£3.7m and just 200 users: SNP-backed green jobs scheme off to slow start

A website launched to help thousands of oil workers move into green jobs attracted just 200 users in Scotland in its first five months, despite millions of pounds of backing from the Scottish Government.

The ‘Energy Skills Passport’, launched in January, was billed by ministers as “critical” to Scotland’s ‘just transition’ – the effort to shift away from fossil fuels in a way that protects jobs and communities.

The website allows offshore oil workers to create profiles, log their qualifications and skills, and see jobs they could move to – as well as what extra training they might need.

But figures in documents released to The Ferret under freedom of information (FoI) law show that, by the end of June, only 390 people across the UK had created profiles. Just 219 of those were in Scotland and 112 in Aberdeen, the heart of the country’s oil industry.

Around 26,000 people in the UK were estimated to work in the offshore oil and gas sector in 2023 and tens of thousands more in support roles onshore or jobs linked to the industry.

Traffic to the site also dropped quickly after its initial launch. In its first full month, the website had 2,300 visits. By the summer, monthly visits had fallen below 900.

The waning interest comes despite the scheme receiving £3.7m from the Scottish Government – and internal documents show further taxpayer support from the UK Government’s GB Energy initiative has been discussed.

The organisations that designed the passport – trade bodies Offshore Energies UK and RenewableUK – told The Ferret that the total number of sign ups had increased to nearly 500 by the end of August. However it did not provide updated Scottish figures.

They stressed that the tool remains a “work in progress” and new job roles would be introduced over the next year. The organisations added that promotion of the passport had been kept deliberately low in its early months to focus on getting feedback and improving the site.

However, unions and opposition politicians say the project is moving too slowly to support workers at risk of losing their jobs. One union representative said the site was a good idea but currently making “no perceivable difference” despite the millions spent.

Unite industrial officer John Boland warned that delays and the lack of engagement from some employers were undermining its potential. Without this support from employers the passport “will fail and let down the offshore workforce” who would have to look elsewhere for jobs “most likely abroad”, Boland claimed.

“Wealthy companies have taken the workforce for granted for decades, and instead of preparing to support them through the transition to industries like renewable energy, many companies have flat out denied the reality of the climate emergency and lobbied against responsible policyPatrick Harvie, Scottish Greens MSP.

The documents released to us show unions raised similar concerns with OEUK and RenewableUK at a meeting in April. They warned that job cuts were already underway in both oil and gas and offshore wind industries and that delays to the passport were contributing to a “loss of confidence” among workers.

They also urged the developers to expand the platform beyond its focus on offshore wind to other sectors such as construction and defence – where more jobs are available.

Currently the website maps career paths in just eight roles. OEUK and Renewable UK say this limited offer was always the plan during the passport’s pilot phase. Phase two, which is now in progress, is expected to add roles from different parts of the energy sector and other industries, they claimed.

A recent report by Robert Gordon University claimed that oil and gas jobs in the UK could fall by half by the early 2030s – the equivalent of losing 400 jobs every fortnight.

Meanwhile, roles in offshore wind and other renewables are expected to grow. Research suggests that up to 90 per cent of oil and gas workers have skills that transfer into green energy. But moving between sectors is not straightforward.

Douglas Lumsden MSP, the Scottish Conservatives’ energy spokesperson, agreed that the skills passport could be “part of the solution” for workers worried about their futures. But he criticised both the Scottish and UK governments for “barely lifting a finger to promote” the scheme.

“Thousands of skilled jobs have already gone and unless Keir Starmer and John Swinney change course, hundreds more will vanish every fortnight,” Lumsden added.

“The lessons we have learned from feedback so far from hundreds of workers and employers is determining the way in which the scheme is being rolled out at scale.”Scott Young, head of skills at RenewableUK.

Scottish Greens MSP, Patrick Harvie, claimed oil and gas companies were responsible for failing to help workers through the transition to clean energy.

“Wealthy companies have taken the workforce for granted for decades,” Harvie said “and instead of preparing to support them through the transition to industries like renewable energy, many companies have flat out denied the reality of the climate emergency and lobbied against responsible policy.”

OEUK and RenewableUK reiterated that the skills passport was only in its “beta” testing phase and that its success should be judged over time. OEUK’s head of employment and skills, Irene Bruce, said: “Phase two is already under way, expanding oil, gas and wind roles, adding new sectors, and improving features like mapping qualifications across industries.”

But she added that its rollout must be seen in the “context” of the”huge strain” on the UK’s energy sector due to a lack of investment in oil and gas and renewables.

“The passport can help but only if matched by real momentum on energy investment and long-term policy,” Bruce said.

RenewableUK head of skills, Scott Young, said the skills passport was a “valuable tool” but remained a “work in progress”.

“The lessons we have learned from feedback so far from hundreds of workers and employers is determining the way in which the scheme is being rolled out at scale,” Young added.

Gillian Martin MSP, the Scottish Government’s energy secretary, said it was “keen to see the passport develop further” from the initial version launched in January.

“Success of this second phase will require the passport to be fully supported from a range of bodies, including the UK Government,” she added.