Blue Energy News and Press Releases

Scottish Government Pledges £50 million
for Tidal & Wave Energy

August 3, 2004

News story from The Scotsman

SCOTLAND'S fledgling marine power industry was given a major boost yesterday as the government pledged £50 million to help fund its development.

Trade and Industry secretary Patricia Hewitt said the cash would help to drive forward wave and tidal power generation over the next three years - a process set to rely heavily on the Scottish coastline.

About five UK companies are experimenting with marine turbines - either to generate electricity from waves or the tide - but so far none has been proven to work on a large scale.

Maf Smith, of the Scottish Renewables Forum, said the £50m cheque was a welcome sign of support that the industry was more than just a future alternative to wind power. He said: "The gap between turbine testing and full-scale marine farms is large and very expensive. We have a strong case that with the right level of support we can put this into practice."

The grant came as a Scottish Executive committee reported that 10 per cent of all Scotland's power could come from the sea by 2020, while up to 7,000 jobs are poised to be created on the back of the industry.

Scotland - particularly around Shetland and Orkney - has some of the most powerful tidal flows in the world, as well as some of the strongest academic minds in the subject.

FREDS is keen to avoid a repeat of the wind industry development in the 1970s, when the UK set the pace for technology development but was hijacked by Denmark due to a lack of public support.

Smith added: "If we get in first on marine power, we will be ahead of the game and be able to create the 7,000 jobs. We will also be able to export the power overseas."

Hewitt's £50m fund will be awarded in the form of public grants, but when the industry is up and running, cash could be tied to the volume of electricity generated by each company.

A major string to Scotland's bow is the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC), a not-for-profit test centre in Orkney singled out as unique by the FREDS report.

But Portugal has already put aside £150m to help fund its own marine power companies, three times the level of yesterday's grant.

News story from The Scotsman

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