Heriot-Watt University has become the 110th in the UK to divest from fossil fuels, despite being one of the biggest recipients of money from big oil companies.

The decision to exclude fossil fuel extraction companies from all of Heriot-Watt’s investments takes the percentage of Scottish Fossil Free universities to 81%.

The announcement follows a three-year campaign led by Heriot-Watt University Student Union and the Society for Progressive Students, who are a part of People & Planet – the UK’s largest student climate justice campaigns network.

It comes a year after research undertaken by openDemocracy found that between 2016 and 2023 Heriot-Watt was in receipt of £7 million in financial contributions from Big Oil.

This placed it fifth in the list of top 10 UK universities receiving money from the sector. More than £2.1m of these financial contributions came from oil giant Shell alone. 

It was also revealed that fossil fuel companies had a range of other spheres of influence at the university, including a course to prepare students for careers in the oil and gas industry, with lectures from a Shell official.

A TotalEnergies representative sat on the advisory board of the university’s Geoengineering institute.

The Fossil Free campaign demands that UK universities exclude the fossil fuel industry from their investments in recognition of the industry’s role in the climate and ecological crisis, and as an act of solidarity with frontline and Indigenous communities experiencing the impact of fossil fuel operations and the climate crisis.

Fossil Free has played an instrumental role in challenging the social licence of the fossil fuel industry to operate as it currently does. 

Laura Clayson, campaign manager for Climate Justice at People & Planet, said: “Huge congratulations to all the students and staff that have tirelessly campaigned and worked for Fossil Free at Heriot-Watt.

“This commitment clearly shows that regardless of wider ties to fossil fuels, investment holdings are no longer permissible. We hope this is the beginning of a period of reflection at Heriot-Watt. One that will ultimately lead to an embedding of climate justice across all spheres of the university – and the necessary severing of other fossil fuel company relationships as part of that.  

“This commitment also displays the wider shift we are witnessing in Scottish universities as they align themselves with student and worker-led demands for a just transition to a low-carbon world.

“We hope this announcement will add support to the struggle for social and climate justice in Scotland beyond university campuses – from demands for councils to divest their pension funds, to calls for the Scottish government to refuse a new gas-burning power station in Peterhead.”

Cameron Fields, Heriot-Watt University Student Union President and former student organiser of the Society for Progressive Students, said: “I am incredibly proud that, after three years of determined campaigning, Heriot-Watt University has fully divested from fossil fuels.

“This victory is a testament to the power of students: when we rise up, we can create real change. We’ve shown that through collective action—protests, direct action, petitions, and solidarity with groups like the UCU—our voices carry weight, and our collective power cannot be ignored.

“This was more than just a campaign; it was a demand for accountability in the face of the climate crisis.”  

Sally Clark, Friends of the Earth Scotland, said: “It’s fantastic news that Heriot-Watt has committed to end its investments in fossil fuels after an incredible campaign by students and staff who are calling for a fossil-free future and a liveable planet for everyone. 

“With 2024 predicted to be the hottest year on record, it has never been more urgent for universities and other institutions to break their ties with the coal, oil and gas companies that are fuelling climate breakdown  with their expansion plans.

“Our institutions should be investing in climate solutions like social housing and renewable energy that can protect communities here in Scotland and around the world.”