The two energy companies behind plans for a new low-carbon power station at Peterhead have announced a £341million deal south of the border.
SSE Thermal and Equinor revealed yesterday that they are buying Triton Power Holdings from Energy Capital Partners.
Operations being acquired include a gas power station, which the new owners want to eventually switch to being totally hydrogen-powered.
The transaction marks another step forward for the collaboration of SSE Thermal and Equinor.
The key plant included in the Triton deal is Saltend Power Station on the north of the Humber Estuary.
It has a conventional combined cycle gas turbine which uses natural gas. The main role of this power plant is to provide electricity during periods of low output from solar and wind.
Equinor and SSE Thermal are now starting work on preparing the site to use up to 30% hydrogen from 2027, with an ambition to eventually increase to a 100%-hydrogen operation.
Hydrogen project
The hydrogen could come from Equinor's H2H Saltend hydrogen project, which would reform gas into hydrogen.
Saltend Power Station would then become an anchor customer for the hydrogen project.
Irene Rummelhoff, an executive vice-president at Equinor, said: "This acquisition together with SSE Thermal demonstrates our commitment to building a broad energy partnership with the UK.
"We will continue to work to supply the UK market with reliable energy and to reduce emissions by offering a transition to hydrogen through our hydrogen project H2H Saltend.
"Contributing to flexible power supplies with low CO2 emissions to support weather-dependent renewable energy is essential to ensure energy security through the energy transition."
Catherine Raw, managing director of SSE Thermal, said: "Flexible energy will be absolutely essential as renewable energy scales up over the coming years, providing vital back-up while protecting security of supply.
"But the real prize will be how we decarbonise that flexible energy over the longer term, and we are excited, in particular, by the hydrogen and carbon-capture opportunities at Saltend."
Benefits of planned Peterhead power station
Meanwhile, a report out last month found that the planned new low-carbon power station in the north-east of Scotland could generate significant benefits to the Scottish and UK economies.
The study highlights the major boost that would come from Peterhead Carbon Capture Power Station, which is being developed by SSE Thermal and Equinor.
The proposed gas plant could become one of the UK's first power stations equipped with a carbon-capture plant to remove CO2 from its emissions and would connect into the Scottish Cluster's CO2 transport and storage infrastructure, which underpins plans to deliver one of the UK's first low-carbon industrial clusters.
Based on analysis from BiGGAR Economics, the report highlights the scale of the economic impact at a local, Scottish and UK level. It is estimated that £2.2billion will be invested throughout the development, construction and the first 25 years of the new facility.
Equinor has said that the Peterhead unit is expected to start operations by 2027.