A project to build the world's "most powerful" floating tidal turbine has been awarded £3.4 million of Scottish Government funding.

Scottish engineering company Orbital Marine Power (Orbital) will use the money to deliver the next generation O2 2MW floating tidal energy turbine, capable of powering more than 1,700 homes per year.

The 72-metre long O2, capable of generating more than 2MW from tidal stream resources, will be built in Scotland and installed at the European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney.

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The company is the first to receive funding from the Scottish Government's £10 million Saltire Tidal Energy Challenge Fund, which supports the development of tidal energy in Scotland.

The O2 will be manufactured by Scottish company Texo Group at their new quayside facilities in Dundee.

Key components will be delivered by Gray Fabrication in Cupar using material from Liberty Steel in Motherwell.

Andrew Scott, Orbital's chief executive, said: "The O2 project will demonstrate how this emerging industrial sector has the ability to deliver new jobs and open up diversification opportunities for the UK's supply chain in a growing global market whilst pioneering solutions for a zero carbon future."

Robin Parker, climate and energy policy manager at WWF Scotland, said: "As we transition to a wholly renewable electricity system, tidal will have an important role to play."

Scotland's property market has soared to an 11-year high ahead of Brexit, new research indicates.

Property transactions worth more than £8 billion were recorded between January and June this year, the best for this six month period since 2008, according to Aberdein Considine's quarterly property monitor.

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High sales in the second quarter, from April to June, have been credited with driving the trend.

A total of 25,806 sales concluded in these three months, up just under 1,000 (4.0%) on the same period last year.

The additional activity pushed the average price of a Scottish home up 1.6% to £172,189, despite the market stalling elsewhere in the UK.

Edinburgh remains the most expensive place in Scotland to buy a home with the average cost at £264,943.

The capital is followed by East Lothian, where prices have risen 15.2% to £260,399 - the largest increase in Scotland.

East Dunbartonshire came in third at £250,017, up 4.1%, with East Renfrewshire in fourth place with an average price of £244,902 - a 3.9% drop.

East Ayrshire recorded the lowest average price at £117,676, a 3.3% drop, while the largest percentage decrease was in South Ayrshire which fell by 8.4% to £146,984.

Jacqueline Law, managing partner at Aberdein Considine, said buyers were "taking a long-term view on the market" amid the current economic uncertainty.

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She said: "Buying a house is not something people do with tomorrow or next year in mind."

Business leaders and environmentalists have created a 12 point plan of steps it says the Scottish Government should take to tackle climate change.

The Climate Emergency Response Group (CERG) said action was needed to ensure temperatures did not rise 1.5C above pre-industrial levels, with experts warning there were just 12 years left to avoid breaching that.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon declared a climate emergency in April and Scottish ministers have set the goal of achieving "net-zero" greenhouse gas emissions by 2045.

The CERG proposes steps such as signalling that every one of Scotland's city centres will be vehicle emission free by 2030 and enhancing building standards to deliver zero-carbon homes and buildings.

It also suggests producing advice for the public on sustainable, climate-friendly, healthy diets and mobilising the £11 billion of annual public procurement to "support the product and service innovation the climate emergency response needs".