Scottish Government: Expanded Just Transition Fund reopens

£17 million to support workers and communities and create more green jobs.

Up to £17 million will be available to help create green jobs, support innovation, diversify energy supply chains, and enable workers to transition into low-carbon roles.

In addition, for the first time, community organisations and social enterprises will be amongst a range of organisations eligible to apply for a guaranteed share from the Just Transition Fund (JTF) for the North East and Moray.

The Fund will also include new development grants to help groups strengthen or scale up emerging project ideas and will include:

• up to £3 million capital and £1 million resource for community and social enterprise projects - including specific funding to give communities the power to directly decide how money should be spent
• up to £10 million for large‑scale commercial projects focused on jobs, skills and economic transition – with a minimum project size of £500,000
• up to £3 million to support small and medium enterprises in the oil and gas supply chain diversifying into low‑carbon markets - expanding the provision of the ETZ Supply Chain Challenge Fund

The JTF has invested more than £85 million into 28 projects across the region since 2022 – helping to support hundreds of jobs and companies entering the offshore wind, marine energy and carbon capture sectors. 

Climate Action and Energy Secretary Gillian Martin announced the latest round of JTF funding during a site visit to Verlume LTD, a global leader in subsea batteries and power management systems. The organisation received £2.5 million in the 2025-26 round of the JTF to deliver a fully functional prototype of the world's first subsea grid-forming battery system.  

Ms Martin said: “Since 2022, the Just Transition Fund has supported hundreds of jobs with more than £85 million investment into 28 projects across the North East and Moray. It is just one of the strands of Scottish Government support for the region.

“This year, we're making important changes to the funding available based on advice from the Just Transition Commission and the Just Transition Lab. For the first time, community groups and social enterprises will be guaranteed support for larger projects, alongside our continued backing of the Participatory Budgeting Fund which gives communities the power to directly decide how money should be spent in their areas to help address specific local needs.

“We're also helping communities get ready for future funding by offering development grants. These will support groups who may not otherwise be able to benefit to build the skills and confidence they need to plan and apply for bigger projects in the years ahead.

“We're also continuing to help the energy sector shift and grow, including funding to support businesses in the supply chain as they adapt. All of this means we can offer wider support to local organisations while creating new jobs and fresh opportunities for people across the North East.

“It's vital that Scotland's expertise, innovation, and huge renewable energy potential not only help the planet, but also ensure a fair and inclusive transition for everyone in the North East of Scotland.”

Verlume CEO Richard Knox said: “Support from the Just Transition Fund has been transformational for Verlume, enabling the development of the world's first grid-forming subsea battery co-located with offshore wind.

“This project addresses one of the most pressing challenges facing renewable energy today, grid stability and wind curtailment, while demonstrating how offshore oil and gas expertise can be redeployed directly into the clean energy system.

“Beyond accelerating innovation, the Fund has helped secure and create high-value jobs while allowing us to extensively utilise Scottish suppliers across fabrication, engineering and specialist services, ensuring that the economic value of this project is distributed across the North East Scotland supply chain, not just concentrated within a single company.”

University of Aberdeen Just Transition Lab, Professor Tavis Potts and Professor John Bone said: "The research from the Just Transition Lab has shown that communities need to be at the centre of the transition to the low carbon economy. In 'Time to Deliver' and ‘Regional Planning for a Just Transition' we called for a more transparent approach and a more generous and consistent funding stream, with more emphasis on capacity building.

"The Scottish Government has listened. The ringfenced funding for community and social enterprise projects, including capital and resource costs, is a major improvement and addresses a key shortcoming in previous rounds. The commitment to capacity building ensures that this can support Northeast communities at all stages, fundamental for sharing the benefits of the transition."

Background 

Applications for this bidding round have opened today (2 March). Applications to the commercial and public sector funding pot will close on 8^th May. Applications to the community and social enterprise funding pot will close on 22^nd May. Find out more information on how to apply.

More than £120 million has already been invested by the Scottish Government in the North East through the Just Transition Fund and the Energy Transition Fund to support the region's transition to net zero. This funding has helped create green jobs, support innovation, and secured the highly skilled workforce of the future.

About the fund — Just Transition Participatory Budgeting Fund

More information about the Verlume subsea battery project can be found at: https://verlume.world/technology/orah-dutch-north-sea-case-study/