Zayed Future Energy Prize committee whittles down submissions

Next year's edition, the seventh, has been the most popular, with a record 597 submissions and 514 lifetime achievement nominations. “The high calibre of entries has made it very hard to develop a shortlist this year,” said Saif Al Nasseri, chairman of the review committee.

ABU DHABI // The Zayed Future Energy Prize is one step closer to choosing the winners in 2015 after completing the second phase of its evaluation process.

The applications committee has drawn up a shortlist of 59 submissions — including 10 for the Lifetime Achievement Award — after two days of deliberations last week.

Next year’s awards, the seventh, have been the most popular, with a record 597 submissions and 514 lifetime achievement nominations from 106 countries, compared with 552 submissions from 88 countries for this year’s prize.

“The high calibre of entries has made it very hard to develop a shortlist this year,” said Saif Al Nasseri, chairman of the review committee.

“As the Prize has grown in global recognition, we have seen an increase in key global players from the fields of renewable energy and sustainability bidding for this year’s award. Having a diverse panel of expertise has enriched the committee’s discussions on each submission. It will certainly make challenging work for the Selection Committee.”

The prize was created to honour companies and individuals that show innovation in the fields of renewable energy and sustainability.

The next step, where the shortlist of submissions will again be reduced, takes place September 16 and 17. The remaining entries will then be sent to a panel of judges, including Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, Iceland’s President and Chair of the Prize Jury, with winners chosen next month.

There are five categories: Large Corporation, Small and Medium Enterprise, Non-Governmental Organisation and Global High Schools and Lifetime Achievement Award.

In 2014, prizes worth US$4 million (Dh14.6m) were handed out to the winners.

The review committee includes delegates from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, the International Renewable Energy Agency, the Ministry of Energy, Masdar and government and academic bodies.