Aberdeen-based Ramco said it planned to focus on developing the offshore wind farm industry that champions believe can play a key part in solving the world’s energy needs. This will result in the firm offloading interests in early stage oil and gas projects extending from Ireland to Iraq.

The company also confirmed that it will put the name of Ramco, which is one of the best known in corporate Scotland, into retirement in favour of the new title SeaEnergy.

Steve Remp, the swashbuckling American who led Ramco on its ground-breaking push into Azerbaijan in the 1990s, said the shift in strategy was driven by the conviction among directors that renewables offers the best route to success in the twenty-first century.

“Going forward the renewables story is much, much bigger than anything that could develop in oil and gas,” he told The Herald.

Ramco has been building a position in the emerging industry since last June, when it recruited the experts who developed the flagship Beatrice wind farm in the UK North Sea for Talisman and Scottish and Southern Energy.

Remp said it had become increasingly clear that offshore renewables would have to make up a big share of the UK’s generating capacity if the country is to meet its target of generating 15% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020.

“Nobody that I know wants to have wind in their back yard. That’s the long-term problem with onshore,” he said. “I think we are going to see the (offshore) industry take off big time.”

More than £130bn of investment is envisaged over the next 11 years through the Scottish and UK Offshore Rounds. “We have something which they need which is unrivalled expertise in building offshore wind farms.”

The SeaEnergy Renewables subsidiary has entered exclusivity agreements with the authorities regarding licences for two areas off Scotland with SSE and RWE.

It is bidding for acreage in the UK round with Portugal’s EDP Renewables.

With other countries likely to invest heavily in offshore renewables, the emerging sector is attracting lots of interest among international investors.

However, efforts to raise funding to meet SeaEnergy’s share of project costs had been complicated by Ramco having oil and gas interests.

“Clean tech investors do not want to dirty their hands with oil and gas, that’s a big. big issue,” Remp said.

“There are maybe 90 exploration and production companies on the AIM market. We are one of them but in offshore we are the undisputed market leader.”

Ramco has received apparent proof of the appeal it will enjoy in its new form in the shape of a £7.5m funding commitment from US investment firm, Lanstead.

It has agreed to subscribe for 15 million shares at 55p each, compared with 54p at Friday’s close.

Ramco will need to obtain shareholder consent to issue another 5.1 million shares to allow Lanstead to invest fully.

Remp was delighted by the prospect of the proposed change in focus yesterday when he said he had been energised by contact with many young people who are supporters of renewables.

“It’s the right time for me personally. It’s what I want to do with my life. It’s a career change for me. I’m 62; most guys are playing golf. Oil and gas is mature.”

However, Remp said Ramco had been right to try to develop interests in oil and gas projects and renewables simultaneously.

“Both the things that we were doing were early stage.

“It was very unclear if renewables or some of the oil and gas was going to develop.

“Now renewables is taking off, it’s super-charged.”

In July, Ramco had a setback when the state-owned Iraqi Drilling Company terminated an oil services joint venture with the Mesopotamia Oil Company, in which it has a 33% stake.

However, Remp said MPC still hoped the venture might be revived.

Other projects are under discussion.

“Iraq was always going to be volatile. There’s no clear time line for Iraq.

“Iraq may or may not happen but the amount of money that Ramco has spent is negligible.

“The upside is huge.”

Remp will remain chairman of MPC.