BOULDER, Colo. – Spatial Energy announced the inaugural Remote Sensing Energy Challenge. With $10,000 in total awards for winners in two categories – commercial and student – the competition seeks to identify new remote sensing technologies with the potential to assist oil and gas companies in meeting the increasing demand for energy.

“We’re looking for remote sensing products, sensors, software and image processing methods – even concepts for revolutionary aerial or satellite platforms,” said Spatial Energy CEO Bud Pope. “The ideas must be new and have the potential for commercial application by energy companies.”

Remote Sensing Energy Challenge submissions should pertain to one of four key energy application areas:

• Exploration – finding new sources of conventional or unconventional hydrocarbons
  
• Seismic/Non-Seismic Surveys – improving the quality and/or efficiency, and minimizing risk, of seismic work
  
• Engineering – optimizing activities related to exploration and production
  
• Environmental – minimizing footprint of oil and gas activities

A panel of judges from Spatial Energy and other global energy companies will evaluate the entries based primarily on the potential benefits offered to the oil and gas industry. Other important judging criteria include relevance to current oil and gas challenges, advantage over existing solutions, technological feasibility and commercial potential.

“Our goal in sponsoring the Remote Sensing Energy Challenge is to commercialize new ways of finding and developing energy resources that are faster, less expensive and more environmentally friendly,” said Pope. “We plan to make this an annual competition.”

Submissions must be original to the entrant, but may include products or solutions developed for other industries and customized for oil and gas applications. The deadline for entry is May 15, 2012. Submissions should include illustrated summary reports no longer than six pages, plus supporting maps and images. Students needing test imagery may request it from Spatial Energy by March 15, 2012 by sending requests to energychallenge@spatialenergy.com.

Awards will be announced Aug. 9-10, 2012 at the annual Spatial Energy Customer Summit in Boulder, Colo. The winning entry from a commercial organization, including consultants and research institutions, will receive $7,500. The award for the winning undergraduate or postgraduate research student submission will be $2,500.

Visit www.spatialenergychallenge.com for details.