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Scotland’s largest Energy Transition Skills Hub, boasting a state-of-the-art welding academy, advanced manufacturing zone and future technology digital training suites, was officially opened in Aberdeen today (29 September) by First Minister John Swinney MSP.The brand new £10 million facility, on the site of a dilapidated former dairy, is the transformational anchor project of the Skills Campus in the city’s Energy Transition Zone and will support 1000 people into jobs with a focus on energy transition in the first five years of its operation.Today’s event marks the official handover of the Hub from ETZ Ltd, who have led the project’s delivery, to North East Scotland College (NESCol) with the latter confirming the new facility is already provding training for 42 welding students and 27 engineering students this academic year.To encourage increased uptake in courses, particularly from local communities, the Hub is providing accessible training, blending provision for full-time students with opportunities for upskilling and reskilling through part-time, evening and weekend courses.The high demand for energy transition skills across the region is evidenced by NESCol’s Energy Technician and brand-new Wind Turbine Operations & Maintenance courses, which enrolled 32 students this year alone. This provides the skills required to forge careers in a sector the region is ideally placed to benefit from given the vast number of offshore wind projects, with 75% of Scotland’s 45.5 GW total installed and planned pipeline, within 100 nautical miles of Aberdeen.Through its leadership and private-public sector partnership model, ETZ Ltd secured significant backing toward the project from the Scottish Government Just Transition Fund (£4.5m), Shell UK (£1.8m), NESCol (£500k), market leading engineering skills body ECITB (£400k), transmission networks provider SSEN (£150k) with the remainder being funded through the ongoing support for ETZ Ltd from the Scottish and UK Governments.First Minister John Swinney was joined by ETZ Ltd Chair, Sir Ian Wood, Shell UK Senior Vice President - Upstream, Simon Roddy, and NESCol Principal, Neil Cowie, as they toured the new Hub.First Minister of Scotland, Rt Hon John Swinney MSP, said:“Ensuring a pipeline of expertise and talent will be key to unlocking Scotland’s energy transition and securing the highly skilled workforce of the future.“The Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund has been central to the development of the Energy Transition Skills Hub, a magnificent facility that will support our existing workforce alongside fostering the skills of the next generation of industry leaders.“Aberdeen is recognised around the world as a hub of energy excellence, and it is the expertise and knowledge of its workforce that has underpinned its success. The Energy Transition Skills Hub will be transformational in building on that proud reputation and positions the city and wider region as the go-to location for people seeking to develop energy skills of the future.”ETZ Ltd Chairman, Sir Ian Wood, said:“The opening of the Energy Transition Skills Hub marks a significant milestone in our ambition to ensure North East Scotland remains a global leader in energy excellence, with a world-class supply chain, pioneering low carbon projects, and a thriving economy.“The greatest asset any industry must have to succeed is its people and this region is blessed with a highly skilled workforce that have pioneered innovative energy solutions for over fifty years. Equipping this and future generations with the skills necessary so they can forge long and successful careers in the transition to a low carbon economy is of the upmost importance and that is why today’s opening is such an important occasion.“Today also represents yet another shining example of how the public and private sectors can work together to deliver impactful outcomes at pace. We are hugely grateful to NESCol, Shell UK, ECITB and SSEN for their unwavering support and to the Scottish and UK Governments for their continued and significant backing.“It is very fitting to have the First Minister open this wonderful facility and for him to see first-hand the progress ETZ Ltd is making in delivering an energy ecosystem within the Energy Transition Zone that is second to none and in transforming this region to one of the most attractive locations in Europe for investment in low carbon technologies.”Senior Vice President - Upstream, Shell UK, Simon Roddy, said:“The Energy Transition Skills Hub in Aberdeen is part of our UK Skills Transition Programme to support 15,000 people into jobs, with a focus on the energy transition by 2035. Together with our hubs in Pembrokeshire and Fife, this facility will support around 5,000 learners across the UK. Today’s launch in Aberdeen marks a major milestone for the North East of Scotland and demonstrates the power of collaboration between industry, education, and government in building a skilled future energy workforce.“As the Skills Hub moves into delivery, we’re proud to use it as an anchor point for programmes like Shell Girls in Energy. Since the programme began it has supported over 1,800 young women to engage in STEM subjects and to consider a career in the global energy sector through weekly lessons, workshops and industry visits. This year, 20 classes across the North East are beginning their studies, and for the first time, our Lochside Academy cohort, which neighbours the Skills Hub will attend their sessions on-site, marking an exciting new chapter in the programme’s evolution. By building meaningful pathways from school to college to industry, we’re helping to inspire and equip the next generation of energy professionals.”Principal and Chief Executive of NESCol, Neil Cowie, said:“The launch event marks the successful completion of the project’s design, build and commissioning phase. It also formally marks the beginning of the next stage, as delivery ramps up and the Hub truly comes to life.“The first students are already settled into life at the Hub and the response has been hugely positive. There is no doubt they are inspired by the fantastic surroundings, and their experience of training is being enhanced by the cutting-edge equipment they have access to.“When we set about drawing the blueprint for the Energy Transition Skills Hub, one of the primary aims was to create an environment that would inspire the next generation to embrace opportunities in an evolving energy industry.“The Hub is not only about new entrants to the sector. Upskilling and reskilling are other important facets and, with the full-time offer now embedded, we are already turning our attention to the offer tailored to employers and those wishing to take advantage of part-time learning opportunities.”

