SOLUTION / PUBLIC SOURCE RECORD
GeoProvider UXO risk research for offshore wind
- Published October 25, 2022; updated September 30, 2026; estimated reading time 3 minutes. Status: available. Categories: Offshore wind / Development and presurvey; Energy.
- GeoProvider prepares desktop research and risk-analysis reports that identify the type and likelihood of unexploded ordnance (UXO) contamination at offshore-wind sites. A multidisciplinary team draws on geology, chemistry, marine-environment, history and language expertise to gather and interpret material from archives, museums, public records, private companies and specialist groups. The article says there is no centralized UXO database and much relevant information is not digitized.
- The article attributes much of the risk to unexploded World War I and II ordnance; John Bednarski, identified as Senior Historian, says 20–30% of munitions fired failed to detonate. It also says ocean dumping of munitions continued until 1972, under an international convention. GeoProvider advises developers to investigate UXO likelihood early.
- Reports help developers form risk-management plans, decide whether/how much to bid on a lease, and plan construction after site acquisition. The company says it estimates the likelihood of UXO in an area; this offers context that a magnetometer alone cannot provide, since it cannot distinguish hazardous ordnance from harmless metal objects. Suspected hazards must be inspected and may require removal or detonation before construction, with delays and specialist disposal costs.
- The page says UXO research can reduce accident risk to workers and limit marine damage from underwater explosions, debris and toxic chemical releases. It describes potential hazards in many regions, including the US Great Lakes and North American coasts, Baltic Sea and Skagerrak. GeoProvider says it is building a global UXO-threat database and that few firms conduct this type of research worldwide.
- SDGs shown: 8 and 7. Contact: Wim Lekens, CTO, wl@geoprovider.no; phone reveal control is collapsed. Company: GEOPROVIDER AS, Prof. Olav Hanssens v. 7A, 4021 Stavanger, Norway; geoprovider.no.