Decommissioning Challenge Fund for energy projects

Following yesterday’s announcement (Tuesday 16 July) by Scotland’s Energy Minister, Paul Wheelhouse, a further £4m funding has been confirmed to help maximise the economic benefit to Scotland from the decommissioning of North Sea infrastructure.

The commitment to the fourth DCF round is in addition to the £10 million committed in the first three rounds and follows the success of previous projects. To date, projects that enhance and strengthen Scotland’s decommissioning capacity have been awarded to locations including Shetland, Kishorn, Stornoway and Orkney.

Gavin MacKay, HIE’s head of energy industries, said:

“The decommissioning of North Sea infrastructure is already presenting opportunities for the Highlands and Islands. The obvious example is the Buchan Alpha decommissioning, which is being carried out at Dales Voe in Shetland, following major upgrading of the quayside.

“There are many more such opportunities expected in the years ahead such as the Ninian North platform expected in Shetland next year. It’s important that our infrastructure and supply chain companies are well-placed to benefit from these and that’s what the DCF is intended for.

“We would encourage all companies across the energy sector supply chain who are involved or planning to be involved in decommissioning related projects, to consider a DCF application.”

The fund will continue to support infrastructure upgrades at Scotland’s ports, innovation in retrieval and transport approaches, and supply chain projects that strengthen Scotland’s decommissioning knowledge, skills, capabilities and capacities.

Alongside the Decommissioning Action Plan, launched by HIE and Scottish Enterprise at the end of 2016, the DCF will help Scotland’s oil and gas sector make the most of decommissioning opportunities at home and abroad.

Application forms are now being received for a new round of the DCF. You can submit a request for an application form via theonline form. More information is available at www.gov.scot/dcf or via DCF@gov.scot.

Background

The Decommissioning Challenge Fund is open to expressions of interest from 15 July to 2 September. This latest round will deliver capital and resource funding for projects in financial year 2019/20.