First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced an extra £24.5 million of support for the oil and gas industry on a visit to Aberdeen.

Ms Sturgeon also unveiled a £20 million investment in Aberdeen International Airport as part of a series of engagements in the city.

She set out details of Scottish Enterprise funding of £12.5 million to help oil and gas firms research and develop new technologies and access advice from industry experts.

A further £12 million Transition Training Fund will help oil and gas workers facing redundancy to move into other employment.

Ms Sturgeon's visit follows the signing last week of a joint UK and Scottish government £250 million city deal for Aberdeen and the surrounding area.

Scottish ministers have also pledged a further £254 million to improve infrastructure in the north-east over the next five to 10 years as the North Sea oil and gas sector struggles to cope with plummeting prices.

The First Minister said Scottish Enterprise had begun research looking at any gaps in the availability of finance for sector.

She said: "We know that some firms find it difficult to access the finance required to fund research and development projects, and at a difficult time such as this the financial and operational risks in doing so can prove extremely challenging - especially to smaller firms.

"To help individual firms maintain their research and development during this difficult period, I am pleased to announce a further package of support.

"Scottish Enterprise is prioritising £10 million to reduce R&D risks and deliver specialist expertise to firms as they seek to take forward new projects.

"To add to that, an additional £2.5 million will help firms troubleshoot specific problems through access to industry experts carrying out business resilience reviews focused on strategic issues such as finance, market or operational matters."

The Scottish Government said the new training fund would help maintain the skilled energy workforce in the region by offering grants to people to retrain or pursue further education.

It will also help people with the costs of maintaining any licences they need to work in the sector.

Ms Sturgeon added: "It is ... absolutely crucial that we take every possible action to retain the expertise that the industry has built up over decades so that it remains flexible enough to capitalise on exploration investment and future oil price rises."

Earlier, she visited Aberdeen International Airport to reveal details of a planned three-year redevelopment, described as the largest investment since the current terminal opened its doors in 1977.

Work will begin in May to increase the terminal building by 50% with new passenger facilities including an expanded baggage reclaim and upgraded security search area.

Carol Benzie, the airport's managing director, said: "Now more than ever, it is vital that we invest in our airport to help improve the region's attractiveness as a key investment destination."