£10 million Saltire Prize open for applications

Scotland’s £10 million Saltire Prize is now open for applications, marking a significant move towards speeding up the commercial development of marine energy.

The prize will be awarded to the team that can demonstrate in Scottish waters, a commercially viable wave or tidal stream energy technology “that achieves the greatest volume of electrical output over the set minimum hurdle of 100 GWh over a continuous two year period using only the power of the sea”.

After the announcement of the Saltire Prize Grand Challenge in December 2008, there have been 140 registrations of interest from 27 countries.

Timeline

·          March 2010 - Saltire Prize applications opens

·          June 2012 - Grand Challenge testing opens

·          June 2017 - Grand Challenge testing closes

·          July 2017 - Judging and award of Saltire Prize

The Crown Estate is working with the Scottish Government to identify further areas for wave and tidal project leases in Scottish Waters. As owners of the seabed around the UK, the organisation will run a dedicated leasing round over this summer specifically aimed at Saltire Prize competitors to test their devices in Scottish waters.

The aim of the Saltire Prize and many of the other initiatives is to bring a greater profile to the sector, highlighting its ambitions and the important contribution the sector could make to Scotland, the UK and the EU’s renewable energy mixes. It is being said that the marine energy industry has the potential to do in five years, what has taken 25 years [http://social.waveenergytoday.com/news/depth-learning-success-and-disappointments] for the wind industry. The government admits that other countries harbour similar aspirations to develop these technologies and it can’t afford to be complacent. The focus is also on meeting the marine environment and planning issues head on, making sure that all the right voices are being heard.

Read more:

The Crown Estate: http://social.waveenergytoday.com/search/node/The+Crown+Estate

Saltire Prize: http://social.waveenergytoday.com/search/node/Saltire+Prize