Crown Estate Scotland welcome GB Energy agreement between Scottish and UK Governments

As the organisation responsible for leasing seabed for offshore wind and other renewable energy projects in Scotland, we welcome the signing of a new agreement between the UK and Scottish Governments, which will enable Great British Energy to develop partnerships with Scottish public bodies.

Crown Estate Scotland, which plays a critical role in supporting the delivery of low-carbon energy, including offshore wind, carbon storage, and tidal projects, will now engage with Great British Energy and other key stakeholders to identify areas of mutual interest to help deliver initiatives crucial to the UK’s net-zero future.

The agreement, signed on 17 October by the Acting Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy, Gillian Martin, and the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Ed Miliband, will enable Great British Energy to engage with Crown Estate Scotland and other public organisations in Scotland to help develop and deliver supply chains, infrastructure, and other aspects of clean energy which form a crucial part of the green energy revolution.

Ronan O’Hara, Chief Executive of Crown Estate Scotland, said: “We recognise that this is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the UK in general and Scotland in particular to develop a sustainable, long-term energy future. Crown Estate Scotland is uniquely positioned to be at the heart of that mission, leveraging the Scottish Crown Estate and our role as the maritime licensee in Scottish waters to accelerate decarbonisation and support the delivery of net-zero targets.

“I am delighted this progress has been made and that we can now build on this agreement, working closely with the Scottish and UK Governments, Great British Energy, and others from across Scotland and the United Kingdom to support the delivery of a sustainable and prosperous future for all.”

Crown Estate Scotland manages the Scottish Crown Estate on behalf of Scottish Ministers and plays a key role in supporting and enabling green energy ambitions. This includes the awarding and managing of leases and other types of agreements to organisations who wish to use Scotland’s seabed for offshore wind farms, carbon storage, tidal, and wave energy projects.

These agreements include the recent ScotWind Leasing round, which saw the awarding of 10-year Option Agreements to 20 projects, with a potential combined installed capacity of almost 30GW of clean, green energy. Crown Estate Scotland - which concluded several significant energy leasing agreements prior to the ScotWind leasing round - also manages the INTOG (Innovation and Targeted Oil & Gas) leasing round - the world's first offshore wind leasing round of its type, which aims to attract investment in innovative offshore wind projects in Scottish waters, as well as to help decarbonise North Sea operations by supplying renewable electricity directly to oil and gas infrastructure.

Euan McVicar, Chair of Crown Estate Scotland, said: “I know that a lot of work has gone on behind the scenes to secure this important agreement, which we welcome. We now need to take this to the next stage.

“We are determined that Crown Estate Scotland plays a key role as this agreement is put into practice, working with Great British Energy and the Westminster and Holyrood administrations to explore how, together, we can best deliver for future generations.”