First Minister Alex Salmond today announced Catalonia's support for Scotland's £10m renewable marine energy challenge after President Jose Montilla Aguilera officially signed up as a Friend of the Saltire Prize.

The endorsement follows the First Minister's meeting with President Montilla in Barcelona yesterday.

In the two weeks since the world's biggest marine energy innovation prize challenge was announced, the Scottish Government has received 29 notes of interest from across five continents looking to compete.

The £10m prize will be awarded to the team that can demonstrate in Scottish waters a commercially viable wave or tidal energy technology that achieves a minimum electrical output of 100GWh over a continuous two year period.


Established friends of the Saltire Prize include Nobel Prize winning economist and former Chairman of President Clinton's Economic Advisers Professor Joseph Stiglitz, Harvard Director of Environmental Economics Professor Robert Stavins, National Geographic Society President John Fahey and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley.

First Minister Alex Salmond said: "The Saltire Prize has inspired companies and organisations from Scotland, England, Italy, France, India, Norway, Mexico, Australia, South Africa, America, Norway and as I found out on my visit to Catalonia, Hidroflot S.L. based in Barcelona.

"Today we have made another great friend of the Saltire Prize: President Jose Montilla. President Montilla has first-class green credentials and has rightly said 'mankind cannot keep living above its means or we risk the inevitable annihilation of the world."

President Jose Montilla said the Catalan Government takes the issue of developing and harnessing renewable energies very seriously.

He said: "I was very interested to hear from the First Minister about Scotland's plans for the world's largest marine renewable energy innovation prize. And I was delighted to accept his offer to become a 'Friend of the Saltire Prize'.

"I hope that as well as fostering greater links between our nations, we will see Catalan companies getting involved in the Saltire Prize development, helping take forward research in sea-origin renewable energy."

(GK/JM)