News

Geoscience Ireland (GI) Nominates Kate Feeney for Seanad Eireann

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Geoscience Ireland (GI) is delighted to have nominated Kate Feeney for election to Ireland’s Senate. Kate, a Chartered Accountant, is  a former FF Councillor in Dun Laoighre Rathdown  and has a keen understanding of infrastructure needs and the importance of SMEs.

The main function of the Seanad is to debate legislation proposed by the Government.  Senators can also introduce their own Bills, which are debated in the Seanad and, if passed, are then debated in the Dáil. Ultimately, the role of the Seanad is to improve law making.  Senators play an important role in highlighting important social and economic issues and have contributed to many significant reforms and policy  initiatives.

GI is a Nominating Body for  one of the Senate’s Vocational Panels  –  the Industrial and Commercial Panel.  The electorate for the Vocational Panels are Members of the incoming Dáil,  Members of the outgoing Seanad and  Members of county councils and city councils.  GI strongly recommends Kate Feeney as a vibrant and energetic supporter of SMEs- a cornerstone of Ireland’s sustainable economic development-  and as an advocate of better infrastructure delivery.

ACEI and Geoscience Ireland MOU

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We are delighted to announce the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Association  of Consulting Engineers of Ireland (ACEI)  and Geoscience Ireland (GI). This significant agreement was signed by Anne-Marie Conibear, ACEI President, and Sean Finlay, Director of Geoscience Ireland, alongside the director of the ACEI Shane Dempsey.

This partnership will focus on:
✅ Promoting engineering excellence in Ireland and internationally.
✅ Collaborating with Government to enhance infrastructure delivery.
✅ Inspiring the next generation to join the engineering profession.

This MOU strengthens the relationship between ACEI and GI, ensuring a shared vision for a sustainable and innovative future.

Nathan Rouse joins GI Panel

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Geoscience Ireland (GI) is pleased to welcome Nathan Rouse to its Panel of Independent Experts. Nathan is a leading Drill and Blast Engineer. A graduate in Mining Engineering from  the University of Missouri Rolla, he was awarded a PhD in Mining and Explosives Engineering by Missouri S&T in 2015.

He is  now based in Ireland and  has an extensive portfolio of international projects for several leading minerals companies including Barrick, Rio Tinto, Hudbay, Lundin, CRH and Vale. His experience includes drill and blast instrumentation, including seismographs, accelerometers, pressure transducers, high speed data acquisition, videography, borehole survey and 2D/3D profiling, extensometers, inclinometers, drones, photogrammetry, photo fragmentation, detonation velocity acquisition, survey and scanning equipment, void scanners, pre-blast surveys, downhole videography, common sense, and other tools. He has managed underground auditing projects for multiple underground metals operations. The projects included instrumentation work and root cause analysis. He manages training programs, including site specific drill and blast training programs for surface and underground mines. He also provides contractor management during various stages of an underground mine’s development.

Geoscience Ireland (GI) Meets Hungarian Delegation

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Geoscience Ireland (GI) was delighted to present an outline of Ireland’s Construction Sector to a Workshop sponsored by Consulting Ireland and hosted by the  Hungarian Embassy in Ireland on 9 October 2024 . 

  • Ireland’s Construction Sector output is c €40 BN per annum, employs c 160,000 persons and accounts for c 9% of GDP
  • The drivers are the National Development Plan 2040  which focuses on Housing, Water, Energy  (Renewables and Grid), and Balanced Regional Development
  • Some of the Sector’s key exports are to  UK Infrastructure and  EU Data Centres. FLI Group (a Geoscience Ireland member)  is an exemplar as a provider of precast concrete and land remediation services in the UK and EU
  • Design and consultancy services provided to Multilateral Development Banks  are poorly developed compared to European counterparts and would benefit from collaboration with them
  • Geoscience Ireland has collaborated with an EU Geothermal Energy Project including several EU partners including CAPES of Hungary
  • The Association of Consulting Engineers of Ireland, Consulting Ireland, Geoscience Ireland  and the Construction Industry Federation are excellent contact points for collaboration.

The Workshop heard impressive presentations from Hungarian companies CEH Planning, Consteel, Mercor and POKA3D. Hungary has a buoyant construction sector accounting for 6% of GDP and employing 380,000 persons.

Kevin Fox joins GI Panel of Experts

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Geoscience Ireland (GI) is pleased to welcome Kevin Fox, a geologist with exceptional international experience at a senior level,  to its Panel of Independent Experts. 

 

Kevin is a graduate in Geology from Trinity College Dublin  and was awarded an MSc/DIC in Mineral Production Management by Imperial College London. He has worked  for  36 years on Rio Tinto projects in Africa, South America, Canada, Europe, and Central Asia on Exploration, Project Development and M&A, including Due Diligence and Project Evaluation. Notable projects he has managed include Project Director  Simandou Iron ore in Guinea and as MD of the Rincon DLE Lithium project in Argentina.

Geoscience Ireland Members Excel for Drilling Award from IMQS

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A  Geo Drilling Apprenticeship initiated in 2020 is supported by the drilling industry, Geoscience Ireland and all the main geoscience and geotechnical societies in Ireland, along with state and semi state agencies.

