Partly, yes.
That’s what Matteo Ilardo, a Europe Analyst at RANE, told Rigzone when asked if Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation would affect Scotland’s energy policy.
“Energy policy in Scotland is a matter that is specifically reserved to the UK parliament, but since planning has been devolved, the Scottish government has the ability to shape the direction of energy generation in Scotland by approving or vetoing new projects,” Ilardo said.
“In this sense, Scotland’s recently published Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, which aims to ensure delivery of Scotland’s net zero target by 2045, is meant to guide policy making on the matter and provide stakeholders and investors with policy certainty surrounding the future of the nation’s energy sector,” he added.
With Sturgeon stepping down, however, there could be a disruption of current policies related to energy, Illardo pointed out.
“Depending on who succeeds her as First Minister, a new Scottish government may have different priorities or choose to approach Scotland’s energy transition in a different way,” Ilardo said.
“For instance, the most contentious point of the Draft Energy Strategy is the proposed presumption against exploration for North Sea oil and gas. Given recent polling showing a majority of Scots wanting the Scottish Government not to actively speed up the decline in oil and gas production, the future of the industry and the related North Sea jobs will likely be at the center of the SNP leadership contest,” he added.
“Of all candidates to replace Sturgeon, former SNP government minister Ash Regan is the one that most explicitly distanced herself from Sturgeon’s energy strategy, vowing instead to prioritize protecting oil and gas jobs,” the RANE analyst continued.
Illardo noted that, while Scotland will “almost certainly” continue to prioritize investment in renewable energy sources and work towards reducing carbon emissions under any new SNP leader, “the role of oil and gas in the transition process may be rediscussed”.
“Support for offshore wind and opposition to new nuclear plants in Scotland will most likely remain unchanged under a new party leadership, but the proposed presumption against future North Sea exploration may be scrapped and so may plans to join the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance (BOGA) or opposition to the controversial Cambo and Rosebank oilfields, which have become key battlegrounds between industry and climate activists,” Illardo said.
“Anyhow, Holyrood’s powers over oil and gas remain limited, so it’s difficult to see what practical steps a new government can take one way or another. In the meantime, however, uncertainty surrounding energy policy and eventual support for infrastructure projects could hurt investor confidence in the sector,” Illardo added.
Energy Underpins Every Part of Our Economy
Rigzone asked the Scottish government if Sturgeon’s resignation would affect the country’s energy policy. In response, a Scottish government spokesperson said, “energy underpins every part of our economy, and the sector will play a fundamental role in our net zero transformation”.
“Our draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, published last month, sets out a very clear vision to capitalize on the enormous opportunities that a net zero energy system offers the industry, our economy and our climate,” the spokesperson added.
“As a responsible government, we have set out a pathway, through our draft Strategy and Plan, to ensure a fair and just transition for our energy workforce, and to bring a new generation of skilled workers into a flourishing energy industry as part of a net zero Scotland. Given the North Sea basin is mature and production is already in decline, any other course of action would only serve to put jobs and our economy at risk,” the spokesperson continued.
The Scottish government spokesperson went on to note that “independent research based on industry projections finds that production in the North Sea will be around a third of 2019 levels by 2035 and below three percent of the 1999 peak by 2050”.
“Independent analysis also suggests that existing sanctioned fields will contribute over 80 percent of Scotland’s future production,” the spokesperson added.
“Reducing our energy consumption while ramping up our energy generation capabilities through renewables and hydrogen will mean that, in a net zero Scotland, we will not only be less reliant on importing oil and gas, but a net exporter of cleaner and greener energy to the rest of the UK and beyond,” the spokesperson went on to state.
Sturgeon Resignation
Earlier this month, Sturgeon has announced her intention to resign as the First Minister of Scotland and the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP).
“I have been First Minister for over eight years, and I was Deputy First Minister for the best part of eight years before that,” Sturgeon said in a statement posted on the Scottish government’s website this month.
“These jobs are a privilege, but they are also, rightly, hard. And, it is only possible to give absolutely everything to a job of this nature for so long,” Sturgeon added in the statement.
On January 10, the Scottish government announced the publication of a Draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, which it described as a “route map to secure Scotland’s fastest possible fair and just transition away from fossil fuels”.
Key policy proposals published for consultation included “substantially” increasing the current level of 13.4 gigawatts of renewable electricity generation capacity and setting out final policy positions on fossil fuel energy, “including consulting on a presumption against new exploration for North Sea oil and gas”, the government highlighted in a statement posted on its website at the time.
Ahead of the publication of the new strategy for the energy sector, Sturgeon said there was a clear imperative to accelerate the clean energy transition and reduce Scotland’s dependence on oil and gas, a statement posted on the Scottish government’s website on January 10 outlined.
To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com
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