State-owned electricity grid operator EirGrid has awarded top student engineer Stephen O’Keeffe with the EirGrid Award for high achievement in the area of engineering. O’Keeffe completed an MEngSc in Sustainable Energy in 2015 from University College Cork (UCC). He achieved the highest grade of his master's group for his thesis ‘Virtual Energy Auditing’, focusing on the reading of power consumption. O’Keeffe received the award with his father John, UCC thesis supervisor Dr Dominic O’Sullivan and Dr Brian Ó Gallachóir, director of MEngSc in Sustainable Energy at UCC School of Engineering. O’Keeffe was presented with the award by EirGrid chief executive Fintan Slye during a tour of EirGrid’s National Control Centre. Slye said: “Stephen and his colleagues at the UCC School of Engineering represent the next generation of Ireland’s engineers, who will continue to grow our knowledge economy into the future. “Stephen’s thesis on sustainable energy, and the strong level of competition from his peers, demonstrates how secure and exciting that future is. “Congratulations to Stephen, his supervisor Dr Dominic O’Sullivan and UCC Sustainable Energy Director Dr Brian Ó Gallachóir. I look forward to Stephen’s further innovations in the area of sustainable energy for many years to come.”