Banff and Buchan MP, David Duguid, has expresed confidence that north-east ports will win decommissioning contracts.
The Conservative politician said harbour masters were feeling positive about the chance of gaining smaller contracts connected to the subsea sector.
Mr Duguid’s comments came as expectations were raised of a major decommissioning announcement in November’s UK budget.
This was triggered by Scottish leader, Ruth Davidson, who announced a economic growth body will be looking at issues including oil and gas.
Speaking at the UK Conservative conference in Manchester, Mr Duguid said he was hopeful Scotland could develop a deep water port for decommissioning in Peterhead, Aberdeen or Dundee as well as further afield.
He said: “I’ve been talking to some harbour masters in my constituency ports of Fraserburgh, Macduff and Buckie who reckon they could do a bit of decommissioning.
“It’s not all big items – there are less mature fields, which tend to be sub-sea tiebacks so there is lots of equipment that will need to be taken onshore and dismantled.
“Philip Hammond has already said he’s very supportive of decommissioning and ultimately he wants to see the UK, and Aberdeen and the north-east in particular, regarded as a global centre of excellence for oil and gas decommissioning.”
Ruth Davidson also told journalists her 13 MPs, six of whom are based in the north-east, were putting pressure on the Chancellor for Scottish projects.
She said: “It’s nice to have some other voices in the room and I think that the Treasury knows that it has got to deliver for the whole of the UK.
“You see the whole theme of the conference that works for everyone and everyone that works in every part of the UK.
“I have been entirely clear with my colleagues that have just been elected, that of course we are all Conservatives, we are all part of the Conservative family but to deliver for Scotland if we stick together we can do it more effectively.”
Ms Davidson also announced she was launching a new independent economic body to set out fresh thinking on future growth in Scotland.
The group will be chaired by former Scotland Office Minister Andrew Dunlop, who signed off Aberdeen’s city deal, and aims to solve the country’s “productivity puzzle”.
He said: “Scotland has world leading expertise in our Universities, a competitive edge in sectors such as life science and oil and gas, and is one of the best places to live and work in the world.”