New South Australian State Chair of Petroleum Geoscience
Congratulations to Professor Simon Holford for being appointed to the South Australian State Chair in Petroleum Geoscience.
L-R: Dr Kathryn Amos (Head of the Australian School of Petroleum and Energy Resources), Professor Simon Holford (South Australian State Chair of Petroleum Geoscience), Elinor Alexander (Director Geoscience and Exploration, Energy Resources Division, Department for Energy and Mining), Dr Paul Heithersay (Chief Executive, Department for Energy and Mining)
Simon has been appointed as a result of his ongoing commitment to the Australian School of Petroleum and Energy Resources from the South Australian State Government Department for Energy and Mining (DEM), who have supported research and training in petroleum geoscience at the University of Adelaide through this position for over 25 years.
The role of the State Chair is to maximise scientific contributions to the economic development of petroleum and energy resources and carbon capture and storage in South Australia, Australia and internationally.
About the researcher
Simon joined the University of Adelaide as an ARC Australian Postdoctoral Fellow in 2007 and is internationally recognised for his research on the energy resources and tectonics of continental margins, petroleum geomechanics and volcanism in sedimentary basins.
Simon has won multiple awards for scientific excellence including the Geological Society of Australia’s Walter Howchin Medal in 2011 for contributions to South Australian geoscience, and the ES Hills Medal in 2018 for outstanding research contributions by a young (<40 years old) Australian.
Simon’s current research foci include permanent CO2 storage in volcanic rocks, the geomechanics of cyclical and long-term subsurface gas storage and the interplays between tectonics, magmatism and sedimentation during rift basin development.