Here are the top business stories making the headlines in the morning newspapers.
Fresh venture for Aberdeen entrepreneurs
A new equipment firm, which will bridge the gap between oil and gas and renewables, has been launched with the backing of a pair of Aberdeen serial entrepreneurs.
Through their investment vehicle I7V Renewables, Doug Duguid and Michael Buchan have put their financial support behind Dyce-based RenQuip.
Energy Voice reports that the start-up currently has a headcount of five, but RenQuip expects to at least double that in the next 12 months, with five-year revenues forecast of around £6million.
This is the latest investment from Mr Duguid and Mr Buchan, who previously led PSL Energy Services until its acquisition by Halliburton and developed EnerMech from a two-man start-up into a global brand before being acquired by Carlyle Group in 2018.
Marc Gerrard and John Morgan, with combined experience of over 50 years with firms including HTL Group, EnerMech and Equalizer International, are teaming up to manage the venture.
'Significant' step forward for mini nuclear power stations
Rolls-Royce's hopes of building mini nuclear power stations have taken a significant step forward after Kwasi Kwarteng, the Business Secretary, asked UK Government regulators to assess the designs.
The Telegraph says Rolls-Royce has raised about £500million to develop the small modular reactors, which could help reduce Britain's reliance on electricity generated from fossil fuels.
It has won investment from Qatar; billionaire French oil dynasty the Perrodo family, which made its fortune from the private oil company Perenco; and US nuclear giant Exelon Generation. It also received £210million of taxpayer funding to develop the project.
Growth for Sentinel Marine
Scottish offshore support vessel specialist Sentinel Marine has taken delivery of a new multi-role offshore support ship.
It follows a £62million refinancing package, equally split between HSBC Equipment Finance and Clydesdale Bank.
Sentinel Marine, which has bases in Aberdeen and Singapore, offers immediate rescue and recovery support to offshore workers.
Energy Voice says the new ship, the Cromarty Sentinel, will work alongside its existing fleet of 10 emergency response and rescue vessels.
It is equipped for rescue, cargo operations, firefighting and responding to an oil spill.
Sentinel Marine has two further vessels slated for delivery in late 2022 that will help the company to grow its footprint in the North Sea and internationally.
Big bill for Bulb Energy
Keeping Bulb Energy running will potentially cost taxpayers billions of pounds more than has currently been set aside, reports the BBC.
Bulb, which has 1.6million customers, was quasi-nationalised in late November when it was put into special administration as it buckled under rising wholesale gas prices.
At the time, the Treasury set aside £1.7billion to purchase the gas required until the end of the tax year in April 2022 by which time it was hoped a buyer would be found for the business.
Government officials have conceded that the prospect of offloading the business to a private buyer seem remote in this environment - and that means that taxpayers will be on the hook for a gas bill that energy analysts believe could run to billions of pounds.