Annual Report 2015: Resources for growth and welfare

The year 2015 was characterised by increasing internationalisation. GEUS’ objective to expand its international work and play a more prominent role in international research, not least within the EU, was brought to fruition as GEUS participated in a number of high-profile initiatives and projects.

As the only institution from Denmark, GEUS is participating in a Knowledge and Innovation Community (KIC) for mineral resources – a European super consortium with more than a hundred participants from industry, research and education. This consortium, which is called EIT Raw Materials, includes all the major players in the field and aims to help develop the mineral resources sector in Europe with support from both EU and national funding. GEUS’ membership offers a portal to project participation and is already leading to invitations to join other innovation projects.

GEUS’ work in KIC is partly based in the Center for Minerals and Materials (MiMa), which delivered a comprehensive vulnerability analysis of the mineral resources supply for Danish industry. European collaboration continued to evolve through EuroGeoSurveys (EGS), and GEUS is currently the EGS institution taking part in the second largest number of EU projects in Europe, comprising projects within all of GEUS’ core areas.

Furthermore, GEUS ranked among the top research organisations in Europe in a survey of publications on European groundwater research and the impact of such research. This ranking was further confirmed in a recent international evaluation of GEUS’ research in the water area. Similarly, GEUS assisted in the development of urban geology in Europe together with partnership cities. This is an area which is expected to see much more interest in the future.

New databases and data services in Greenland, Denmark and at EU level were launched in 2015 bringing into play GEUS’ data across many sectors, within administration, consultancy, planning and industry, and helping to save society and users considerable costs and attract new investment.

Several research projects were completed in 2015 with significance for oil and gas production in the North Sea and for the green energy sector, i.e. projects on deep and shallow geothermal energy and heat storage. The geothermal potential was mapped and will be presented in 2016 as a part of a GIS platform to help plan geothermal wells. Furthermore, together with its partners, GEUS developed a GIS platform for use when establishing shallow geothermal installations. GEUS’ monitoring of the Greenland ice sheet was part of the scientific basis for the climate summit in Paris and it served to document that the loss of mass from the ice sheet is increasing and will influence future sea-level rise significantly.

In 2015, GEUS earned its share of media and political attention due to its work on and knowledge about subjects such as shale gas, radioactive waste, nitrate leaching due to new fertilisation standards, and the discovery of pesticides in groundwater. The media’s interest in ‘conflict over content’ placed new demands on GEUS’ external communication skills – demands which will grow more pertinent in the future.

The positive results aside, there is no escaping the fact that the market situation meant that winning new projects, especially within the area of energy, was difficult for GEUS in 2015. Furthermore, less funding and fiercer competition meant that GEUS had to adapt its budget and make a number of employees redundant.

However, with a new strategy, a new performance contract and increasing internationalisation, GEUS is entering an exciting and challenging 2016. GEUS is well prepared for the tasks ahead, although stable funding and the ability to win externally funded projects will be an important prerequisite.