Since 2020, 30 Apprentices have completed the course which is delivered by South Eastern Technological University SETU at its Carlow campus.

Since its inception in 2020, the Irish Mining and Quarrying Society IMQS  has awarded a Silver Medal to the two best Apprentices each year. For 2024, the IMQS Silver Medals Awards went to Jason Rehill of Geological Survey Ireland (GSI) and Conor Horan of Causeway Geotech.

Both GSI and Causeway are members of Geoscience Ireland.

A Donegal native, Jason has been with GSI for 4 years, having previously worked for Causeway. GSI is currently drilling a 1 Km deep hole for geothermal energy information for Offaly County  Council.

Pictured above at the Medal Awards in Navan (from left):

Joe Mongan (Geoscience Ireland, Principal Contact for the Apprenticeship), Jason Rehill (GSI), Alan Dolan (President IMQS) and Sean Finlay (Geoscience Ireland and Chair of the GeoDrilling Steering Committee)

Conor hails from Sligo and has been with Causeway for 2 years. Prior to that he worked in construction in Canada. He has a Marketing Degree from IT Sligo but prefers the hands-on nature of the drilling business. Causeway specialises in geotechnical engineering. Both Jason and Conor are very strong in their support of the course at SETU, finding it to be very well delivered, varied and wide ranging.

Pictured above at the Medal Awards in Navan (from left):

Joe Mongan (Geoscience Ireland, Principal Contact for the Apprenticeship), Conor Horan (Causeway), Alan Dolan (President IMQS) and Sean Finlay (Geoscience Ireland and Chair of the GeoDrilling Steering Committee)

Missing from the photos is Ger Keohane, Director of the Geo Drilling Course at SETU.

 

Geoscience Ireland (GI) welcomes new members of the Irish Academy of Engineering (IAE)

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Geoscience Ireland (GI) has close links with two with two of nine new members recently elected to the IAE.

Anne Marie Conibear is a Director of JB Barry – EGIS, a long standing member of GI. JB Barry designs and delivers major transport and water infrastructure projects in Ireland and has undertaken similar projects in Turkey, the Balkans and in Lesotho. Anne Marie is also President of the Association of Consulting Engineers of Ireland.

Dr Frances Hardman is Dean of Engineering at South East Technological University (SETU) . External to the university, she is currently chair of the Technological Higher Educational Association (THEA) Heads of Engineering group across the TU Sector supporting collaboration and sharing best practice and is a member of the Higher Education Apprenticeship Forum (HEAF) and THEA national Apprenticeship committee. GI is represented on the Steering Committee of an Apprenticeship in Geo Drilling delivered by SETU.

Photo shows from left Dr Frances Hardiman , Sean Finlay of GI and Anne Marie Conibear.

See also https://iae.ie/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Irish-Academy-of-Engineering-welcomes-new-Fellows-13th-June-2024.pdf

Geoscience Ireland (GI) Supports Call for EU Geothermal Policy

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Geoscience Ireland (GI) is one of 200 stakeholders supporting a call by the European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC) to the EU Commission to  prepare a European geothermal energy strategy and action plan. Those supporting the call are  across the value chain of the geothermal sector and include  government agencies, municipalities, consumers, academia, researchers, think-tanks and civil society.

This comes after both the European Parliament and Committee of the Regions voted  almost unanimously in favour of a European strategy on geothermal earlier this year. Austria, Croatia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland and Poland have national geothermal roadmaps to support investment and grow their industrial bases, as has the UK.

The Letter to the Commission is at Letter-to-von-der-Leyen.pdf (egec.org) 

Net Job Creation in 2023 for Geoscience Ireland (GI) Members

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Geoscience Ireland (GI), the business cluster helping to win business in international markets, reports firm progress for 2023. Members saw continued strong growth in the delivery of design and advisory services for Renewable Energy, Infrastructure and Water  Services. This was offset by  trends in the Minerals sector with weaker demand for some products and disruption to the supply chain for  activities  in Ireland, resulting from the suspension of operations at Boliden Tara Mines .

These opposing trends offset one another, resulting in  turnover of €1,110 M in 2023, broadly similar to €1,112 M in 2022. Employment across the 32 members surveyed showed an increase of 77 net new jobs in 2023, an encouraging trend despite skill shortages and the challenges noted in the Minerals sector. 

PDAC 2024

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PDAC is the world’s leading event for minerals industry professionals and Ireland is well represented at PDAC in Toronto again this year. Geoscience Ireland (GI) companies provide a wide range of services to the sector worldwide, including exploration management, project generation, drilling, contract mining, equipment maintenance, geotechnical, mining and environmental engineering. Geoscience Ireland (GI) members present at PDAC this year are Aurum, SLR, Priority Drilling, QME, WSP-Golder, Mincon, PW Mining and QME. Also present at Booth 108  is the Irish Centre for Research in Applied Geoscience (iCRAG) and the Geological Survey Ireland /Department of Environment at Booth 903. Ireland is also represented at the EU Booth 931.

Mairead Fitzsimons of Ireland’s Geoscience Policy Division presented  at the EU Business Breakfast on Tuesday March 5th while Ireland’s Consul General in Toronto Janice McGann and Enterprise Ireland’s  Canada Manager David McCaffrey visited t the Convention on Monday March 4th.

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