Uncertainty caused by the new Trump administration in the US could see green energy investors divert to Scotland and the UK, the Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes has said.
President-elect Trump will be inaugurated next week for the second time and brings with him a more aggressive stance on oil and gas, favouring more extraction as opposed to renewables.
Mr Trump – who won the presidency again in November – has previously criticised the UK Government’s more cautious stance on fossil fuels, which he described as a “big mistake“.
But speaking to Holyrood magazine, Ms Forbes said: “If an investor wishes to invest in clean energy, they may now look again at the United Kingdom, and again at Scotland, because there is that regulatory and that policy certainty about our move over (to net zero).
“We have 40GW of offshore wind in the pipeline, and you’ll know if you do the maths, at peak time our needs as a country are far less than that in terms of electricity, so the opportunity to invest in data centres, all these intensive industries that rely on clean energy, is huge.”
In recent weeks, the Scottish Greens have called on Scottish ministers not to meet with Donald Trump, should he visit the country this year, as his son told the PA news agency was likely.
First Minister John Swinney rejected the calls – having already spoken to Mr Trump in a phone call.
Ms Forbes agreed with the First Minister, saying the Scottish Government had a “duty to stand up for” businesses in Scotland.
“My argument would be you can disagree with the leader while still engaging with that nation’s economy, and I’m afraid that you also have to work through that leader,” she added.
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