Scholarship programme established in honour of Mining alumnus

(L-R): Professor Janice Kay, CBE, Provost, Andrew Pardey, Chief Executive Officer, Centamin, and Lord Myners of Truro, CBE, Chancellor

The late Richard Osman (MSc Mining Geology, 1999), a graduate of the Camborne School of Mines (CSM), has been honoured by friends and former colleagues who have set up a scholarship in his name.

£700,000 has been raised from individual and corporate donors including Centamin PLC, Capital Drilling, Altus Strategies, and Ariana Resources. Their generosity will support generations of distinguished Richard Osman Scholars.

Richard’s employer, Centamin PLC, was the founding donor to the scholarship, which will support 40 scholars over the next 20 years. During the 2019 summer graduation ceremonies Centamin PLC was inducted into the University of Exeter’s College of Benefactors, the highest honour Exeter can bestow upon its donors.

Each year, two talented CSM students studying MSc Mining and Geology will receive a bursary covering their tuition fees in full as well as a significant contribution to living costs. The first Richard Osman Scholar, Scott Campbell, graduated this summer and two scholars, Shane McQuillian and Kiara Brooksby, began their studies this autumn.

Thanks to the scholarship, Scott was able to make the most of his time at CSM, visiting large mining operations in Australia, the Sukari Gold Mine in Egypt, and tin works in Cornwall.

Richard grew up in Wales before coming to Cornwall to complete his Masters and then working in the mining industry in Australia, Africa and the Middle East. Whilst working with Centamin PLC in Egypt, Richard was one of the main driving forces behind the Geology and Mining department that took the Sukari gold mine to a resource of +15moz Au with a production profile that now ranks in the top 20 gold mines in the world. In May 2016, Richard lost his life in a plane crash at just 40 years of age. He is survived by his wife and two daughters.

The University of Exeter is also honouring Richard’s memory with the establishment of the Richard Osman Geology Teaching Laboratory on its Penryn Campus.