Nova Scotia, Scotland hand in hand for tidal

The collaboration between Nova Scotia and Scotland on developing global tidal energy sector has been highlighted during ICOE 2016 held last week in Edinburgh.

Nova Scotia and Scotland will continue a shared focus on developing supply chain capabilities to capture and serve the growing tidal energy sector, sharing regulatory best practices, and supporting further research, according to Nova Scotia government.

The collaboration was underlined by Nova Scotia Energy Minister Michel Samson as key to advancing the global tidal energy sector.

Scotland and Nova Scotia have a shared interest in advancing five priority areas to support the sector’s growth:

• industry development
• policy planning
• research and monitoring
• innovation, and
• promoting private sector and academic collaboration

Michel Samson, Nova Scotia Energy Minister, said: “Discussions with our colleagues in Scotland over the last several months have enabled us to better identify our priorities for the emerging tidal energy sector. Working with our international partners is of critical importance for Nova Scotia as we develop our immense resource in the Bay of Fundy.”

Fergus Ewing, Minister of Energy for Scotland, added: “Building a successful tidal industry requires political support, patience and collaboration with like-minded partners. I am very pleased to be working with the Province of Nova Scotia, and together we will address some of the key challenges facing the tidal industry, such as developing the supply chain and promoting collaboration between educational institutions and the private sector.”

The collaboration builds on information-sharing and trade missions between Nova Scotia and Scotland in 2015, which is the result of a commitment to work together at the previous International Conference on Ocean Energy, hosted in Halifax in 2014, and will continue as a priority for 2016, the Government of Nova Scotia stated.