Aberdeen is once again at the centre of Scotland’s national conversation — not only because it has been chosen as the headquarters for the UK’s new publicly owned clean energy company, Great British Energy (often shortened to GB Energy or GBE), but also because a prominent local chef is betting on the city centre with a major new restaurant planned for 2026. [1]
The two storylines — one about the future of the North Sea economy and the UK’s “clean power” ambitions, the other about a high-profile hospitality expansion — offer a snapshot of Aberdeen’s shifting identity: a city trying to turn decades of energy expertise into a new era of investment, jobs and confidence on the high street. [2]
Why Aberdeen was picked for Great British Energy’s headquarters
The UK Government confirmed in a September 2024 press release that Great British Energy will be headquartered in Aberdeen, with two additional, smaller sites planned for Edinburgh and Glasgow. The announcement positioned Aberdeen — long known for offshore engineering and energy services — as the operational heart of a push to “scale up clean homegrown power,” strengthen energy independence, and support skilled jobs and growth across the UK. [3]
Reuters also reported Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s comments at the Labour Party conference, where he framed Aberdeen as the natural home for the new national energy company. In the same report, Reuters underlined a key point often missed in public debate: GB Energy is not expected to directly supply power to households; instead, it is intended to develop, invest in and own renewable energy projects — working with institutions such as the Crown Estate to drive investment. [4]
Locally, Aberdeen City Council welcomed the decision, describing the city as the “energy capital of Europe” and arguing it is well placed to host the headquarters because of its engineering depth and its growing renewables and hydrogen activity. [5]
What GB Energy is — and what the law says it can do
Great British Energy describes itself as an “operationally independent” company owned by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, and says it was formally established by the Great British Energy Act 2025. [6]
That governance detail matters because it shapes what GB Energy can realistically deliver, and how quickly. A recurring political flashpoint has been the gap between broad promises (on bills, jobs and delivery speed) and the practical constraints of building a new public institution that must recruit talent, stand up investment processes, and align with wider energy-market rules.
Scrutiny over ministerial engagement in Aberdeen
With the headquarters set for Aberdeen, political scrutiny is increasingly focused on how frequently senior decision-makers are engaging with the city — particularly on issues tied directly to GB Energy.
In recent reporting shared by The National, the newspaper claimed Energy Minister Michael Shanks had made “just one” trip to Aberdeen relating to GB Energy since taking up his role. [7]
At the same time, official records show Shanks has appeared in Aberdeen for major energy-sector moments, including delivering a ministerial speech at the Offshore Europe Conference 2025 at P&J Live in Aberdeen. [8]
The underlying tension is not whether Aberdeen features in national energy messaging — it does — but whether the pace and depth of ministerial engagement matches the scale of expectations created by the headquarters announcement.
Jobs, recruitment pressure, and what “headquartered in Aberdeen” means in practice
Jobs are central to the public argument for locating GB Energy in Aberdeen — and also central to the criticism.
In February 2025, The Guardian reported that GB Energy chair Jürgen Maier said it could take up to 20 years to meet a pledge of employing 1,000 people, while indicating the organisation aimed to create around 200 to 300 roles in Aberdeen over the following five years. [9]
Days later, The Guardian also reported that industry sources viewed recruitment for a permanent CEO as “challenging,” pointing to a combination of location, pay expectations versus the private sector, and the need for leaders with the right mix of energy and public-spending credentials. [10]
Those reports illustrate the difference between a political headline — “Aberdeen will host the HQ” — and the operational reality: senior leadership pipelines, salary frameworks, and the slower work of building a functioning institution that can deploy public capital effectively.
Community energy funding: what GB Energy has already announced
Beyond headquarters politics, GB Energy has been rolling out early funding activity tied to community energy and public-sector installations across the UK.
In a December 2025 UK Government announcement, Shanks said: “Great British Energy is empowering communities in every nation of the UK to take a stake in their own energy.” [11]
In the same announcement, GB Energy CEO Dan McGrail described communities as being “at the heart” of the clean energy future, linking support for local projects to lower bills and energy security. [12]
For Aberdeen, this matters in a practical sense: it signals that GB Energy’s early identity is being built not only around national-scale generation, but also around smaller, distributed schemes — a model that can intersect with local authorities, colleges, and community organisations.
Aberdeen’s energy institutions line up behind — and around — GB Energy
Several Aberdeen-based and Scotland-based organisations have publicly positioned themselves as partners, stakeholders, or constructive critics in the GB Energy era.
