Planning processes need radical streamlining, with slow approval times threatening energy transition challenges
Scotland’s fragmented development agencies need unified leadership and strategy to co-ordinate the transition effectively.
A fundamental cultural shift is needed to embrace growth and entrepreneurship, moving towards confident promotion of Scottish capabilities
Local communities and industry must see clear benefits from major energy projects, avoiding the mistakes of previous industrial transitions

Scotland has all the components to stake out a leading position in the race to net zero. But can it find a way to bring these pieces together?

UK companies are planning to spend more than £60 billion on grid infrastructure by 2031, with Scottish renewables playing a key role in the system’s net zero plans. But Scotland stands at a crossroads. Does it become a global leader in clean energy or watch the next industrial revolution pass it by?

The ingredients are there. It has world-class renewable resources, energy expertise and ambitious targets. But can Scotland overcome its political, regulatory and cultural hurdles to seize this opportunity?

Comments at the recent E-FWD event in Glasgow, held under Chatham House rules, made it clear there’s a need for collaboration – but also for improved communications.

“Scotland is big enough to have a global impact, but small enough to still be a community,” one panellist said. This feels like it should be an advantage, but instead it seems to be holding the country back.

There are energy transition challenges and it’s not just about what more government can do. What’s lacking? The ability to stitch it all together.

Cultural contradictions

For a start, Scotland’s attitude towards business is divided. And that uncertainty extends into how Scotland presents itself to the world.

There are still debates in the Scottish Parliament about whether growth is “a good thing or not. But growth is absolutely fundamental”, one speaker said. And where other countries will proclaim the superiority of their products, the Scottish – and Glaswegian – inclination is to self deprecation.

“We need a cultural shift, we need a strategy document. We don’t have an economic direction in the Scottish government, but we need to have one,” the speaker continued.

There is a tension in Scotland around entrepreneurship. On the one hand, the country has fostered a number of innovations and new companies over the years. But it still falls short of its potential, speakers said.

“There’s huge entrepreneurship but we never champion it, we never promote it and we never really inspire our young people.”

*17th January 2025. E-FWD: UK’s Energy Tech & Innovation Hub event at Citation, Glasgow. Image: Eve Conroy/DC Thomson*

Workforce and a just transition

If the transition plays out in the same way that coal mining ended, “it will fail”, another voice said. The impact of stopping coal mining on a number of communities, particularly in Wales, can still be seen today.

The risk of a precipice with oil and gas, with a similar loss of jobs and livelihoods, is at the front of discussions around how to move from industry as it is now, to where it needs to be.

“The key now is winning the public argument. We can only win the argument now based on the opportunities – and these are huge for Scotland and for Glasgow,” a speaker said.

Jobs are a crucial part of winning the local argument. But there is not enough clarity on where responsibility lies on aligning needs with workers. While there are a number of agencies involved in development, there is a lack of communication and co-operation.

Businesses sometimes feel like they are being “passed from one organisation to another, one application to another, with no real concierge service and no real communication”.

A high-level official, sitting in the First Minister’s office, may be one way to tackle the problem. Such a position could drive a clear workforce plan in collaboration with different stakeholders, such as businesses, universities and development agencies.

Bringing the enterprise agencies together “under one umbrella with a shared objective, a shared strategy – that would make a massive difference”.

Planning it out

One of the problems seen in Scotland’s offshore wind expansion has been a lack of local rewards. There are around 40 GW of capacity in the pipeline, but all too often these have been criticised for failing to support local industry.

The next area for the country that will be building out is around transmission and distribution. This involves bringing power onshore from offshore wind, local demand and export opportunities to the south.

The UK is looking at major investments. SSEN Transmission set out plans in December to build £22 billion of grid infrastructure, between 2026 and 2031. National Grid has talked of a £31bn investment, while SP Energy set out a £10.6bn plan.

Big plans and big numbers, but is there capacity in Scotland to support such a move?

There is a “chronic shortage of planning capacity” in the country. On average, a planning application will take 58 weeks in Glasgow, one speaker said, in contrast to 16-18 weeks in Manchester.

There is a need to move away from a “presumption to say no”, the speaker continued.

The planning challenge typifies Scotland’s broader energy transition puzzle. The pieces are there but they are not hanging together.

What’s missing is the co-ordination to line them all up. As one speaker noted, winning the public argument through job creation and economic opportunities will be crucial.

But this needs a fundamental shift. The country must streamline planning, improve agency co-ordination, back entrepreneurship and engage genuinely on communities.

With more than £60bn of grid infrastructure planned and 40 GW of offshore wind in development, Scotland has a clear pathway to energy transition leadership. But this will only come true if it can overcome its organisational and cultural hurdles.

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