, the Scottish Government provided initial funding of £3.7 million between 2022-2024 for the development of the industry-led skills passport.”
Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray added: “It should be easier to switch between oil and gas and renewables work offshore.
“The present situation, where training in one industry isn’t recognised in the other, cuts off opportunities for oil and gas workers.
“The fact some workers are paying out of their own pockets is scandalous.
“We need to cut that red tape and deliver a skills passport that allows offshore workers to move flexibly back and forth between both industries in the years and decades to come.”
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