King Charles jokes about living to see project finished on Peterhead Port visit
King Charles III joked he might not live to see a renewable energy scheme finished as he unveiled a plaque at Peterhead Port.
He had been praising the teamwork behind the plans for the Aberdeenshire port. "It's fantastic to see such a remarkable effort and teamwork and coordination. Whether I shall still be alive by the time you complete it, I don't know!" he said. He smiled as he said it.
The King, 77, was making the first stop in a series of visits focused on the shift to renewable energy. Peterhead Port, in the north-east of Scotland, hosted the visit, where he was briefed on upcoming projects for the area. News coverage of his arrival was published on 22 September 2026 The Independent.
The remarks were reported on 24 September 2026 Hello! Magazine. The King was diagnosed with cancer in 2024. He was still undergoing treatment at the time of that report, after saying in December 2025 that his treatment had been "reduced".
At the port, the King met local members of the energy supply chain. That meant businesses and workers involved in building, supplying and servicing energy projects. It included the Peterhead Energy Transition Forum, the local body that brings those firms together.
He also met representatives of Maritime Developments Ltd. The company has received the King's Award for Enterprise three times. The awards are the national honours given each year to British businesses for outstanding achievement.
He unveiled a plaque to commemorate the visit. It is the formal record left behind on royal visits, with the name and date of the occasion.
For many readers, this will stand out because the quip was so direct. The King rarely speaks in public about his own health. Here he raised it himself, briefly, then returned to the subject of the visit.
