While Scotland is committed to achieving Net Zero by 2045, fossil fuels may still play a role during the transition. This is primarily due to the existing reliance on oil and gas for energy, industry, and heating, as well as the need for reliable backup energy sources during periods when renewable energy production, like wind or solar, is low.
In the short-to-medium term, fossil fuels can provide stability and flexibility to the energy grid as Scotland scales up renewable energy infrastructure and energy storage solutions. Additionally, certain industries, like heavy manufacturing and petrochemicals, are still highly dependent on fossil fuels, and transitioning these sectors requires time for the development of alternative technologies, such as green hydrogen or carbon capture and storage (CCS).
Furthermore, the oil and gas sector in Scotland is a significant part of the economy, supporting jobs and revenues. A gradual transition allows for retraining and diversification within the workforce, helping to mitigate social and economic impacts.
Scottish Government’s Draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, 2023 states: ““While we expect oil and gas to remain a component of Scotland’s energy system while it transitions to a zero carbon system, particularly in industrial energy usage, we are clear that overall use of fossil fuels across heating and transport sectors must decline and that alternative technology and energy solutions are available.”
Increasingly, in future years we will see a lot more companies trialling a widening range of new technologies and solutions that will help to extract fossil fuels in a cleaner and less impactful way while ensuring it is more sustainable, minimise costs and ultimately cut their carbon footprint.
This section provides examples of a research, teaching or innovation taking place at Robert Gordon University related to this topic.
RGU - Why are energy companies still working in oil and gas? We know our future is in low-carbon, renewable, alternative energy sources. So why do we continue extracting, producing, and consuming fossil fuels?
Professor Paul de Leeuw from RGU’s Energy Transition Institute discusses the options.
UK Government - How the government will implement its policy on support for the fossil fuel energy sector overseas https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-the-government-will-implement-its-policy-on-support-for-the-fossil-fuel-energy-sector-overseas