Three Central Queensland University students last week (Thursday, Oct 21) became the inaugural recipients of the Queensland Electricity Transmission and Distribution (QETD) Bursary Awards.

Philip Kaighin, Jonathon Munro and John Amsler (pictured left to right) received their awards during a special ceremony in Rockhampton.

CQU\'s Dr Nasser Hossein-Zadeh has worked closely with the QETD to establish the awards.

Neil Lowry, Ergon Energy\'s General Manager Network, officially rewarded the successful students with a cheque and certificate on behalf of sponsors from across Queensland’s energy sector.

The bursary is directly aimed at addressing the scarcity of engineering graduates with power industry-oriented skills.

Mr Effeney, Ergon Energy\'s Executive General Manager Distribution, said the industry-sponsored bursaries reinforced the message to prospective students that excellent employment opportunities existed for power engineering graduates.

A former engineering student himself, Mr Effeney is a firm believer in the power of supporting potential ‘future employees’ in their studies.

“By supporting the development of graduates with specialised power engineering skills we can recognise the high quality graduates who might ‘best fit’ our organisation,” he said.

“It also provides us with an opportunity to offer bursary holders work experience and holiday employment to strengthen their skills base.”.

Energy Minister John Mickel said a significant long-term issue for the industry had been the small number of students who choose to study this area, and in turn, the level of quality of those students.

“The eight sponsors involved have opted to tackle the issue head-on and encourage school leavers from across Queensland to consider tertiary study in engineering in areas of interest and relevance to their industry,” Mr Mickel said.

The bursary rewards students undertaking a degree in areas of engineering relevant to the electricity industry with a bursary of $1000 each year for the first and second years of study, and $2000 each year in the students’ third and fourth year.

The sponsors - Ergon Energy, Stanwell Corporation, Powerlink, Energex, EESA, AREVA, Tarong Energy and CS Energy - established the program in collaboration with the Queensland University of Technology, CQU and University of Queensland.\' Another five students representing the University of Queensland and Queensland University of Technology will also receive QETD bursaries at a presentation in Brisbane, bringing the number of students benefiting from this program to eight in total.

Stanwell’s General Manager of Asset Maintenance and Technical Services, Wayne Collins, said Stanwell was proud to support an initiative that would spark energy in education.

“Stanwell is committed to empowering our young people. The bursary is a good example of what can be achieved when companies work together to support the community.

“Stanwell is greatly encouraged by the impact that we can have in providing opportunities for our next generation of engineers,” Mr Collins said.

Ergon Energy also sponsors its own engineering scholarships for third and fourth-year electrical engineering students studying at Queensland universities and has recently advertised for up to eight scholarships. The scholarships equal the upfront HECS fees for the successful students for the remainder of their course, as well as a set book allowance each year.

The students could then have the opportunity to become part of the Ergon Energy engineering work team.

For more information contact Corporate Communications Manager Bob Pleash on 4931 2327 or 0419 714 270.