Today the Chamber held the last of this year’s business breakfast events, in partnership with the University of Aberdeen Business School. Our speakers focused on ‘Europe’s oil & gas capital, leading the world in energy transition’.
The word ‘transition’ has become synonymous, particularly in this region, with energy as we look to utilise the incredible skills, research strengths and supply chain built up in oil and gas, positioning ourselves to play a leading role in the move towards net zero.
Everyone is talking about our journey to net zero and the transition that will require in our future energy production and consumption but in this region, we’re doing something about it. Developing new technologies and delivering practical solutions to the challenge. That’s because this region is a place that’s entrepreneurial, dynamic and innovative. A place that gets things done - and we’re doing so again now.
We see this is the plans for the Energy Transition Zone, our floating offshore wind projects, hydrogen, carbon capture and storage, our global leadership position in subsea engineering; and our decommissioning expertise. We have all the skills and some momentum.
Lots of other places in the UK are making a play in this space and there is plenty to go around but none of them have our credentials.
What we have to do now is throw off our inhibition and get our messaging aligned and delivered loud and clear to Scottish and UK governments and other key stakeholders.
We need to secure their backing to confirm Aberdeen as the country’s key hub for this work. And for them to underpin the intent with the necessary investment.
At today's breakfast Luca Corradi, innovation network director at the Oil & Gas Technology Centre, highlighted the organisation's ‘Closing the Gap’ report and some of the groundbreaking and innovative collaborations and solutions coming forward from the ‘go to technology centre for the energy industry’ - but also the challenges of making these commercially viable, investing at pace and working cross-sectoral and in partnership.
Tavis Potts, director of the University of Aberdeen Centre for Energy Transition, covered the state of energy transition in this region against the wider backdrop of Scottish energy governance, focusing in on some of the issues around the ‘just’ energy transition an area of research interest. He also introduced the new Centre for Energy Transition, its aims, objectives and research and opportunities for collaboration.
Jan Noyverf of SNF presented on a groundbreaking polymer flood technology that can deliver significant CO2 reductions; before passing to Steve Connor, founder and chief executive officer of Creative Concern, a comms agency focusing on places, sustainability and making the world a better place.
Based on his experiences of other what other cities are doing he critiqued the credentials of Europe’s oil and gas capital and the legitimacy of our claim that Aberdeen is not the climate change problem but the source of many of the solutions. He highlighted why action on climate is pivotal for sustaining and enhancing the reputation and attractiveness of a city or region and why cities like Aberdeen have a leading role to play in disruption and innovation to deliver against our global net zero targets.
Interesting, illuminating, thought-provoking - and most of all, encouraging.