OIC takes top technology prize for BIG HIT project

A “world-leading” Orkney Islands Council project — which produces hydrogen as a clean energy source — has scooped a top prize at a national awards ceremony.

OIC’s BIG HIT project won the Driving Efficiency through Technology prize at the Local Government Chronicle awards, held in London.

The BIG HIT project has seen the council engage in a multi-agency partnership to show that Orkney can become a ‘replicable Hydrogen Territory’, using curtailed renewable electricity generated locally to produce hydrogen that can then to be used as clean energy for heat and transport.

Judges described the project as a “fantastic example of cutting edge collaboration through world-leading technology, solving a local problem with positive global consequences”.

Councillor Graham Sinclair is chair of the council’s development and infrastructure committee. He said: “I congratulate the council team on their achievement — we are delighted that our islands have this opportunity to serve as the ideal test bed for the BIG HIT initiative which is very much about showcasing what we can achieve in Orkney to the rest of the world.”