Support for Mossmorran workers and cuts to offshore wind among Scottish budget measures

THE SCOTTISH government has pledged up to £3m (US$4m) to support workers at ExxonMobil’s Mossmorran site in Fife, home to the region’s ethylene plant, while reducing funding for offshore wind projects in its 2026-27 budget.

The Fife ethylene plant funding forms part of a three-year support package worth £9m. The provision for 2026-27 is not a spending guarantee but rather a pledge to spend up to £3m this year if necessary. The measure follows ExxonMobil’s announcement that the plant will close by February, putting more than 400 jobs at risk.

Meanwhile, the Scottish government will invest £93m for offshore wind and supply chain programmes this year – down from £124.7m in 2025-26. The government said the funding decrease was designed to “reflect market demand”.

The budget also confirmed £15.6m for the recently closed Grangemouth refinery site, supporting the Industrial Cluster Strategy. The plan aims to deliver hydrogen production facilities and the Project Willow regeneration scheme by 2028, beginning with a fuel production plant using anaerobic digestion of animal waste and sewage.

Grangemouth is also expected to be a major hub for carbon capture and hydrogen pipelines. The Scottish government has committed £5m for carbon capture projects, although the budget has not set aside any funding to target the hydrogen industry specifically.

In addition, the budget also confirmed £15.1m for circular economy initiatives, including for improvements to recycling and emissions reduction schemes at energy-from-waste incinerators. This is a reduction from £16.4m in the previous budget, partly due to the Recycling Improvement Fund entering its final year.

Gary Callachan, chair of IChemE’s Central Scotland Member Group, said the budget contained welcome support for communities affected by industrial change but also raised concerns for the process industries.

“Support for communities affected by industrial transition, such as the funding linked to the Fife ethylene plant closure and the Grangemouth Industrial Cluster Strategy, is particularly important and recognises the scale of change currently facing the sector,” he said.

“At the same time, the reduction for offshore wind programmes and the circular economy, alongside relatively modest support for carbon capture projects, raises questions about whether investment is being maintained at the pace required to sufficiently achieve Scotland’s climate and industrial ambitions, including the country’s ambitious net zero targets.

“The absence of explicit funding for hydrogen is also notable, given its widely acknowledged potential for decarbonising heavy industry.”

Skills and retraining

The budget earmarks funding for 25,000 one- to four-year apprenticeships, 5,000 one- to two-year apprenticeships and 1,200 graduate apprenticeships. In addition, £3m is allocated to the Transition Training Fund, supporting former oil and gas workers to reskill in renewables.  

The Just Transition Fund, meanwhile, will continue to provide a total of £15.9m to successful bidders in the northeast and Moray for energy transition projects. The fund is part of a ten-year,  £500m commitment launched last year, providing up to £5m to successful applicants.

Callachan said the continued focus on skills development and reskilling is “welcome and essential” to delivering a just transition.

Community action

Community climate action is one sector set to receive increased funding in 2026–27. The 24 community climate action hubs across Scotland will receive £6m this year – up from £5.5m in 2024-25. Launched in 2021, the hubs provide seed funding for local climate initiatives and promote awareness of how climate change affects communities.