In my role, I spend a great deal of time thinking about what energy transition looks like in practice. It is easy to focus about targets, technologies and future investment, but the real measure is whether change creates skilled jobs, stronger businesses and lasting opportunities in the communities that have supported our energy system for generations. For me, the transition is not about replacing one industry with another; it is about applying the expertise, infrastructure and supply chain capabilities we already have to a growing pipeline of energy opportunities.
Peterhead provides an excellent example of how established energy communities can evolve to support the energy transition. For more than 50 years, the town has played an essential role in supporting the North Sea, building an extraordinary depth of expertise across engineering, manufacturing, logistics, marine operations and energy services.
Those strengths are every bit as relevant to the next phase of our energy system, with Peterhead increasingly well placed to support offshore wind, carbon capture and storage, power and transmission, alternative fuels, decommissioning and future energy infrastructure.
We are already beginning to see what this next chapter could involve. Across the North East of Scotland, a growing pipeline of offshore wind, carbon capture and storage, power and transmission projects is creating demand for the same engineering, logistics and marine capabilities that have underpinned the North Sea for decades.
SSEN Transmission's Pathway to 2030 programme, including projects such as Eastern Green Link 2 and the Netherton Hub, demonstrates how major electricity infrastructure is already being delivered using existing supply chain expertise. While the technologies may evolve, the need for engineering excellence, logistics, project management and a strong safety culture remains constant. The opportunity is to leverage these transferable capabilities across multiple energy markets rather than rely on any single sector.
Those projects forms part of a much wider transition taking shape around Peterhead, with the Peterhead Energy Transition Forum’s 2025–2040 Vision documenting the scale of the opportunity, identifying the potential for around 8,000 high-value jobs, £1 billion of investment and £626 million in additional income over the coming decade.
Building on more than 50 years in Peterhead
For ASCO, this is a very personal story because Peterhead has been part of our business since 1974, when we built our supply base to support the emerging North Sea offshore industry.
Today, our 20-acre site remains a leading private offshore support facility in the UK, with 14 berths handling around 2,050 vessel turnarounds and 460,000 tonnes of deck cargo each year. More than 300 people are employed by ASCO in Peterhead and the surrounding area, while generations of local people have built careers with us through apprenticeships, training and opportunities across the business.
Yes, the history is important, but what excites me most is how the experience, infrastructure and skills developed over five decades can now be applied to an increasingly diverse energy mix.
Our Peterhead base has already supported projects ranging from oil and gas drilling campaigns to the installation of offshore wind jacket foundations, and we are looking at how the South Base can evolve further to meet the requirements of larger, more complex energy transition projects. While the projects are changing, the practical support they need remains the same: safely coordinating vessels, materials, people, cargo and infrastructure.
Turning a shared vision into practical action
ASCO’s involvement in the Peterhead Energy Transition Forum reflects our belief that no individual business or organisation can deliver this transformation alone. The Forum brings together industry, education and the public sector to promote Peterhead as an investment destination while ensuring that local people and businesses are positioned to benefit from what comes next.
One year on since the forum published its 'Vision for 2025-40', it has now moved into delivery through dedicated Working Groups covering Skills, Community Wealth Building, and Marketing & Communications. Together these groups are helping develop workforce readiness, maximise local economic benefit, promote Peterhead as an investment destination and ensure local businesses are well positioned to capture future opportunities.
For me, these areas are fundamental to a successful transition because infrastructure and investment alone will not create the outcome we want. We need local businesses to be ready to compete for work, young people to understand the careers available to them and experienced workers to see how their existing skills can transfer into growing sectors.
Peterhead has adapted repeatedly throughout its history, from fishing to oil and gas and now towards a broader, more diverse energy future. It demonstrates how established industrial communities can build on existing infrastructure, skills and supply chain capability to support the next generation of energy projects. This is not a story unique to Peterhead, but one that is being replicated across energy hubs throughout the UK. By working collaboratively and leveraging existing capabilities, we can create a more resilient, integrated and competitive supply chain that supports the delivery of Net Zero while continuing to underpin the UK's energy security.
Read the full Peterhead Energy Transition Forum’s 2025–2040 Vision here.
Read the Forums one year update here.