Business services

The BGS is a data-rich organisation with over 400 datasets in our care. Many of these can be downloaded or viewed from our data pages. Others are available under licence for use within your own business or for you to use in the development of commercial application or product. Please see our dataset listing  for more information of what’s available.

BGS GeoIndex  is a map-based index showing a selection of BGS onshore and offshore data.

• The onshore data index includes boreholes, collections, geology, geochemistry, geophysics, flooding, ground stability, earthquakes and other datasets held by BGS.
• The offshore information index includes (but is not limited to) boreholes, seabed samples, geology and geophysics datasets, bathymetry and seabed and sediment data.

The BGS publishes specialist maps and reports on the geology, geophysics and resources of the UK and several other countries via its online shop. The shop also runs a service creating bespoke reports and maps specific to your area.

Many of our maps and publications are also available to view for free online via our publication viewer and map portal.

GeoReports provides cost-effective access to unique sources of published and unpublished geological data, combined with expert advice from BGS scientists.

If you are interested in ground conditions for drilling, investigation or house purchase or if you are concerned about subsidence or radon then GeoReports can help you.

With the use of extensive knowledge and expertise, we can provide services to support your organisation through projects designed to address your specific question or challenge. We use our full range of skills and services from geological mapping, 2D, 3D, and 4D modelling, evidence review and analysis, laboratory testing, real time monitoring, digital workflows and earth observation to work with you.

We deliver projects across the whole of the UK and have an extensive international profile, both on- and offshore.

We work with both the public and private sectors; our public task is delivered through our core funding and we are also commissioned to deliver specific programmes and projects for all levels of Government and public bodies.

Expert advice and information

• succinct to substantive reports
• peer review papers
• policy briefings
• spatial analysis such as GIS
• modelled outputs

Surveying and monitoring

• geological surveying
• seismological monitoring
• geophysical survey
• earth observation

Investigation and site assessments

• engineering investigation for new build/infrastructure and management of older assets
• geological site assessments for all types of installations (eg. wind farms, power stations and pipelines)
• regional scale surveys (e.g. utility company area, local authority) to national surveys
• resource (water, mineral and energy) assessments
• hazard/geohazard

Cutting-edge geological modelling systems

We are developing a National Geological Model of the UK’s subsurface to give decision makers greater clarity in planning for the future. The model is supported by databases and graphical tools for the management, editing and visualisation of geological subsurface interpretation and models.  We have invested heavily in techniques and expertise in 3D and 4D modelling and can provide solutions in these formats which can significantly reduce the need for expert interpretation.

Types of projects

• international development
• energy resource evaluation, including conventional, unconventional and renewable energy
• carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS)
• energy storage
• water, particularly groundwater expertise in resource evaluation, monitoring and protection
• marine survey and interpretation, including drilling, and seabed survey for resource mapping to offshore wind siting
• environmental e.g. contamination of the ground or water, environmental impact assessments
• mineral expertise on mineral resources, mineral planning, policy and legislation, sustainable development, statistics and exploration at MineralsUK
• multi-hazards including earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides and tsunamis
• shallow geohazard assessments, including specialist advice for managing geotechnical and buried assets such as cabling and pipelines
• radioactive waste
• geoscience informatics

BGS capabilities are not limited to this list. Please contact us directly to see if we are able to support you.

We have a range of science facilities including geochemical, geotechnical, fluid processes and mineralogy, petrology, microanalysis and imaging laboratories. The laboratory facilities are available for research grants and commercial users.

We coordinate a range of customer groups and consortiums that focus on research questions that are relevant to multiple organisations, for example pre-competitive energy research, geomagnetism services and seismology monitoring.

We also operate the UK’s earthquake monitoring network, capable of detecting earthquakes as low as 2ML across the whole of the UK and considerably below that in some areas.

The BGS’s National Earthquake Information Service (NEIS) provides members with earthquake alerts by text and email, as well as direct access to our earthquake analysis team, including an out-of-hours service. This allows members to get immediate information on an earthquake that may have affected their assets.

Repairs to the seismic network are prioritised in areas that affect member assets. Members are able to influence the development of the seismic network and the areas of research and development our seismologists pursue.