Subsea robots and hydro-powered Highland wildlife reserve join Scottish Green Energy Awards shortlist

Chief Executive of industry body says shortlist “is always a source of pride for the industry – and never more so than in this extraordinary year”

Finalists announced today in 11 categories

Underwater robots, wildcats and smart radiators are all key parts of projects which have been shortlisted for the 2020 Scottish Green Energy Awards, announced today (Oct 5).

Cameras which can plot underwater obstructions with millimetre accuracy, a Highlands wilderness reserve which is using hydropower to fuel conservation programmes and a heat project which uses excess wind electricity to heat islanders’ homes are all through to the finals of the annual awards.

This year’s Scottish Green Energy Awards will see 44 individuals, companies and projects vie to scoop prizes in 12 prestigious categories at a virtual ceremony on November 26.

The shortlist includes projects, people and businesses from across Scotland and all major renewable energy technologies, both on and offshore.

Claire Mack, Chief Executive of Scottish Renewables, which runs the awards, told how the shortlist “is always a source of pride for the industry – and never more so than in this extraordinary year”. She continued:

“Time and again we’re amazed by the ingenuity and persistence shown by companies in our sector.

“This year has thrown up challenges no-one could have predicted, but some of the shortlisted projects show just how industry has adapted, creating new ways of working, deploying new generation and maintaining the infrastructure which now provides the equivalent of 90% of the electricity we use in Scotland.

“Others demonstrate the huge talents which lie out of sight in renewables: the supply chain of companies, in the broadest sense of the word, which enable projects to go ahead, and in turn create economic benefit across Scotland.”

This year’s Scottish Green Energy Awards were due to be held as a hybrid event, with guests mingling at Edinburgh’s EICC as normal and the rest of the audience at home, but due to current COVID-19 guidance they will now be held virtually, in broadcast-quality video. For the first time, the event is free to attend.

The full shortlist – available at the end of this press release – includes projects, people and organisations from Moray, Dumfriesshire, Glasgow and Orkney, among many other Scottish regions.

Some examples of shortlisted projects and businesses include:

• Projects at two SSE Renewables windfarm sites which are restoring valuable peatland, including supporting local farmers to remove sheep from sensitive sites in winter, reducing grazing pressure while blanket bog recovers.
• MacArthur Green, a carbon negative environmental consultancy which has supported 104 renewable energy projects through their planning phases in the past two years – 24 offshore and 80 onshore.
• A ScottishPower Energy Networks scheme which uses plastic waste which would otherwise have been burned or sent to landfill to build roads on a vital substation site.

The Scottish Green Energy Awards is headline-sponsored by EDF Renewables.

EDF Renewables’ CEO Matthieu Hue said:

“In this most extraordinary of years it’s encouraging to see that the quality of nominations for the Scottish Green Energy Awards is as high as ever, showing the talent that exists within Scotland’s renewables industry.

“EDF Renewables is proud to once again support this event, which has always been a valuable way of both bringing industry together and celebrating the very best that it has to offer. I wish all the finalists the very best of luck and look forward to finding out who our worthy winners are at the online event next month.”

The full shortlist is: