Mining chief digs deep to aid research

A GOLD-MINING magnate is donating more than £1 million to an energy research programme at Edinburgh's Heriot-Watt University.

Canada-based philanthropist Robert M Buchan, who studied at the university more than 40 years ago, is handing over 1.3m to fund a post in sustainable energy engineering, with a view to keeping Scotland at the forefront of the field.

The donation is said to be one of the biggest the institution has received and the largest from an individual.

Mr Buchan, from Rosyth, obtained a degree in mining from Heriot-Watt in 1969 and in 1993 founded Kinross Gold, a small gold mining company which went on to be the third-largest primary gold producer in North America. He said: "I believe in giving forward rather than giving back. It reflects a desire to focus on the future."

University principal Professor Steve Chapman said: "This donation's influence will be felt in Scotland and in the wider world of energy sustainability."