The Saltire Prize, named after the

flag of Scotland The flag of Scotland ( gd, bratach na h-Alba; sco, Banner o Scotland, also known as St Andrew's Cross or the Saltire) is the national flag of Scotland, which consists of a white saltire defacing a blue field. The Saltire, rather than the ...

, was the national award for advances in the commercial development of marine energy. To be considered for the £10 million award, teams had to demonstrate, in Scottish waters, a commercially viable

wave In physics, mathematics, and related fields, a wave is a propagating dynamic disturbance (change from equilibrium) of one or more quantities. Waves can be periodic, in which case those quantities oscillate repeatedly about an equilibrium (r ...

tidal stream energy A tidal stream generator, often referred to as a tidal energy converter (TEC), is a machine that extracts energy from moving masses of water, in particular tides, although the term is often used in reference to machines designed to extract energ ...

technology "that achieves the greatest volume of electrical output over the set minimum hurdle of 100GWh over a continuous 2-year period using only the power of the sea." The Saltire Prize was open to any individual, team or organisation from across the world who believed they had wave or tidal energy technology capable of fulfilling the challenge. Applications could be submitted between March 2010 and January 2015.

Additional prizes

• The Saltire Prize Lecture - delivered at the Scottish Renewables Marine Conference every September, it focused on the challenges in converting our world lead in wave and tidal energy to an industry of commercial scale, and in securing the economic, environmental and social benefits that this industry can bring. The lecture was designed to promote knowledge exchange between academics, industry, financiers and government. • The Saltire Prize Medal - created to recognise outstanding contributions to the development of marine renewable energy. The Medal was awarded every March at the Scottish Renewables Annual Conference, Exhibition and Dinner. • The Junior Saltire Prize - launched in 2011, this was aimed at primary and secondary school pupils and was designed to help raise awareness of the opportunities that Scotland has to exploit its marine renewables potential. It was sponsored by Skills Development Scotland and awards are presented to teams in three age groups: p5-7, s1-3 and s4-6. • A Saltire Prize-sponsored doctorate in collaboration with the Energy Technology Partnership (ETP) - This was announced in August 2012. The research would consider how marine energy projects can be designed to maximise economic energy production while protecting the environment. • Power of the Sea - a one-off junior photography competition sponsored by the Saltire Prize, aimed at raising awareness of the natural environment and its potential for marine energy. In December 2012, four young photographers from Scottish primary schools were selected by renowned Scottish photographer, David Eustace, as the national winners.

History

When it was first announced in 2008 it was the world's largest ever single prize for innovation in marine renewable energy. The prize was overseen by the Challenge Committee. Saltire Prize policy was the responsibility of the Offshore Renewables Policy Team in the Scottish Government's Energy and Climate Change Directorate.

Competitors

Pelamis Wave Power, ScottishPower Renewables, Aquamarine Power and MeyGen are all companies that entered the race for the Saltire Prize, in a phase of the contest that ran until 2017.

Saltire Prize Medal

In 2011 the inaugural Saltire Prize Medal was awarded to Professor Stephen Salter, who led the team which designed the Salter's Duck device in the 1970s. Richard Yemm was awarded the medal in 2012. Professor Peter Fraenkel, MBE, a pioneer for the development of marine turbines, won the 2013 medal. and the 2014 medal went to Allan Thomson of Aquamarine Power.

References

External links