NEW YORK, October 1, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Three British energy firms are among the companies from 21 countries on three continents that have been chosen as finalists in the Platts Global Energy Awards, an annual program recognizing exemplary industry leadership. The 2010 finalists, selected from well over 200 nominations, were announced this week by program host Platts, the leading global provider of energy information.

Established in 1999 and widely recognized as the Oscars of the energy industry, Platts Global Energy Awards highlight corporate and individual innovation, leadership, and superior performance in 17 categories spanning the entire energy complex.

Two British firms are on the short list for energy efficiency awards: Tesco plc is one of nine finalists for Energy Efficiency Program of the Year - Commercial End-User and National Grid is one of eight finalists for Energy Efficiency Program of the Year - Energy Supplier. Aquamarine Power is one of 12 finalists for Sustainable Technology Innovation of the Year.

This year's record number of entries and finalists in the energy efficiency and technology categories underscores the industry's increasing commitment to developing environmentally-conscious solutions to the world's supply needs, said Larry Neal, president of Platts. We look forward to spotlighting our finalists' accomplishments in these categories and all others when we unveil the Global Energy Awards winners in December.

In addition to the awards in the specific performance categories, Platts will also name the 2010 Energy Company of the Year. The winner of this award will be chosen from the entire list of finalists by the program's independent judges' panel, which includes former regulators, past heads of major energy companies, leading academics and international energy experts.

More than 500 guests are expected to attend the black-tie dinner at New York's Cipriani Wall Street on Thursday, December 2, when the 2010 Global Energy Awards will be presented by Platts and Capgemini, the program's principal sponsor for the past eight years.

The awards event will be preceded on December 1 with an associated event, Platts Global Energy Outlook Forum, an industry debate on the topic of Clean Energy: Fact or Fiction?

Corporate and industry representatives who wish to attend the awards dinner or the forum are asked to register in advance at http://www.etouches.com/gea2010. Accredited media who wish to attend can register at http://marketing.platts.com/forms/SMSGEAPressRegistration-2010.

For the full list of 2010 finalists by category, visit the Global Energy Awards website at: http://geaweb.platts.com/Finalists.aspx?xmlFile=Finalists2010.xml. For descriptions of each category, please go to: http://geaweb.platts.com/Categories.aspx.

About Platts: Platts, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies , is a leading global provider of energy and commodities information. With a century of business experience, Platts serves customers across more than 150 countries. An independent provider, Platts serves the oil, natural gas, electricity, emissions, nuclear power, coal, petrochemical, shipping, and metals markets from 17 offices worldwide. Platts' real-time news, pricing, analytical services and conferences help markets operate with transparency and efficiency. Additional information is available at http://www.platts.com.

SOURCE: Platts

CONTACT: Kathleen Tanzy, +1-212-904-2860, Kathleen_tanzy@platts.com