Here are the top business stories making the headlines in the morning newspapers.
Big interest in careers in renewables at BP
Energy group BP has been inundated by applications from workers vying to get into low-carbon energy.
As part of its drive to become an integrated energy company, it recently recruited 200 new workers, equally split between wind and hydrogen.
BP's senior vice president for Europe and head of country for UK, Louise Kingham, told the Scottish Affairs Committee that it had received around 10,000 applications from people wanting to work for the company's renewables divisions. Energy Voice says that equates to about 50 hopefuls for every job on offer.
The BP boss added: "There is a lot of interest there. Whether the skills meet with the needs we have is another question. Nevertheless, the appetite to work in those areas is there."
Top lawyer's caution on independence-referendum bill
The Scottish Government's top lawyer was not prepared to sign off on an independence-referendum bill, court papers have revealed.
Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain has asked the Supreme Court to rule on whether Holyrood has the power to legislate for a vote without UK Government consent.
She said she currently "does not have the necessary degree of confidence" that it does.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon wants to hold a referendum on October 19, 2023.
The Lord Advocate is still expected to argue the Scottish Government's case at the Supreme Court, and she said there was an issue of "exceptional public importance" for judges to resolve.
The BBC says Ms Sturgeon still hopes to win the agreement of UK ministers for a fresh referendum, but had asked the Lord Advocate to refer the matter to the Supreme Court for a ruling on whether one could go ahead without the backing of Westminster.
Electrification plans for Buzzard
Chinese state-owned oil firm Cnooc is cracking on with plans to electrify one of its key North Sea assets.
A contract worth more than £25million is being put together to gauge the current state of the offshore-cabling market, with a view to reducing emissions from the Buzzard field.
According to the North Sea Transition Authority's energy pathfinder portal, it will be put out to tender on August 1.
Energy Voice says Cnooc is still evaluating "several potential layout solutions" to electrification.
The company is looking at the potential for using the Buzzard installation to supply power to other assets.
Sand battery to store green power
Finnish researchers have installed the world's first fully-working sand battery which can store green power for months at a time.
The developers say this could solve the problem of year-round supply - a major issue for green energy.
Using low-grade sand, the device is charged up with heat made from cheap electricity from solar or wind.
The sand stores the heat at around 500C, which can then warm homes in winter when energy is more expensive.
The BBC says Finland gets most of its gas from Russia, so the war in Ukraine has drawn the issue of green power into sharp focus.
New COO at Dana
North Sea oil and gas firm Dana Petroleum has announced the appointment of a new chief operating officer.
Andy Duncanson joins the Aberdeen-headquartered company from London-listed operator EnQuest, where he held the position of upstream director.
During his career, he has held a number of other roles in the oil and gas industry, including as head of operations in Qatar and Copenhagen for Maersk Oil.
Mr Duncanson will be responsible for all Dana's operations in the UK, Egypt and the Netherlands, and will take up his new role in mid-August.
Energy Voice says his appointment follows the decision by current COO Eiko van Dalen to return to the Netherlands and assume the role of country manager.
Strike dates for Royal Mail managers
Royal Mail managers across the UK are to go on strike this month in a dispute over pay and job cuts.
The Unite union says 2,400 managers will work to rule between July 15 and 19 followed by strike action from July 20 to 22.
According to Unite, during these periods, deliveries and some services like tracked items, will be delayed.
Royal Mail said there were "no grounds" for a strike and it had contingency plans to minimise disruption.
Unite says the action is over Royal Mail's plans to cut 700 jobs and cut pay by up to £7,000.
However, Royal Mail hit back, saying that "56% of workers have had an increase and others have had their pay protected at their substantive grade".
A spokesperson at the company also told the BBC that the 700 job losses were "planned" and have happened following an "extended consultation and achieved through voluntary redundancy."
Contracts for decommissioning firm
Decom Engineering has secured further contracts across the globe after its chopsaw tool successfully cut its teeth during trials at the National Hyperbaric Centre in Aberdeen.
The pipeline-decommissioning specialist said it had landed two deals worth more than £300,000 in the North Sea and offshore west Africa.
Energy Voice says Decom has designed and developed its own range of cold-cutting saws which can be used to tackle a variety of energy-decommissioning tasks.
Headquartered in Northern Ireland, the family-run company recently invested over £250,000 in a new 6,000 sqft feet Aberdeenshire base to be closer to North Sea oil and gas clients.