Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what support his Department provides to Scottish ports that wish to engage in oil and gas decommissioning.

Offshore decommissioning is a significant UK-wide opportunity, with Oil and Gas UK estimating that $1 - $1.5 billion is likely to be spent each year on decommissioning for the next 5 years. Government and the Oil and Gas Authority are working with industry and industry bodies to support UK content.

Last year Government committed to supporting an Aberdeen City Deal which includes an Aberdeen Harbour expansion to compete for more decommissioning work.

The Oil and Gas Authority’s Decommissioning Board is working with industry to forecast future demand and opportunities. As part of this work the Oil and Gas Authority engages with ports to discuss decommissioning priorities, work opportunities and future decommissioning-related plans.