Scotland has not been shy about its ambitions to become a global leader in marine renewables, both in terms of technological innovation and electricity generation. Among other incentive schemes and support mechanisms, the Scottish government launched the Saltire Prize in 2008 to give the industry legs.

The premise of the contest is simple: The money will be given, no questions asked, to any team that can generate a minimum of 100 gigawatt hours (GWh) of electricity from a wave and tidal device over a continuous two-year period.

The catch, according critics, is that the prize’s 2015 deadline makes it almost impossible to win. In order to meets the criteria, a 50-megawatt device would need to be in the water and cranking out power by 2013 at the latest. Even if the right technology existed, the time needed to get all the proper consents and have the device installed would put the prize out of reach.

Lynne Vallance, who heads the offshore renewables division of the Scottish government, says the intention was to create a tight deadline in order to pressure companies to accelerate their developments.

“But I’d be lying if I wasn’t to say that the timelines we have laid out are cause for some concern,” Vallance said, speaking at the International Wave Energy Summit in London.

“We’re in intense discussions with the industry and the [seabed-owning] Crown Estate to make sure we settle on a timeline for the prize that’s both ambitious and achievable. But at the moment, the 2015 deadline remains the state of play.”