Scotland’s marine energy sector aims to rule the waves

Deals signed to export Scottish expertise to Latin America, the Caribbean and the Maldives10 Dec 2010Scottish renewable energy companies could soon be helping to power Latin America and the Maldives, after the government agreed a series of sizeable deals to help kick off low-carbon projects around the world. Earlier this week, environment secretary Richard Lochhead signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to promote Scottish clean energy expertise in new projects across Latin America and the Caribbean. The news was swiftly followed by an announcement that Scotland would partner with the Maldives government in a £48,000 study to assess the wave, tidal and ocean thermal energy potential of the island nation.The IDB agreement will help the bank meet its plans to increase financing for renewable energy and climate-related projects in Latin America and the Caribbean to $3bn by 2012 under its Sustainable Energy and Climate Change Initiative (SECCI). Under the terms of the MoU, a working group will be set up early next year to identify joint projects, promote best practice sharing, and kick-start research and exchange programmes in all sectors of clean energy technology and policy. Signing the deal in Washington DC, Lochhead said: ...