Silicon Valley vow for Scots wind energy

Just as hi-tech computer industries had transformed Silicon Valley in California, the First Minister said Scotland’s growing wind, wave and tidal resources would turn the country into a world centre of excellence.

Speaking to the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco this morning, he said Scotland already had a claim to being the premier centre in Europe for offshore wind research.

And the First Minister added that there were more different types of wave and tidal devices in the waters around Scotland than there were in the rest of the world combined.

“Having been at the heart of the marine engineering revolution of the 19th century, we are now placing ourselves at the heart of the marine engineering revolution of the 21st century.”