Great British Energy has started recruiting in Aberdeen – raising hopes that the Granite City will soon be confirmed as the headquarters for the UK’s new state-owned energy company.

More than 900 business leaders have backed a campaign to locate the new firm, which has over £8billion of financial muscle, in the North-east of Scotland.

Several Aberdeen-based roles have appeared on LinkedIn this week and UK Government Energy Minister Michael Shanks – who has been tasked with delivering Great British Energy – is in the city this week for a series of engagements with the energy sector.

Jobs

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero already on the hunt for an Engagement Lead, Policy Advisor and someone to help manage facilitates in Aberdeen.

There is also a role for a £160,000 per year co-director to look after emissions trading and decarbonisation. However, there are also roles being advertised in Edinburgh, Salford, Darlington Cardiff and Birmingham as well.

Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, has already narrowed the options for where GB Energy (GBE) will be headquartered to Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

What will GB Energy do?

Great British Energy will “develop, own and operate assets”, investing in partnership with the private sector. It will have a capitalisation of £8.3billion of over the term of the parliament.

The government said Great British Energy will take a stake “in projects and supply chains which accelerate technologies of the future” with the aim of placing the UK at the front of the global race for technology which has major global export potential.

It will facilitate, encourage and participate in the production, distribution, storage and supply of clean energy, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from energy produced from fossil fuels as well as measures for furthering the transition to clean energy and improving energy efficiency.

Chamber campaign

Earlier this week, Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce sent a letter signed by 900 business people calling on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to locate Great British Energy in Aberdeen.

Last month, the Chamber took the campaign on to the street of Westminster with a tongue-in-cheek advert declaring “It’s coming home”, a play on the slogan adopted by England’s football fans.

The campaign was raised directly to Mr Starmer in the House of Commons by Aberdeen South MP Stephen Flynn.