FoundOcean 2025 Review of the Year
Year in Review
In 2025, our engineers worked on a variety of projects all over the world, from Europe to North America to Asia, and the projects themselves varied considerably depending on the structures, client requirements and the seabed (and weather!) conditions. Working across all the projects, our teams have provided efficiency and a practical can-do attitude to deliver our services safely and successfully to support the transitioning energy sector.
As the year draws to a close and we plan for 2026 – FoundOcean’s 60th year – it is also a great opportunity to reflect on the highlights of the successful year we have just had and its interesting projects.
Our 2025 Projects
In the past year, we have completed 11 major offshore energy projects, working in the UK, USA, France, Norway, Canada and Taiwan. These projects contribute directly to each country’s energy targets, several of them working towards net zero, and the expansion of the world’s energy network, supplying more people with consistent clean energy and growing the wind energy network.
We started the year in the midst of an important project, providing our grouting services at Orsted’s Greater Changhua Offshore Wind Farm (OWF), off the coast of Changhua County in Taiwan. Ten members of our offshore team worked efficiently to deliver the project, a major boost to Taiwan’s renewable energy targets, and supporting the country’s position as a clean energy leader in the Asia-Pacific region.
In America, we have been working on both Sunrise Wind and Empire Wind OWFs, both off the coast of the state of New York and both aiming for completion in 2027. Sunrise Wind is expected to become the first offshore wind farm in the US to use the super-efficient High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission system, reducing the number of cables and electrical connections needed. This will increase the overall efficiency of the project by reducing how much energy is lost in transmission.
Closer to home, we were also involved in carrying out foundation grouting pile work at the site of the Dogger Bank OWF, in its third phase of construction, which will be the largest offshore wind farm in the world. The project is a joint venture between SSE Renewables, Equinor and Vårgrønn and, when completed, will have a total installed capacity of 3.6 GW, capable of powering up to 6 million homes, significantly contributing to the UK’s energy transition and net zero targets. A fourth phase of the project, Dogger Bank D, has also been proposed, adding even more ambition to the massive scale of the project – a testament to the growth and continued development of offshore wind infrastructure here in the UK.
Close by, also in the Dogger Bank area, we were grouting 100 turbines on the Sofia OWF. This is currently the largest OWF in RWE’s current portfolio and is also using the HVDC grid connection technology. Half of Sofia’s 100 turbines have been fitted with recyclable blades, a UK first. This pioneering blade technology, devised by Siemens Gamesa, uses a special resin so that the blade can be broken down into its component parts and recycled into new products at the end of its operational lifespan.
Also in the North Sea, we have also been working at East Anglia THREE, grouting the foundations of the Offshore Substation there. We have been involved in the East Anglia array since back in 2019 and East Anglia ONE. This massive offshore wind complex is a hub of four projects which together are expected to provide more than 3.9 GW. East Anglia THREE was awarded a Contract for Difference (CfD) in 2022 and should be operational in 2026.
Conferences and Events
Alongside our engineering projects, various events and conferences allowed our team to expand their global network. From the USA, with events like the IPF (International Partnering Forum), to Energy Taiwan, held in Taipei, to closer-to-home conferences like SPE Offshore Europe, held in Aberdeen, travelling to conferences allows us to meet a variety of experts from across the energy sector and hear a variety of perspectives about new innovations and directions.
A highlight for our team is that Yau Collins, our Business Development Manager, had the opportunity to represent us in her hometown of Kuala Lumpur at Oil & Gas Asia’s 21st biannual event. This year’s theme was "Powering Progress, Shaping Tomorrow". This was a fantastic time to develop our network in the APAC offshore energy market, which is currently changing and evolving and an impressive rate.
Another conference we enjoyed this year was Offshore Energy Exhibition & Conference (OECC) in Amsterdam. Yau also attended this event, along with our Global Business Development Manager, Paul Burns. The event covers a range of connected industries such as offshore wind, oil and gas, and sustainable maritime solutions, reflecting our own diverse portfolio of projects and allowing us to connect with a number of current or future collaborators.
Looking ahead to 2026
As the offshore wind sector expands to new geographies, with a growing pipeline of projects planned in countries like Australia, Canada and Brazil, adaptation and readiness become more important. FoundOcean’s global reach through the Venterra Group provides a strong base to meet challenges such as legislation and regulations, logistics and local conditions. Adapting existing O&G infrastructure and introducing solutions for carbon capture will also provide more opportunities for FoundOcean to be innovative in our way of working across a breadth of projects in the offshore energy sector.
Next year – our 60th – we will continue to deliver our high-quality, reliable foundations for the next generation of offshore installations.
For more information on FoundOcean’s experience and capabilities, contact the team on +44 1506 440330 or email info@foundocean.com