Choosing Office Space For The Energy Transition

The announcement, made in September, that Aberdeen is to be home to the headquarters of Great British Energy, was heavily trailed during the preceding months, but the confirmation came as a huge boost to the city. The reasons for the choice are doubtless a combination of the practical and the symbolic.

Aberdeen And GB Energy

The practical advantages offered by Aberdeen are numerous:

• The not-for-profit Energy Transition Zone (ETZ) was established across the North East of Scotland in 2021, with the aim, amongst other things, of providing on-shore infrastructure and support for established and emerging low carbon activity.
• At the time of writing the ETZ has secured £60 million in funding, created 2,500 jobs directly, been involved in 10,000 jobs related to the transition to renewable energy and is predicting £400 million of potential growth.
• Aberdeen is also home to the Net Zero Technology Centre, another not-for-profit organisation which works to boost technology development and technology services in the city and the wider region with the aim of meeting net zero ambitions and bolstering energy security.
• The legacy of being one of the global leaders in energy provision via North Sea oil and gas which means that Aberdeen is home to 75% of the world’s subsea engineering capability and the highest concentration of energy supply chain companies across the UK.

In addition, the choice of Aberdeen as the base for what is intended to be the driving force behind a switch to net zero is doubtless intended to serve as a symbolic reassurance that the energy transition won’t lead to de-industrialisation of the city.

According to details published by the government, Great British Energy will have five key functions:

• To lead projects through the development phase in order to speed up the delivery of those projects and ensure that the value delivered is captured for the British public as a whole
• To invest in green energy projects in tandem with the private sector to ensure that those projects get off the ground
• To deliver a local power plan by supporting local energy generation projects via work with local authorities, combined authorities and communities
• To build supply chains across the whole of the UK, creating jobs at the same time as bolstering energy independence
• To explore the role which Great British Nuclear will have to play in the future of Great British Energy

Wider Reaction To The Announcement

One of the earliest practical demonstrations of the approach likely to be taken by Great British Energy is the launch of a partnership with The Crown Estate. The Crown Estate is the statutory body which is in charge of a £16 billion portfolio of land and – vitally – seabed belonging to the UK monarch. The hope and intention is that this partnership will help to reduce the lengthy timeframes usually involved in the construction of large infrastructure projects such as transmission lines and wind farms.

For their part, The Crown Estate has released estimates stating that the partnership will lead to 20-30GW of new offshore wind developments reaching the seabed lease stage – the point at which the relevant hoops have been jumped through in terms of finance, licences and consents, enabling work on the wind farm to begin – by 2030. The claim is that this will be sufficient to power the equivalent of 20 million homes.

The Granite City Legacy

Speaking at the official announcement, the prime minister stated that the headquarters could only really ever have been based in the Granite City, a decision based on the talent and skills of the people there.  The news was welcomed by the chief executive at the Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce, Russell Borthwick, who stated that “We are home to over 1,000 energy supply chain companies and the lion’s share of energy workers who stand ready to deliver the UK’s transition to net zero. Over 17GW of floating offshore wind projects will be deployed within 100 nautical miles of our city and 20,000 jobs are waiting to be created in Carbon Capture off the Buchan coast. With the people, skills, strategic infrastructure and future pipeline of projects already in place, the North East of Scotland is ready to lead the way. "

The chairman of ETZ, Sir Ian Wood, also welcomed the announcement as a reflection of the fact that Aberdeen is situated in close proximity to a pipeline of renewable projects including offshore wind, green hydrogen and carbon capture and storage. The mention of carbon capture is particularly relevant in light of another recent government announcement – that of £21.7 billion in funding to launch the carbon capture industry in the UK. Although the carbon capture hubs will be based in Teesside and Merseyside, the acceleration of a shift toward carbon capture as part of the net zero agenda is bound to impact positively on the green energy hub being put in place in and around Aberdeen.

Great British Energy And Beyond

The unveiling of Aberdeen as the home of Great British Energy was followed, in October, by an appearance at Westminster by the government appointed chairman of the company, Jurgen Maier. When quizzed by MPS he predicted that the number of jobs directly linked to the headquarters might eventually reach 1,000, and that this would include the chief executive and all key staff. Although locations in Edinburgh and Glasgow might play a part in delivering solutions around financial services and innovation, it was emphasised that the main focus of the jobs directly created in Aberdeen would be around well-paid operational engineering positions.

More widely, it was estimated that 100,000 people in the UK will be employed in offshore wind by the end of the decade, with Aberdeen acting as the hub for this shift from fossil fuels to renewable options.

The boost to the economy of Aberdeen due to be delivered by the drive for net zero isn’t restricted to Great British Energy. The investment summit hosted by the UK government in October of this year included an announcement from the developers of the massive Green Volt offshore floating wind farm that Aberdeen would be the home of the strategic and operational headquarters of the scheme. Once operational, the scheme will feature as many as 35 floating turbines and provide 560 megawatts of energy, and, according to the developers Flotation Energy and Vårgrønn, could create 2,800 jobs and unlock as much as £2.5 billion in private investment.

