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Renewable firms competing for £10m Saltire Prize to be named Renewables firms to compete for £10m Saltire Prize
(about 11 hours later)
The renewable energy companies competing for the £10m Saltire Prize will be announced by the Scottish government later. Four renewable energy companies which will compete for the £10m Saltire Prize have been named by Scottish ministers.
The announcement will be made in Orkney, where members of the Scottish Cabinet will meet on Wednesday.
The competition was set up to encourage the development of wave and tidal energy devices in Scottish waters.The competition was set up to encourage the development of wave and tidal energy devices in Scottish waters.
Renewable energy firms will compete to see which device can produce the most electricity over two years. ScottishPower Renewables, Aquamarine Power, Pelamis Wave Power and MeyGen will each attempt to produce the most electricity over a two-year period, using only the power of the sea.
The rules state: "The Saltire Prize winner will be the team that achieves the greatest volume of electrical output over the set minimum hurdle of 100 gigawatt hours over a continuous two-year period, using only the power of the sea." Projects will be launched off Lewis, in the Pentland Firth and Orkney waters.
The latest phase of the contest will run until 2017. That means other renewable energy companies still have time to enter. The latest phase of the contest will run until 2017.
'Tantalising offer' The announcement was made by Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in Orkney, where members of the Scottish Cabinet will meet on Wednesday.
Ministers are also expected to announce the Scottish government is to invest £2.5m in a project to provide new dock facilities at Stromness in Orkney. Ms Sturgeon also announced plans for a Saltire Prize-sponsored doctorate to study how marine energy projects can maximise economic energy production while protecting the environment.
But their political opponents have accused them of failing to do enough to promote marine energy. She said: "With the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in Orkney hosting an array of devices, we should not lose sight of how far this vibrant young industry has come in recent years.
The Scottish Green MSP, Patrick Harvie, said: "Surely there's a limit to the number of times the Saltire Prize can be re-announced? "The Saltire Prize sets a considerable challenge to competitors - reflecting the huge potential of harnessing marine energy.
"The marine energy sector has vast potential for Scotland, but what it needs is steady, solid, day-to-day support from government. "The four competitors have stepped up to the challenge, and in so doing can drive each other still further and faster forward, towards the goal of large-scale commercial electricity generation from the power of the world's seas and oceans."
"The tantalising offer of a cash prize one day for one winner is no substitute for that." MeyGen's chief executive, Dan Pearson, said: "The bar set by the Scottish government for this prestigious award is a high one. The challenge requires highly efficient devices, and a high level of resource and robust technical capability that is comparable to conventional renewable energy power stations."
Hornung Pedersen, the boss of the Edinburgh-based firm Pelamis, said: "Pelamis was delighted to be the first official applicant for the Saltire Prize and we're working intensively to deliver the robust commercial technology required to win it, and through that the compelling 'win-win' of renewable energy generation and industrial opportunity that this sector represents for Scotland."
Aquamarine Power chief executive, Martin McAdam, said the prize would act as a "global catalyst... bringing together the best brains and financial muscle to crack one of the great challenges of our age".
Alan Mortimer, head of innovation at ScottishPower Renewables, said: "The demonstration projects being developed now will be crucial in helping us achieve larger commercial projects."
As well as announcing the doctorate and the companies vying for the Saltire Prize, Ms Sturgeon also launched a junior Saltire Prize photography competition called The Power of the Sea, with renowned Scots photographer David Eustace among the judges.