Following the success of the 2024/25 pilot fund, ETZ Ltd has launched the second round of the Skills Energiser Fund. This fund provides up to £3,000 available to schools in the immediate vicinity of the Energy Transition Zone, enabling them to offer a wider range of impactful initiatives to their staff and pupils. This funding boost aims to equip the next generation with the skills needed for future jobs and inspire young people to pursue careers in the energy sector. The 2024/25 pilot provided £16k of funding for resources and activities at local primary and secondary schools. Nursery through to S6 pupils benefitted from a range of new resources and activities, such as textbooks, STEM kits, transport, outdoor play equipment, digital workshops and more. 240 pupils also took part in P7 transition workshops run by Digital Makers, developing coding and digital skills.  Supporting young people in developing the skills for rewarding, sustainable energy careers is central to a successful and just energy transition. For more information and application forms, see the download forms below. Further detailsApply Now

As a not-for-profit, private sector-led company spearheading North East Scotland’s energy transition, ETZ Ltd's clear vision is for this region to remain a global leader in energy excellence with a world-class supply chain, pioneering low carbon projects and thriving economy. You can read more about recent project developments and supply chain activities in our latest quarterly update, highlighting the significant progress we are making toward realising our vision for the region. Read here

Welcome to the first edition of ETZ Ltd’s Community & Coast Newsletter. Here you can find out the latest updates about ETZ Ltd’s Community & Coast programme, delivering sustainable, long-term, community wealth-building investments as an integral part of our wider energy transition ambitions. Read it here.

Through our Community & Coast programme, ETZ Ltd is fully committed to supporting communities located in proximity to the Energy Transition Zone by delivering sustainable and long-term investments to enhance local greenspaces and community amenities. As an early step in this programme of activity, ETZ Ltd are working in partnership with Aberdeen City Council and Historic Environment Scotland to take forward site investigation works on St Fittick’s Church. The aim of these investigations is to identify conservation improvements that could be made to ensure this site of historical importance can best reflect and serve the heritage of local and wider communities for generations to come. The church is owned by Aberdeen City Council. It was scheduled as a monument in 2002 by Historic Environment Scotland who oversee matters affecting all scheduled monuments. Initial Condition Assessment St Fittick’s Church was founded between 1189 and 1199. A full archaeological assessment of the church has been undertaken by Cameron Archaeology. An initial visual conservation appraisal of the church was undertaken in December 2023 by EALA (Conservation Architects) to assess the condition of the church, appraise its significance and recommend conservation repairs. The initial appraisal indicated that although much of the cement render is intact with minimal cracking, the extent of deterioration behind the cement render is unknown. The initial appraisal identified a number of conservation opportunities including fabric repair, opening blocked windows and the opportunity for community involvement in heritage, scheduling and repairing of the graves. Initial investigative works – Commenced Monday 25th August, and lasting 6-8 weeks. Access to the internal areas of the church will be temporarily restricted during the investigative works. Site investigation works have now been initiated to assess the condition of the stonework beneath the harling through a programme of inspection and sampling. The site investigation work will involve the removal of four areas of cement render from the walls of the church to enable the condition of the walls beneath the render to be assessed and the reapplication of the harling using hot mixed lime. The assessment will be undertaken by an archaeologist, specialist conservation engineers and Historic Environment Scotland. The site works are subject to a Conservation Management Plan accepted by Historic Environment Scotland which will provide the basis for developing a conservation proposal for the church. The Community & Coast team can be contacted at information@etzltd.com

Building an ecosystem of innovation and impact HPR ROV is next up as part of the 'Inside the Energy Transition Zone' series. Focusing on the organisations based in the Energy Transition Zone, we spoke with Jan Stander, HPR ROV’s managing director, finding out more about their work in supporting the renewable energy sector. Jan also tells us about how visits from international delegations and local collaboration through ETZ Ltd have opened up new business opportunities… What does your company do? HPR ROV is a service company that specialises in hand deployed ROVs. Small and lightweight, our ROVs can be deployed at short notice from any location to ensure effective turnaround for priority jobs. It is because of their capability to access restricted underwater locations safely and efficiently that our ROVs give a clear understanding of exactly what is happening under the surface. Our remote access capabilities and detailed insight reports then give you visual access to assets whenever it is needed, and this then helps improve asset safety and integrity while significantly reducing risk and cost. How would you say HPR ROV’s activity fits into the wider energy transition? Our ROVs have been successfully deployed in the offshore wind industry, and while I am based in the office, we have teams going offshore with micro ROV equipment to inspect and ensure that the integrity is there, supporting the asset lifecycle. What made you want to move into the Energy Transition Zone? We have been in the Energy Transition Zone for over 6 months, and it is because of our deployment in the offshore wind industry that HPR ROV decided to move to ETZ and the W-ZERO 1 building in Aberdeen. It is a part of our strategy to align and be part of the energy transition. What benefits have you seen so far from being based at W-ZERO 1, and what support have you received from ETZ Ltd? Being based here is excellent. Not only seeing all the delegations come in, but this all shows what profile there is around offshore wind and floating wind in particular. Also, it is good to be able to integrate with the other companies based in the Energy Transition Zone. There is a sense of collaboration. All of this has meant that we have seen opportunities with operators due to working here. Outside of the actual office facilities, HPR ROV also applied for some funding and was successful in being awarded a grant through the ETZ Ltd Challenge Fund, which is helping our company expand further. Funding like this is really important for small companies and will help us accelerate our growth.