The eventual winner will be somebody who has made a valuable and sustained contribution to the industry.

Nominations close at the end of this month and the winner will be chosen by an independent panel of judges chaired by BPEX Director Mick Sloyan.

The award will be presented at an industry breakfast held at the House of Lords in the autumn.

Previous winners came from many different background including production, processing, academia and journalism.

The award is sponsored by BPEX and chairman, Stewart Houston, said: "This is a great opportunity to recognise the efforts that have been made on behalf of the industry.

"It is even more important when times are hard to acknowledge the tremendous positive contribution made by both individual and organisations."

Any person or organisation wishing to nominate someone for the award can do so online [click here]. The closing date for nominations is Friday, 26 August.