Metocean Services International

Metocean Services International
Name	Metocean Services International
Type	Private
Industry	Oceanography
Founded	1990s
Headquarters	Singapore
Area served	Global
Key people	CEO; CTO
Products	Forecasting; Instrumentation; Data services

Metocean Services International is a private company specializing in metocean consulting, oceanographic forecasting, and environmental data services. The firm provides wind, wave, tide, and current analyses to support offshore energy, maritime engineering, and coastal infrastructure projects. It works with international oil companies, renewable energy developers, research institutions, and government agencies to deliver site-specific assessments, monitoring, and modelling.

History

The company was founded in the 1990s amid growing demand for offshore risk assessment, contemporary with expansion in the North Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and Southeast Asian offshore sectors linking to entities such as BP, Shell plc, ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, and Equinor. Early collaborations involved partnerships with research centers like the National Oceanography Centre (United Kingdom), the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. During the 2000s the firm expanded services to support projects by Siemens Gamesa, Vestas, Ørsted (company), and engineering contractors such as Fugro and Subsea 7. In the 2010s Metocean Services International engaged with international funding and standards bodies including International Maritime Organization, International Electrotechnical Commission, and regional authorities such as Energy Market Authority (Singapore) and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. Strategic growth included alliances with academic partners like Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Imperial College London, and Technical University of Denmark for advanced modelling and measurement campaigns.

Services and Products

The company offers metocean hindcasts, nowcasts, and forecasts for wind, wave, swell, tide, surge, and current using products tailored for clients such as BP, Chevron Corporation, Petrobras, ENI, and Woodside Petroleum. Services include site characterization for offshore wind farm developers including Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and RWE (company), operational support for LNG terminal operators, and marine warranty survey support for contractors like McDermott International and Boskalis. Instrumentation supply and deployment services feature metocean buoys, wave radars, and ADCP arrays used by customers including Chevron, Equinor, and regional port authorities such as Port of Singapore Authority. Data services include data licensing for energy traders, insurance underwriters, and academic users from organizations such as European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Japan Meteorological Agency.

Technology and Methodologies

Metocean analyses use numerical models and observational systems integrating tools from modelling communities associated with Simulating WAves Nearshore (SWAN), WaveWatch III, and ocean circulation models akin to ROMS and FVCOM. The firm applies data assimilation techniques referencing methodologies from European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts ensembles, coupled atmosphere–ocean workflows inspired by UK Met Office practices, and reanalysis datasets such as ERA5. Instrumentation includes acoustic Doppler current profilers similar to products from Teledyne RD Instruments, directional wave buoys comparable to those by Datawell, and radar systems analogous to offerings from Gerdau Nucor-type manufacturers and research prototypes developed with labs like Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Quality control and uncertainty quantification incorporate statistical frameworks from American Statistical Association-aligned research and verification approaches used by National Aeronautics and Space Administration and European Space Agency remote sensing programs.

Projects and Clients

Notable project engagements include metocean assessments for large-scale offshore wind projects associated with developers such as Ørsted (company), RWE (company), and Iberdrola. The company supported offshore oil and gas fields operated by BP, Shell plc, and Statoil (now Equinor), and performed site investigations for coastal protection schemes commissioned by agencies like World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and Inter-American Development Bank. Infrastructure clients include port authorities such as Port of Rotterdam, Port of Singapore Authority, and APM Terminals. The firm has collaborated with engineering consultancies including AECOM, Arup, Bechtel, and Jacobs Engineering Group on environmental impact assessments, and provided data services for insurance and reinsurance firms like Lloyd's of London and Munich Re.

Research and Development

Research efforts have included partnerships with universities and institutes like Imperial College London, University of Southampton, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, CSIRO, and University of Cape Town to advance wave modelling, extreme value analysis, and compound flooding studies. Projects have intersected with international research programmes such as Horizon 2020, Copernicus Programme, and collaborative initiatives involving National Science Foundation (United States). R&D outputs emphasize probabilistic metocean hazard assessment, coupling with atmospheric ensembles from European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, and development of novel sensors informed by prototypes from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Fraunhofer Society laboratories.

Corporate Structure and Leadership

The corporate leadership includes an executive team of chief executive, chief technical officer, and directors for operations and business development who liaise with institutional clients including Asian Development Bank, World Bank, and multinationals such as Siemens Energy. Corporate governance adheres to practices common among privately held engineering consultancies and environmental service firms working alongside companies like Fugro and Boskalis. The company maintains regional offices to serve markets in Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Americas, engaging with regional regulators such as Energy Market Authority (Singapore), Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning (now OPRED functions), and national agencies like Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

Certifications and Industry Standards

Metocean deliverables comply with industry standards and guidance from bodies including International Organization for Standardization (ISO) frameworks, technical guidelines from Det Norske Veritas/Germanischer Lloyd (now DNV), and metocean practice guides aligned with American Petroleum Institute standards. Quality management aligns with ISO 9001 regimes; environmental and safety practices reflect ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 approaches often required by clients such as Shell plc and BP. Project assurance and measurement protocols follow standards developed by International Electrotechnical Commission and port operational criteria used by authorities like Port of Rotterdam Authority.

Category:Oceanography companies