The Department for the Economy’s GeoEnergy NI interactive mobile discovery centre that is designed to help visitors ‘discover the heat beneath their feet’ arrived in Randalstown on Wednesday, June 5 for a school’s information day hosted by Mount St Michael’s Primary School. In total four schools in the area got to find out more about the GeoEnergy NI project and Northern Ireland’s geothermal potential including the nearby Central Primary School, Maine Integrated Primary School and St Benedict’s College.
The school’s visit was joined by the Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, Councillor Neil Kelly who met with a group of children and teachers from Mount St Michael’s PS and Central Primary School to learn more about the project and Northern Ireland’s wider geothermal energy potential. Together they sampled the interactive exhibits including bespoke Virtual Reality (VR) content which has been developed to help bring the subject matter to life.
Visitors also had the opportunity to see the local application of geothermal technology by viewing a video case study about a recent apartment development by the Rural Housing Association in Randalstown which is already harnessing the benefits of geothermal energy.
The GeoEnergy Discovery Centre is a key part of the overall GeoEnergy NI project – www.geoenergyNI.org being delivered by the Department for the Economy. The project is exploring the potential for sustainable geothermal energy right beneath our feet through geothermal demonstrator projects in two locations in Northern Ireland – one based at CAFRE’s Greenmount campus near Antrim and the other in the Stormont Estate in Belfast. Both sites are believed to have favourable geological conditions which could deliver significant geothermal potential in the future.
The GeoEnergy NI Discovery Centre is designed to help schools, families, businesses, and community groups discover the power and potential of geothermal energy as a renewable and low carbon energy source, and is packed full of educational resources, including interactive experiences such as VR technologies.
