Keir Starmer: GB Energy will be based in Aberdeen

Keir Starmer has finally confirmed that GB Energy will be based in Aberdeen – weeks after the government denied reports.

Before the election, Labour vowed to set up a publicly-owned power player somewhere in Scotland.

Speaking at the Labour conference in Liverpool, Starmer said the publicly-owned body "could only ever be based in one place in Scotland", telling delegates: "Today, I can today confirm that the future of British energy will be powered, as it has been for decades, by the talent and skills of the working people in the Granite City, with GB Energy based in Aberdeen."

Starmer said the "national champion" will be the "vehicle to drive forward our mission on clean energy".

The company will not produce power but will fund cleaner energy projects. Smaller offices will be set up in Edinburgh and Glasgow to maximise "skills and expertise across Scotland", the UK Government said.

It is hoped that the move will create jobs and support growth across the UK.

Agencies in oil capital Aberdeen have lobbied hard to secure the company's HQ.

Earlier this month, the UK Government denied reports that the decision had been made. 

The Department of Energy Security and Net Zero, which is led by Ed Miliband, dismissed a BBC claim and said no decision had been taken.

At the time, a spokesperson from the department said: "We do not comment on speculation. Decisions on Great British Energy's location will be announced in due course." 

In Liverpool, Starmer said: "This is how the work of change happens: a decisive, mission-led government moving our country forward step by step, focused on a long-term plan.

"But first we stabilise our economy, second we fix the foundation and third, we build with pride and determination a Britain that belongs to you."

After Starmer's speech, Juergen Maier, chair of GB Energy commented: "Great British Energy’s headquarters in Aberdeen will be a starting point for the company in its work to back clean energy projects across the whole of Scotland and the UK.

"We will use this base to rapidly scale up this publicly owned, operationally independent company and start to engage with investors and communities and build supply chains across the UK."

The government has said it will not issue new North Sea oil and gas licences in news that provoked criticism from the energy sector.

Douglas Lumsden, Scottish Conservative shadow net zero and energy secretary, has said siting GB Energy in Aberdeen, the UK's oil capital, "will do almost nothing to compensate for the hammer-blow Labour’s policies on oil and gas have already delivered to the north east" of Scotland.

He said: "There’s no explanation of how GB Energy will safeguard the 100,000 jobs supported by Scotland’s existing energy industries – especially when it is an investment vehicle rather than an energy firm.

"Labour and the SNP have both turned their backs on all new oil and gas developments, threatening those jobs. Only the Scottish Conservatives are standing up for Scotland’s oil and gas sector.

"People in the north east will see this gimmick for what it is – a totally inadequate consolation prize wheeled out to distract attention from the danger Labour’s policies pose to Scottish jobs, our economy and energy security."

Scottish Green MSP Maggie Chapman, who represents North East Scotland, said GB Energy "could present an important opportunity for Aberdeen". But she went on: "We want to be optimistic, but a lot of us are concerned that this will become an investor's playpen, rather than a genuine driver of new renewables projects.

"So far the UK Government's statement raises many more questions than answers. "It is time for Labour to be clear about its ambitions for this project, and what it will look like. GB Energy should be an organisation that resources the energy sector’s move towards genuine renewable energy, not an excuse for more warm words on oil, gas and nuclear. An energy transition without justice for workers and affected communities is the last thing we need. Aberdeen has a unique role to play in driving forward our just transition. It can be the engine that drives the climate action and green economy that are so vital.

"The UK Government must ensure that GB Energy works for public interests in the region and the sector, and is not simply a way to line private pockets."

However, Gillian Martin, the Scottish Government's acting secretary for net zero and energy, welcomed the confirmation. She said: "Aberdeen has a long and proud history of energy innovation and an outstanding skills base, and will be at the heart of Scotland’s just transition to clean energy. We will now press the UK Government to make sure that this announcement brings real decision making to Aberdeen and adds value to the great work already taking place in the energy transition. 

"More widely, we are working closely with the UK Government as it establishes the GBE team and we would encourage them to accelerate the establishment of the new organisation so that investment in projects in Scotland can be taken forward without delay."