Bringing clarity to offshore foundation design in weak rocks

As offshore wind development expands into new regions, engineers are increasingly encountering a challenge beneath the seabed: weak rock.

"Rock Off is one of NGI's strategic research projects, initiated in response to industry needs recognised through our involvement in several large offshore wind projects," says Harun Kürşat Engin, NGI researcher and project manager for Rock Off.

While experience exists across many disciplines, the offshore wind industry is still working to establish robust and practical approaches for dealing with these conditions.

"Weak rocks can create significant uncertainty from site investigation and laboratory testing through to installation and foundation design. Rock Off addresses these challenges through coordinated work on characterization, testing, numerical modelling, and practical design methods," explains Engin.

These challenges are the reasons experts from academia and industry recently gathered in Oslo for the first International Workshop on Challenges of Offshore Foundation Design in Weak Rocks (WEROCK 2026).

Looking at the whole problem

The workshop brought together researchers, offshore wind developers, contractors, consultants and geotechnical specialists from across Europe. Rather than focusing on individual technical disciplines, discussions centred on how different parts of the engineering process connect.

According to Engin, one of the clearest messages emerging from the workshop was the need for a more integrated approach.

"We need to look at the whole problem, rather than treat investigation, testing, design and installation separately," he says.

"The presentations showed both the challenges and the different ways people are trying to address them."

The programme covered topics ranging from numerical modelling and practical design methods to site investigation, laboratory testing and industry experiences from offshore projects. Participants shared lessons learned from offshore wind developments as well as related work in rock mechanics and reservoir geomechanics.

Learning across industries

A recurring theme throughout the workshop was the value of drawing on experience from other sectors.

"We heard about experience from oil and gas and deep-reservoir chalk alongside offshore wind and other rock-engineering applications," says Engin. "There is substantial knowledge to draw on. The useful question is what we can transfer to offshore wind, and where we need to adapt or develop our approaches."

Speakers represented organisations including Imperial College London, Aker BP, DEME, EDF Renewables, SSE, Seaway7, GEO and NGI, offering perspectives from research, development, design and offshore installation.

The workshop concluded with a panel discussion exploring how offshore foundations in weak rocks can be designed using practical, transparent and technically robust approaches.

From research project to industry platform

Although WEROCK was organised through Rock Off, the ambition was never limited to presenting NGI's own work.

"Sharing knowledge outside NGI is an important part of the project, but WEROCK was also intended to bring experience and research needs back into Rock Off, not simply present our own work," says Engin.

With support from a technical expert panel and contributors from industry and academia, the workshop developed into a broader forum for discussing common challenges and identifying opportunities for collaboration.

"Rock Off is the research project; WEROCK brings the wider community together around the challenges that motivated it."

The strong turnout and engagement suggest that the topic resonates across the industry.

A foundation for future collaboration

Perhaps the most encouraging outcome was the level of interest in continued cooperation.

"My impression is that there is genuine industry interest in exploring a larger collaborative research project or consortium," says Engin.

Such an initiative could bring together companies, universities and research institutes to address challenges related to site investigation, laboratory testing, characterisation, design and installation, while using large-scale field testing to validate emerging methods.

"The next step is to turn that interest into a manageable set of shared research priorities and practical activities."

For Engin, the workshop's success was reflected not only in the technical programme, but also in the atmosphere throughout the day.

"What stayed with me most was the atmosphere. People came with different backgrounds and experiences, but there seemed to be a shared understanding of the challenges and a willingness to work on them together.

"It felt quite close and informal, almost like a small family gathered around a common problem. That willingness to exchange experience openly was just as important as the presentations themselves."

As offshore wind continues its global expansion, the need for that kind of collaboration is likely to grow. For the team behind Rock Off and WEROCK, the workshop may have been the first of its kind, but they hope it is only the beginning.

"I hope WEROCK becomes more than a one-off event," says Engin. "The response gives me encouragement that there is a place for continuing this exchange and developing practical work together."