ACCORDING to a recent study by the accounting firm PwC, Aberdeen’s economy is projected to expand at a faster rate than the national average over the next 24 months.
Following a period of challenging years that saw it drop to the 37th position in the country’s Good Growth for Cities Index, the city is poised to climb back up the rankings in 2024 and 2025, particularly due to its thriving professional, scientific, and technical sectors.
Aberdeen is set to become the home of Great British Energy, a new state-owned energy company valued at over £8 billion by the UK Government.
The study, conducted in collaboration with the think tank Demos, forecasts that Scotland’s economy will experience growth of 1.1% in 2024 and 1.9% in 2025. This growth rate is in line with the expected national average growth of 1% and 1.7%, respectively.
PwC predicts that Aberdeen will surpass its competitors with growth rates of 1.2% in 2024 and 1.8% in 2025. The firm attributes this to the expected expansion of the professional, scientific, and technical sectors. The report also highlighted Aberdeen’s need to leverage its engineering expertise to move beyond the North Sea oil and gas industry.
The authors pointed out that Aberdeen experienced the largest decrease in its working-age population among Scottish cities, underscoring the importance of creating appealing opportunities for residents to learn, work, and reside in the area.
The top three positions in the report were occupied by Plymouth, Bristol, and Southampton.
Despite the optimistic outlook, the current standings indicate that Aberdeen has fallen six places from the previous year, dropping to number 37. In contrast, Edinburgh has risen six places to ninth overall, and Glasgow has moved up four places to 31st. The study, however, does not include Dundee and Inverness due to their small size.