Scotland and Germany should work together to achieve their renewable-energy targets, Energy Minister Fergus Ewing told a conference in Bremen yesterday.
Mr Ewing gave the keynote address at the Windforce 2012 offshore wind conference and told the audience of the opportunities that can come from working together.
He also witnessed at the conference the signing of a letter of intent for collaborative working between ForWind, a research partnership between three German universities and Scottish universities research alliance the Energy Technology Partnership (ETP).
Mr Ewing said: “Scotland and Germany have a history of co-operation and mutual trade that goes back to the 13th century.
“Both countries have highly ambitious renewable-energy targets.
“Planned offshore wind projects in Scotland have the potential to produce up to 10 gigawatts of electricity by 2020, and the industry could generate more than £7billion for the economy by 2020. We want to share our experience, skills and expertise with our German counterparts.”
ETP chairman Professor Sir Jim McDonald said: “Our global reputation in renewable energy is strengthened with international collaboration, and this partnership with Germany is an exciting development that underlines our success in driving forward innovation.”
ForWind managing director Stephan Barth said: “By joining ETP’s and ForWind’s forces in research, development and training we can overcome technical obstacles and support the industry in delivering offshore windpower in Europe.”
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