The Scottish government has pledged £24.5 million in support for the North Sea oil and gas industry in Scotland.
The funding, unveiled by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, comprising £12.5 million to help oil and gas firms research and develop new technologies and access advice from industry experts, and a £12 million Transition Training Fund, to help oil and gas workers facing redundancy move into other employment.
The funding for new technologies will come from Scottish Enterprise. Some £10 million of it be to help firms reduce risks associated with carrying out research and development, as well as giving them access to specialist experts who will help them kick-start innovation projects and maintain their global competitiveness.
An additional £2.5 million will allow firms to implement targeted support from senior industry experts to troubleshoot problems through bespoke business resilience reviews focused on strategic, financial, operational or market issues.
Scottish Enterprise has also started a research project to analyze and understand the extent of gaps in the availability of finance for the oil and gas sector.
Dr Lena Wilson, chief executive of Scottish Enterprise and chair of Scotland’s Energy Jobs Taskforce said: “Despite a huge collective effort over the last year to help mitigate the pressures on Scotland’s oil and gas industry we continue to see and feel the impact of the low oil price.
“It is absolutely critical that we invest our efforts in the right areas to support those impacted today whilst laying foundations for a vibrant and sustainable industry in the future – that’s exactly what these new measures aim to do.
“Innovation and access to finance is fundamental to any industry during challenging times and that’s why we’ve prioritized funding in these areas and are undertaking comprehensive research to make sure we fully understand the extend of funding gaps and can direct future support where it is needed the most.”
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