Locating In Aberdeen

Clearly, it’s an exciting time for anyone thinking of setting up or relocating in Aberdeen. The number of sectors likely to receive a boost – directly or indirectly – from the opening of the Great British Energy headquarters and associated green energy companies is huge, from the direct provision of assets such as offshore wind farms to the supply chains needed and the digital frameworks which will help to drive the transition as a whole.

AEIP can offer tailored office-space solutions to anyone hoping to take advantage of the new opportunities likely to emerge in and around Aberdeen. There are different options which will suit different types of business, and we will briefly outline the pros and cons of each.

Serviced Office Space

A serviced office is a private office space which is fully equipped and operational from the moment a business moves in. Aspects of the workspace which are included in any contract will include the bills, the utilities, office furniture and equipment and any ongoing maintenance. As well as the office space itself, businesses will generally be able to access additional facilities such as meeting rooms and breakout space. Contracts are simplified via the charging of a single monthly fee to cover all aspects of the lease, and some suppliers are flexible enough to offer a range of options – from contracts running 3 months to a year down to rolling monthly agreements.

The pros and cons of a serviced office

The pros

• Moving in is incredibly easy – the space will generally be available immediately and all you need to do is unpack and plug in your IT equipment.
• The flexibility of serviced office contracts is ideal for those companies wishing to remain agile and responsive to the possibility of up or downsizing or relocating at short notice.
• The all-inclusive nature of the lease for a serviced office makes it easier for businesses to budget. Cash flow becomes predictable and controllable thanks to the lack of surprise bills or expenses.

The cons

• A serviced office offers few opportunities for imposing the wider branding of your business as customisation of the space is likely to be tricky.
• The pros listed above come at a price, in that a serviced office space will usually charge a premium on the cost per square foot.
• Some extra facilities – such as a meeting space which is exclusive to your business and doesn’t need to be shared and booked in advance – may come at an extra cost.

Leased Office Space

leased office, involves renting on a ‘per square foot’ basis from a landlord, and then having the freedom to shape the space to exactly meet your requirements. The downside of such arrangements is that they often require larger deposits and contracts which are set over a much longer term so check the duration before you sign. The fact that no furniture, equipment or utilities are included in the contract mean that the time and financial input initially involved in setting the office up is much more than the serviced options.

The pros and cons of a leased office space

The pros

• A leased office will usually provide exclusive use of additional spaces such as meeting rooms or breakout spaces, making it the perfect choice for businesses which regularly host clients.
• You won’t pay for additional services and therefore have more control over your monthly costs.
• You can adapt, decorate and fit out the space to match the way your team works, and to complement your business’s branding.

The cons

• It is likely to take longer to move into a leased office due to the fitting-out period required.
• There will be additional costs for bespoke fitting out of the space to meet your company style.
• Some leased offices may charge a termination fee if you want to move out before the end of an agreed contract.

The AEIP Option

Here at AEIP we offer a range of options for anyone wishing to take advantage of the opportunities Aberdeen is likely to offer in the coming years. We are located just a short distance from the coast and the sea that will provide the focus of all the wind farm investment, as well as being nine miles south of Aberdeen airport and close to the city centre. With easy access from the AWPR (A90) – the main road north to south – our locations are ideal for those wishing to drive and take advantage of the ample parking provision, whilst also being just a short drive from Aberdeen Train Station. Any urge to play a part in the green, low carbon revolution set to sweep through Aberdeen will be bolstered by the fact that the AEIP locations are surrounded by landscaped grounds and woodland and equipped with EV chargers and cycle storage.

Our Innovation Centre has recently been refurbished and would provide a ready-made headquarters building for any organisation. Divided into individual suites, a total of 900 square metres (10,000 sq ft) of space is available, with flexible month-by-month leases available. As well as the space, we offer an optional fit-out service as well as furniture packages to help you create the space that best reflects your brand, and the fact that you can redecorate the office means that branding can be fully embedded. Additional facilities include a staff welfare area and access to a conference room with AV facilities.

If you’re looking for smaller office space, Davidson House is the ideal choice, with options ranging from suites that cover 67 square metres (720 sq ft) up to 465 square metres (5000 sq ft). Flexibility is the key, with leases available over the longer term or on a shorter basis, tailored to your requirements. The units are unfurnished, and clients can choose between decorating and adapting them on their own or working with our optional, comprehensive fit-out service, from planning and design through to furniture supplies.

We also offer the serviced office option, at the Enterprise Centre. The offices here are fully furnished, and start from 40 square metres (430 sq ft), with the largest able to provide space for 8 or more people. Additional facilities include cycle parking, showers and a staffed reception. Put simply, you take out a flexible, affordable lease that you can come out of at any time, leaving us to take care of the rest.