£180 million Oil & Gas Technology Centre opened in Aberdeen
A new £180million centre aimed at developing shelved, under-developed and early-stage oil and gas technology opens in Aberdeen today.
A new £180million centre aimed at developing shelved, under-developed and early-stage oil and gas technology opens in Aberdeen today.
A proposal to put Tayside at the heart of the North Sea decommissioning industry has been welcomed by harbour chiefs.
The Aberdeen City Region Deal could ultimately be worth £1.2billion to the north-east. The Scottish and UK Governments as well as Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire councils signed off on the historic £250million package of support for the region yesterday.
Offshore industry doyen Sir Ian Wood said last night that the north-east should “be hopeful but patient” in waiting for changes following the city deal signing yesterday. Sir Ian, who founded private sector economic development organisation Opportunity North East (ONE) in December, warned changes would not happen overnight but that this was “the beginning”. ONE has an initial funding commitment of £25million from The Wood Family Trust.
Nicola Sturgeon has called on David Cameron to sign an urgent city deal for Aberdeen to help it through the downturn in the oil industry. The Scottish Government has offered to fund the deal on a 50:50 basis to support innovation, digital connectivity and infrastructure.
Chancellor George Osborne gave the North Sea oil and gas industry a clear signal that it will have to become its own saviour - by saying nothing about it in his Autumn Statement.