A planned new low-carbon power station at SSE Thermal's Peterhead site could give a £2billion-plus boost to the British economy.
A new report out yesterday based on analysis from BiGGAR Economics has highlighted the massive scale of the expected impact of the development at a local, Scottish and UK level.
Peterhead Carbon Capture Power Station, which is being developed by energy companies SSE Thermal and Equinor, would support hundreds of jobs nationwide.
It is estimated that £2.2billion will be invested throughout the development, construction and the first 25 years of the facility's operational life.
The proposed plant could become one of the UK's first power stations equipped with a carbon capture plant to remove CO2 from its emissions and would connect into the Scottish Cluster's CO2 transport and storage infrastructure.
The new development would create "significant" benefits - with the study showing that £60million is expected to be contributed to the Aberdeen City and Shire economy during development and construction. Over the station's operational lifetime, it is estimated that around £25million will be added to the area's economy each year, with around 240 jobs supported.
On a Scotland-wide level, £190million would be added to the economy during development and construction. Across the lifetime of the facility, an average of around £35million would be added to the Scottish economy annually with 290 jobs supported.
Finally, at a UK level, £470million would be injected into the economy through development and construction. On an annual basis once operational, the plant would contribute an average of around £50million to the UK economy and support 560 jobs.
Scotland's Net Zero and Energy Secretary Michael Matheson said: "Carbon capture, utilisation and storage is critical for meeting not only Scotland's statutory emissions reduction targets, but those set across the UK. The UK Government must award the Scottish Cluster clear and definitive Track-1 status."
The Scottish Cluster is a key decarbonisation initiative with the objective of development of carbon capture and storage (CCS), hydrogen and other low-carbon technologies.
Scotland's energy sector was dumfounded last October when the Scottish Cluster was not one of the CCS initiatives selected for UK Government funding. The two sites chosen were both south of the border.
Catherine Raw, managing director of SSE Thermal, said yesterday that Peterhead is vital to Scotland's energy system - and a new low-carbon power station at the site would be key to delivering a secure and credible transition to net zero.
"It would provide essential flexible and reliable power to keep the lights on and back up Scotland's world-leading renewables sector, while helping to meet our climate action targets."
"But the benefits stretch even further as we look to maximise the positive impacts of the energy transition for workers and communities in the north-east of Scotland.
"While we await clarity from the UK Government on the timeline for deployment of the Scottish Cluster, we are pushing ahead with our development plans and in March we submitted a planning application for the new low-carbon plant - which, as this new report shows, has the potential to be a game-changer for the region and for Scotland."
Grete Tveit, senior vice president for low carbon solutions at Equinor, added: "Peterhead Carbon Capture Power Station is a significant project that will get the UK closer to its net zero goal, while also working alongside intermittent renewables and enhancing low-carbon energy security.
"While supporting the decarbonisation efforts, this project will also offer great benefits for the local economy and supply chain, safeguarding high-value jobs and creating new ones."