Evaluation of Decommissioning Supply Chain Engagement Project

The Decommissioning Supply Chain Engagement scheme (DSCE) comprised two free to attend conferences which aimed to raise awareness of the opportunities that are available to Scottish companies in the decommissioning of oil, gas, and nuclear facilities. Through such projects, it was hoped to address the market failure in information which persisted in the Scottish energy supply chain. The evaluation aimed to: collate inputs and outputs; quantify outcomes and short-term benefits; assess the intervention’s net impact, whether it met its objectives and how effectively it was project managed; and make recommendations on how to improve the effectiveness of similar future interventions.

The following research activities were undertaken: a review of approval papers and background documentation; a review of management information on the programme’s performance; consultations with the project manager; and a telephone survey of 55 delegates who attended the DSCE events in Aberdeen and Motherwell.

The following conclusions were drawn: the speakers, as well the event overall, were generally rated highly; participants’ market awareness was increased by attending; participating firms recorded increases in employment and turnover to varying degrees; the overall economic impact amounted to turnover of £20m, GVA of £11m and 879 jobs; the information given at the events helped companies decide whether this was the right sector for them to invest in; and the events provided valuable networking opportunities.

The following recommendations were made: more events of this kind could be held to keep the supplier base interested in the opportunities and deepen the understanding of those already interested; monitoring and evaluation should be planned more carefully in the future for a full impact assessment to be made; similar interventions could be planned for different sectors; and firms with the most potential to grow should receive the SE Energy Team’s focus.