Field and drill core structural geology training 2026
(applied to mineral exploration) – Registration is open!
- What? HCOVGlobal and SGEO are arranging a second joint field course
- When? Monday 1st June to Tuesday 9th June inclusive, 2026
- Where? Rovaniemi and Peräpohja schist belt, northern Finland
The main aim of this course is to provide you with a new or revised set of skills, to deal with complex structural geology in rocks hosting mineral deposits. It is suitable for exploration geologists and researchers/students/survey geologists. The regular fee for the course is €3200 (+ 25.5% VAT) per person and the student fee (including PhD students) is €1600 (+ 25.5% VAT) per full time student.
Places are strictly limited to 20, whereof 4 reserved for students.
Course registration is now open, scroll to the bottom of the page to register!
Contact information:
Nick Oliver (HCOVGlobal) nickoliver@hcovglobal.com
Pietari Skyttä (SGEO) pietari@sgeo.fi
Read more detailed course information below and send email if there are further questions.
The Aims and Program of the Course
The course aims to develop your skills in
- recognizing geological structures, including key elements of mineralised systems
- making detailed observations in the field, including production and management of data, sketches and photos
- taking representative, not random, structural measurements
- incorporating hydrothermal system observations (veins, alteration etc) into the structural framework at multiple scales
- working with stereographic projections
- combined use of maps, cross-sections, geophysics and other datasets
- developing structural datasets into structural interpretations, maps and 3D
- correlations between outcrops and progression towards regional-scale (synthesis)
- form line drafting
- single-hole to drill hole based section
- taking maps and cross sections to 3D
- group work
Draft program
(Final details may change at short notice immediately before and during the course, partly depending on access to specific outcrops)
Day 1 (Mon 1 June): Start at 9.00 am at Mawson logging hall, Alatie 2b, 96100 Rovaniemi.
Logging core to develop a 2D/3D lithological and structural model in deformed, mineralized rocks
Day 2 (Tue 2 June): Continued logging. Excursion to Ounasvaara outcrop (The basics of structural mapping: Planes, lines, cross-cutting relations). Introduction-dinner Rovaniemi at 18 pm. Drive to Lohijärvi later in the evening.
Day 3 (Wed 3 June): Detail-mapping on an outcrop with mineralized veins and shear-fabrics.
Day 4 (Thu 4 June): Detail-mapping a quarry (with mineralization) and its surroundings to define a framework for the mineralization, including ductile and brittle structural features.
Days 5 to 7 (Fri 5 June to Sun 7 June): A 3-day regional mapping campaign. Working in pairs or groups of three. Contains supervised and independent mapping, discussions and sharing the results. Each day includes an interactive wrap-up /feedback session in the afternoon, promoting development from data gathering to interpretation. Preparation of a shared wall-map summarizing findings from all the groups.
Day 8 (Mon 8 June): Discussions & presentations, developing exploration targets using the outcome of mapping and correlation with geophysics. Excursions on the key outcrops and outcrops with remaining challenges.
Day 9 (Tue 9 June): Continued excursions and discussions. Wrap-up & presentations, course diplomas. End of course 4 pm at Lohijärvi.
Costs and Payment
€3200 (+ 25.5% VAT) per person
€1600 (+ 25.5% VAT) per full time student in geosciences (student certificate required)
- Payment will take place via an invoice that will be e-mailed to you after completing the online registration form. Your registration will only be confirmed once your payment is received.
- Discounts apply if three or more people from one employer/institution are attending, contact us for details.
- If you are sole representative of your company/institution, we can offer you a place in our minibus. Spaces are limited. Please indicate in the registration formular if you would like to travel in the minibus.
Your primary payment will cover:
- 9 full days of training in the field and on drill core.
- Lunch and coffee during the core logging training in Rovaniemi, Mon 1 June and Tue 2 June.
- Introduction-dinner in Rovaniemi, Tue 2 June.
- Accommodation and food at the Lohijärvi field camp, from Tue 2nd of June to Tue 9 June (we will arrive at the field camp in evening of Tue 2 June, and check out in the afternoon on Tue 9 June). The accommodation is in shared two-person rooms and the food includes breakfast, pack-lunch, and dinner (no dinner on departure day).
