NEW YORK, Sept. 24, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Energy companies from 37 countries have been selected as Finalists for the 20^th annual S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards. The 2018 Finalists, more than half of which were nominated from outside the United States, were announced today by program host S&P Global Platts, the leading global provider of energy and commodities information and spot market benchmarks.

Established in 1999 and often described as "the Oscars of the energy industry," the S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards highlight corporate and individual innovation, leadership and superior performance in 18 categories spanning the entire energy complex.

Murray Fisher, S&P Global Platts head of commercial events, Americas, and director of the Global Energy Awards program said: "The Awards continue to become ever more global in nature, with 2018 bringing not only record participation, but nominations from more than 40 countries. While technology was front and center in every category this year- machine learning and blockchain applications most notable among them - there was a remarkable increase in corporate social responsibility (CSR) submissions."

Given the abundance of competitive participation in this year's CSR Award, the S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards Program will bestow two honors for this category and announce finalists for: Corporate Social Responsibility Award- Diversified Program, which recognizes the exemplary company with best multiple initiatives; and Corporate Social Responsibility Award – Targeted Program, highlighting the company with a specific, standout CSR program.

The Global Energy Awards' independent panel of judges will select winners for each Award category from its corresponding group of Finalists. The 'Energy Company of the Year' will be chosen from the entire list of finalists, regardless of original category. Winners will be announced at the 2018 S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards black-tie dinner on December 6, in New York City. For a ninth consecutive year, the gala will be emceed by a CNBC host, with news reporter Jackie DeAngelis back for a third year.

Proceeding the Awards dinner will be the 12th annual S&P Global Platts Global Energy Outlook Forum, a platform for critical debate of key financial, policy, trade and market factors facing the energy industry and drawing together senior executives from across the energy, financial and policy spheres.

To view the full list of Awards categories and list of Finalists for the 2018 S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards visit: http://geaweb.platts.com/Finalists/Finalists2018.

For more information on the Awards and judging, visit the website (http://geaweb.platts.com). 

Energy, financial and business executives may attend the S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards by registering at this link: https://geaweb.platts.com/AttendAwards. Accredited media may attend as guests of S&P Global Platts with advance registration to kathleen.tanzy@spglobal.com.

Thomson Reuters is back for a second time as Award Presenting and Cocktail Reception Sponsor and Energy Exemplar is returning for a second year as Award Presenting Sponsor of this year's S&P Global Platts Global Energy Awards. Sponsorship opportunities are available through Robert.botelho@spglobal.com at +1 720-264-6618.

Contact
Americas: Kathleen Tanzy, + 1 917 331 4607, kathleen.tanzy@spglobal.com

About S&P Global Platts
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S&P Global Platts is a division of S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI), which provides essential intelligence for companies, governments and individuals to make decisions with confidence. For more information, visit http://spglobal.com/platts.

SOURCE S&P Global Platts