University expertise. The University of Aberdeen issued a statement welcoming the HQ announcement, with Professor John Underhill, director of the university’s Centre for Energy Transition, saying the institution stands ready to support GB Energy and highlighting an “academic ecosystem” that includes RGU and NesCol. [13]
Business and place leadership. The Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce gathered reactions from regional leaders, including energy veteran Sir Ian Wood (chair of Aberdeen’s Energy Transition Zone), who called it “hugely welcome” and said the region was ready to “play its part” in making the new company a success. [14]
Renewables sector view. Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group (AREG) chair Jean Morrison welcomed the HQ decision and argued the city’s location and offshore proximity makes it well suited to lead the transition — pointing to nearby offshore wind activity and initiatives such as the Acorn project and the Aberdeen Hydrogen Hub. [15]
That local optimism sits alongside a national message that the transition will be “fair and balanced.” In its Aberdeen HQ announcement, the UK Government said it intends to progress technologies like carbon capture, hydrogen and offshore wind — while also stating that oil and gas will still be used “for decades to come” during the transition away from fossil fuels. [16]
Oil and gas industry involvement. Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) has also publicly engaged with the GB Energy agenda. In October 2025, OEUK CEO David Whitehouse said he was “delighted” to join Great British Energy’s Aberdeen Energy Taskforce, calling it an important step to ensure the region’s skills and supply chain continue to “drive our energy future.” [17]
And, also in October 2025, OEUK reported that the Port of Aberdeen hosted the GB Energy Board (chaired by Maier) for discussions that included accelerating offshore wind deployment while continuing to support the UK’s homegrown oil and gas sector — signalling that, in Aberdeen, the transition debate is being framed as additive rather than purely replacement-driven. [18]
From energy policy to city-centre footfall: a chef’s major new Aberdeen opening
While GB Energy debates dominate political and industry circles, another Aberdeen storyline is about confidence — of a different kind.
Local reporting indicates Aberdeen chef Graham Mitchell — associated with the Tarragon brand — is planning to open a third venue in the city, with “Tatlers by Tarragon” expected to launch in spring 2026. [19]
The plan is notable not only because it signals expansion in a challenging market for hospitality, but also because of its location and scale. Reporting shared via Yahoo News says the former Tatlers bar and strip club is set to be transformed into a 150-seat restaurant on the ground floor, with additional dedicated space upstairs. [20]
The same coverage says Tatlers’ “iconic” indoor stained-glass ceiling dome has been uncovered during early renovation work, with plans to restore it — turning a piece of Aberdeen nightlife history into a central design feature of the new concept. [21]
Separate local posts referencing the project suggest the development could create around 20 new jobs in Aberdeen city centre — a modest number compared with energy-sector headlines, but still meaningful for footfall, evening economy activity, and visible regeneration on key streets. [22]
Who is Graham Mitchell, and what’s behind the “Tarragon” brand?
Mitchell’s expansion plans land against a backdrop of growing recognition for Aberdeen’s modern dining scene.
VisitAberdeenshire’s listing for Tarragon by Graham Mitchell describes it as an award-led restaurant in Rosemount and notes accolades associated with the chef, along with practical detail that the venue seats 58 guests and includes a private room. [23]
For SEO-minded readers looking for context, those details help explain why a new, larger city-centre opening is drawing attention: it’s not a first-time concept, but an extension of an established brand into a bigger, higher-footfall location.
Why these two Aberdeen stories are more connected than they look
At first glance, GB Energy’s headquarters politics and a new restaurant launch appear unrelated. But in Aberdeen, they intersect in at least three tangible ways:
- Jobs and confidence signals. Public-sector energy investment plans and private-sector hospitality expansion are both, in different ways, signals of confidence in Aberdeen as a place to build and hire — even as debate continues about the pace and scale of delivery. [24]
- City-centre regeneration depends on “reasons to be there.” A headquarters announcement alone doesn’t create street-level footfall. Restaurants, venues and evening economy anchors are often what convert business travel, conferences, and office traffic into repeat city-centre activity.
- Aberdeen’s brand is evolving. The city’s story is no longer just oil and gas. It’s increasingly framed as a hub for offshore wind, hydrogen, carbon capture, and broader energy transition work — alongside a cultural and food scene that aims to keep talent local and attract visitors. [25]
What to watch next in 2026
Several timelines are converging.
On the energy side, GB Energy says it is developing schemes for 2026/27 and beyond — signalling that its near-term pipeline is still being built out, even as expectations remain high in the North East. [26]
On the city-centre dining side, “Tatlers by Tarragon” is being trailed for spring 2026 — a launch that will test whether a heritage-linked, high-capacity concept can capture demand in the heart of Aberdeen and add momentum to a wider sense of renewal. [27]
References
1. www.gov.uk, 2. www.gov.uk, 3. www.gov.uk, 4. www.reuters.com, 5. www.aberdeencity.gov.uk, 6. www.gbe.gov.uk, 7. www.facebook.com, 8. www.gov.uk, 9. www.theguardian.com, 10. www.theguardian.com, 11. www.gov.uk, 12. www.gov.uk, 13. www.abdn.ac.uk, 14. www.agcc.co.uk, 15. aberdeenrenewables.com, 16. www.gov.uk, 17. oeuk.org.uk, 18. oeuk.org.uk, 19. www.facebook.com, 20. uk.news.yahoo.com, 21. uk.news.yahoo.com, 22. www.facebook.com, 23. visitabdn.com, 24. www.theguardian.com, 25. www.gov.uk, 26. www.gbe.gov.uk, 27. uk.news.yahoo.com
