€60 million science funding announced

Science, engineering and technology centres are to get more than €60 million in funding, Tánaiste Mary Coughlan announced today.

More than €45 million of the funding will be awarded to three existing research Centres for Science, Engineering and Technology (CSETs) over the next five years through Science Foundation Ireland (SFI). The remaining €14.5 million will be raised from industry sources.

The money will provide second term funding to the Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre (APC), which is based at Univeristy College Cork and which conduct research into gastrointestinal health; the Centre for Research on Adaptive Nanostructures and Nanodevices (Crann) at Trinity College Dublin, which is working in the area of nanotechnology; and the Digital Enterprise Research Centre (Deri), which is located at NUI Galway and is researching technologies to develop the next generation of web technologies.

Announcing the new funding this morning, Ms Coughlan said she believed the award was recognition of achievement to date and a call to do more in the future.

"In essence it's the beginning of the next chapter, the next chapter for each individual, each team, each institution, and also the next chapter in the Government's drive to create an environment of research excellence," she said.

"It's an integral part of the overall objective that Ireland by 2013 will be internationally renowned for the excellence of its research and will be to the forefront in generating and using new knowledge for economic and social progress."

The Tánaiste said the funding awards were a "huge opportunity" for economic development.

Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation Dr Jimmy Devins said 12 indigenous and multinational companies would partner with the CSETs.

"The funding announced today will directly support almost 200 researchers, graduate students and others in a well-structured and wholly-collaborative environment between now and 2013," he said.