Ryan Gwynn from Patea is a winner of a 2016 Shell New Zealand scholarship.
Mr Gwynn, 18, attended Hawera High School last year, where he was deputy head boy, and will be studying engineering at the University of Auckland this year.
Mr Gwynn excelled in his studies, while at the same time he was involved in running his family's business.
"This scholarship means a lot to me and I am very grateful for it," he said. "It will allow me to attend university and focus more on my studies and less on my financial burden, meaning I can do my best and reach my full potential."
The aim of the scholarships is to assist Taranaki school-leavers to study an energy-related degree at university.
Each scholarship is worth $22,500 and is paid in three annual instalments of $7500.
Shell New Zealand chairman Rob Jager presented the scholarships at a ceremony last week.
"It's inspiring to be supporting these students to become future energy leaders.
"It's great our team can help out with financial assistance, mentoring and possible summer holiday work," Mr Jager said.
In awarding the scholarships, the chairman said it was very rewarding to be supporting high-calibre students with a sense of social and environmental responsibility
There were 18 scholarship applications received from around Taranaki this year compared to 29 submissions in 2015.
-To find out more about Shell New Zealand scholarships visit petroleumskills.co.nz.