GB Energy doesn’t formally have any employees, the UK Government has admitted.
The news comes in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request submitted by The National.
Asked how many people are currently employed by GB Energy, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero responded that it “does not hold the information you have requested”.
“This is because Great British Energy is currently being established,” it went on.
“The company does not formally have ‘employees’ at this stage.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer revealed in September last year that Aberdeen would be home to the headquarters of Labour’s flagship General Election pledge.
Juergen Maier, former Siemens UK Chief Executive, was announced as GB Energy’s chair – albeit based in Manchester.
An interim CEO was also publicly appointed in February after difficulty in recruitment efforts.
Dan McGrail was seconded for six months from his position of chief executive at RenewableUK, the trade association for green energy companies.
Meanwhile, five non-executive directors have also joined GB Energy's start-up board.
But, according to DESNZ, none of them are company employees until the GB Energy Bill receives royal assent.
In the interim, a company named Great British Energy Group Limited has been incorporated at Companies House.
It comes amid uncertainty and doubts over how many jobs GB Energy will actually bring to Scotland – or the rest of the UK.
For example, Maier admitted last month that Keir Starmer’s General Election pledge to create 1000 new energy jobs in Scotland though GB Energy could take as long as “20 years”.
It comes after much discussion over the UK Government’s promises on GB Energy after reports showed a massive fall in the projected number of jobs it will create.
In November last year, Maier told MPs on the Energy Security and Net Zero Committee that he expected between 200 and 300 jobs to be created in Aberdeen.
Meanwhile, when pressed, Scotland Secretary Ian Murray (above) could not provide a straight answer as to when new jobs are expected.
“What he [Starmer] was referring to is actual jobs who get a GB Energy pay packet," Murray told the BBC.
"It's not about how many people work in the GB Energy HQ. It's about how many jobs it creates in terms of the renewables industry.”
When asked about where GB Energy employees are currently based, DESNZ reiterated that GB Energy “does not have any employees at this stage” and so didn’t hold the information.
The UK Government department did confirm, however, that interim CEO McGrail will work from “GB Energy’s Aberdeen HQ”.
The National previously revealed that GB Energy will not have its own headquarters and will instead be based in a building which is shared with oil companies and DESNZ.
The UK Government department also stressed that it expects a “significant majority of future employees to be based in Scotland” – including the permanent CEO and “most of the senior team”.
They added: “The first recruitment campaigns for the senior team have been launched, and of the three permanent director-level positions advertised up to this point, two will be based in Aberdeen."
DESNZ also said that “work will begin to fully resource Great British Energy” if the relevant bill passes Parliament.
But there are also doubts over GB Energy’s funding, with reports suggesting the UK Treasury is drawing up plans to cut in June’s spending review.
The company had been promised £8.3bn in taxpayer money over the five-year parliament, but was only given an initial £100mn in October’s Budget to cover the first two years.
Ahead of the spending review, ministers are now considering whether they can afford to give GB Energy the promised £8.3bn amid a pivot towards greater defence spending, according to the Financial Times.
One option supposedly being considered by the Treasury is cutting the funds previously earmarked for GB Energy to fund low-interest loans via local authorities for projects such as solar panels on roofs and shared-ownership wind projects.
Neither the Treasury nor the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said that GB Energy was still guaranteed the £8.3bn, which was a pledge in last year’s General Election manifesto.
Ministers are carrying out a “zero-based review” of all government spending and whether it is still a priority. One government official said the stock response “‘HMT refuses to confirm X” could now be “applied to every single spending commitment” because of the ongoing spending review.
Scottish Greens MSP Maggie Chapman (above), who represents the North East of Scotland, said that GB Energy is being "dangled like a carrot" in front of the people of Aberdeen who "urgently need lower energy bills and long term sustainable job opportunities".
She added: "But it has no premises, no clear plan, and no prospect of employing thousands of people anytime soon. The lack of information about employee numbers is part of a pattern of providing more questions than answers.
“Aberdeen deserves better than broken promises of change that never comes. We do not have time to wait for Labour to do something while families struggle with increasing energy and household bills, and while our climate is plunged further into destruction.
“Scotland, and the North East in particular, is a frontrunner in renewables, and we have plenty of skilled, talented workers who can work within this sector to make the energy business a more ethical and green space that provides longevity for our workforce and our planet.”
SNP MSP Kevin Stewart, meanwhile, said: "Labour told the public that GB Energy would bring down energy bills by £300. Since coming to power, household bills have soared by nearly £300 on average.
"Labour told the public that GB Energy would create 1,000 jobs in the North East of Scotland. Subsequently the Chair of GB Energy revealed that it would take at least 20 years to create these jobs.
"These new revelations show just how much of an afterthought Scotland is to this UK government - and it's clear there is no plan to bring bills down any time soon.
"The farce that is GB Energy would be laughable if the situation wasn't so serious. Energy bills for Scots continue to soar whilst workers in the North Sea face an uncertain future as the UK Government dithers on giving the green light to new green projects including carbon capture."