- Basic field guide, some mapping templates, relevant regional and some local geophysical and geological products on which your data and interpretations can be compiled.
Your primary payment will not cover:
- Accommodation from June 1 to June 2 in Rovaniemi as well as before and after the course. You will need to arrange this yourself.
- Transport (see below).
Deadlines and refunds
Registration after May 1 (1201 hrs Finland summer time) will incur a 10 % late fee, and is subject to our discretion (if course is fully subscribed by this date). Before May 1 (midnight at end of April 30) you can withdraw and receive all your registration money back. Between May 1 (1201 hrs Finland summer time) and May 21 (midnight at end of May 21) you can withdraw but there will be a cancellation and administration fee of €650. For cancellations after May 21 (from 1201 May 22) we will not refund your registration fee.
We reserve the right to cancel the course if the minimum number of participants is not reached by May 1. In this case, the registration fee will be paid back in full (if registrations are looking good already before this date, we will let everyone know). We also reserve the right to cancel or postpone the course, at our discretion, if major events prevent us from delivering the course safely (e.g. a serious further Covid outbreak or other nationally/internationally imposed travel restrictions).
Transport
You will need to arrange your own travel to/from Rovaniemi. For travel during the course (June 1 – June 9) you will use your own company/institution vehicle, rent a car, or travel in our minibus. If you travel in our minibus, we will charge you a fee that covers your proportion of the rental and fuel.
Although the field camp is only one hour or so from Rovaniemi, we will be conducting training and giving some short presentations at irregular times at the field base (some mornings, late afternoons, evenings) so we do not recommend that anyone consider commuting between Rovaniemi and the field camp every day – the logistics will be too difficult.
What to bring:
- Small day-pack.
- Field notebook + pen.
- Geologist compass (recommended: Freiberg/Brunton Geo/Breithaupt, or comparable; minimum: Suunto or Silva with dip needle) or smartphone equivalent. Our recommendations include Field Move’s “Clino” for iPhone and high-level android smartphones (for a small fee you get a version that allows you to allocate rock types and edit structure types easily).
- Camera or a smartphone equipped with a camera.
- Pen magnet and scribe (or knife). These will be useful particularly during the drill core days.
- Rock hammer (optional): some structures may be better revealed by careful removal of moss/dirt and weathered rock etc.
- Insect repellent and/or screening for your hat (optional, hopefully we will finish before the mosquitoes start their summer feeding festival)
- Water bottle, snack food; we will have limited access to shops 3 June to 9 June.
- Laptop loaded with Excel and (ideally) QGIS. If you are an experienced ArcGIS user, this will be fine. Even if you use Mapinfo, this should be OK. Note however, this is not a GIS-training course, but we will offer some assistance and support for those of you who have little GIS experience. QGIS is free (downloads and software) with no hidden costs.
- Some stereographic projection software will be useful, either on your hand-held device, or on your laptop. Attendees that have access to ioGAS can use the stereographic projection functions within that. For stereographic projections we recommend Orient.
- Software links:
- QGIS: https://qgis.org/en/site/
- Orient: https://www.frederickvollmer.com/orient/index.html
What should you do now?
- Register using the web form provided (contact us if you have issues).
- Arrange for payment to be made.
- Book accommodation in Rovaniemi for the night between 1-2 June, as well as before and after the course if needed.
- Book flights if required.
- Book a rental vehicle or arrange this vehicle with your company/institution. Alternatively, indicate your need for a seat in our minibus.
About filling the registration form
Please clarify your invoicing information before filling out the registration form.
- If you are paying the course fee personally, please fill in your home address in the invoicing information section of the form.
- If the payer is a company, university or other entity you represent, please fill in the invoicing information section of the form with the payer’s name, invoicing address, possible buyer reference, project code, etc. If you do not have this information at hand right now, please send the invoicing instructions by email to sales@sgeo.fi with the subject “Field course invoicing details”.