ABP Marine Environmental Research

What ABP Marine Environmental Research does

ABP Marine Environmental Research (ABPmer) is a UK-based marine environmental consultancy and survey firm established in 1950 and now operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Associated British Ports Holdings Limited. The firm delivers integrated professional services across nine practice areas: consents and licensing, data and GIS solutions, design support, habitat creation and restoration, marine planning, maritime (port risk and PMSC), metocean analysis, policy support, and survey and monitoring. Its clients include UK government departments and agencies (Defra, Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales, NSTA, The Crown Estate and Crown Estate Scotland), offshore wind and marine renewable developers (notably ScottishPower and Shell on the MarramWind floating offshore wind project), port and harbour operators, water utilities, fisheries bodies, and heritage organisations. The firm operates from a Southampton headquarters and a London registered office, with case studies extending into Ireland, the Caribbean (Jamaica), Indonesia, and Canada. Revenue is not publicly disclosed, and the firm is privately held with no funding rounds or external investment indicated.

The technical platform combines field survey assets (ADCPs, multibeam and singlebeam bathymetry, Niskin bottles, CTD instrumentation, Van Veen sediment samplers) with geospatial capability built on ArcGIS, AutoCAD Map3D, ESRI, and Global Mapper, alongside bespoke numerical models for hydrodynamic, water quality, sediment transport, and metocean assessment. ABPmer also maintains and develops several proprietary data products: the Estuary Guide (database covering 163 UK estuaries with morphological data and interactive mapping), the Marine Enhancement Directory (MEnD) national habitat restoration resource, OMReg (Online Marine Registry of habitat creation projects), and SEASTATES, a free global metocean and weather downtime platform. Through a long-standing partnership with The Crown Estate, and extended to Crown Estate Scotland in 2024, ABPmer provides data handling and quality assurance for the Marine Data Exchange that underpins UK offshore renewables development. The firm holds ISO 9001:2015 accreditation for survey services, the IEMA EIA Quality Mark, and Recognised Development Service Provider status with The Crown Estate.

ABPmer's revenue model is project-based professional services sold directly to enterprise and government clients, supplemented by training programmes (marine accident investigation, PMSC, EIA, marine consents and licensing, coastal/GIS). No standard pricing is published; engagements are scoped through direct consultation with named subject matter experts. Marketing is predominantly thought-leadership driven through the company blog, white papers, an e-zine newsletter, LinkedIn engagement (including a Marine Environmental Net Gain discussion group), case study library, and training/webinar delivery. Distribution is exclusively direct B2B and B2G sales with no reseller, distributor, or marketplace channels.

Name

ABP Marine Environmental Research

Legal name

ABP Marine Environmental Research Limited

Website

https://abpmer.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1950

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

ABPmer is a UK-based marine environmental consultancy and survey firm founded in 1950, serving government agencies, offshore renewables developers, port operators, and water utilities with consenting, GIS, metocean, and survey services underpinned by proprietary data products including SEASTATES and the Estuary Guide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marine Environmental Consulting

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Oceans, Coastal & Marine Resource Management (BPADALAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Offshore Wind & Marine Spatial Planning Regulation (EUAMANAM), Coastal & Marine Resources Administration (Oceans, Fisheries, Shorelines) (BPAIAMAI)

Keywords

• Marine environmental consultancy
• Hydrographic survey services
• Metocean data analysis
• Marine habitat restoration
• Coastal engineering support

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Marine Consultancy Services: Professional consultancy services for marine environmental assessment, planning, consenting, and regulatory compliance. Services provided on a project basis to government agencies, energy developers, port operators, and other marine sector clients.
2. Survey and Monitoring Services: Field survey and environmental monitoring services delivered by ABPmer's survey team, including data collection, processing, and laboratory analysis.
3. Training Services: Marine accident and incident investigation training, PMSC training, EIA training, marine consents and licensing training, and coastal/GIS training programs.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ABP Marine Environmental Research Ltd (ABPmer) is a marine environmental consultancy that delivers hydrographic surveys, metocean data services, marine planning, consents and licensing support, environmental impact assessment, design support, and habitat creation and restoration. It also develops proprietary data products such as the SEASTATES metocean database, the Estuary Guide, the Marine Enhancement Directory (MEnD), and the Online Marine Registry (OMReg), serving ports, offshore developers, regulators, and coastal engineers.

Product overview

ABP Marine Environmental Research is a marine consultancy and survey company offering integrated professional services rather than a software product platform. The company provides nine core service areas: Consents and Licensing, Data and GIS Solutions, Design Support, Habitat Creation and Restoration, Marine Planning, Maritime, Metocean, Policy Support, and Survey and Monitoring. Supporting these services, ABPmer also maintains several data products including the Estuary Guide (a free UK estuaries database), the Marine Enhancement Directory (MEnD) for habitat restoration tracking, the Online Marine Registry (OMReg) for habitat creation projects, and the SEASTATES platform for global metocean data. The company operates as a consultancy delivering bespoke services to developers, operators, government agencies, and port operators across the marine and coastal environment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Consents and Licensing
• Survey and Monitoring
• Metocean Services
• Marine Planning
• Design Support
• Habitat Creation and Restoration
• Policy Support
• Maritime Services
• Data and GIS Solutions
• SEASTATES
• Estuary Guide
• Marine Enhancement Directory (MEnD)
• Online Marine Registry (OMReg)

Quantifiable outcome

• EIA coastal process studies completed for over 30 UK offshore wind projects
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• Crown Estate ScotlandmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024ABPmer appointed to support data handling tasks critical to effective management of Scottish marine survey data uploaded to the Marine Data Exchange. Includes primary data, observations, metadata, and reports for geotechnical, geophysical, bathymetric, oceanographic, meteorological, acoustic, biological, sea user, sedimentological, cultural and heritage investigations.
• HR WallingfordmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Core team partner with ABPmer for Estuary Guide updates, working alongside Prof. Ian Townend. Same team that developed original Estuary Guide products.
• Defra (Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Commissioned for multiple studies including Fisheries and Seafood Scheme evaluations, bluefin tuna quota allocation assessment, and ecosystem approach to fisheries management. Direct government client for policy support.
• Risk & Policy Analysts (RPA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021ABPmer and RPA jointly commissioned by Defra to evaluate the Fisheries and Seafood Scheme. Partnership for government evaluation work on fisheries policy and grant scheme assessment.
• Associated British Ports Holdings LimitedcoreOthersParent company of ABP Marine Environmental Research Limited. ABPmer is a subsidiary of Associated British Ports Holdings Limited, registered in England (Registration number: 1956748).
• The Crown EstatemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partnership for Marine Data Exchange support since inception (2013). ABPmer supports data handling, quality assurance, and processing for offshore renewables developers' survey data. Also collaborated on tidal stream collision risk research.
• Bangor UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration for Estuary Guide bathymetry data updates. Bangor University derived new bathymetry data for English estuaries under Project INVEST for Water Environment Regulations.
• Marine Management Organisation (MMO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegulatory body for marine licensing in English waters. ABPmer supports clients through marine licensing processes under Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009.
• Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning (OPRED)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegulator administering permits for offshore CCS and decommissioning projects. ABPmer has deep expertise in OPRED's licensing framework and consenting requirements.
• Natural Resources Wales (NRW)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment body commissioned ABPmer for Welsh saltmarsh restoration study identifying priority sites for polder construction across Welsh coastline.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Royal HaskoningDHV: Large global consultancy with a substantial coastal and maritime practice covering port planning, marine EIA and offshore wind consenting. Overlaps directly with ABPmer on offshore wind and ports work but offers a much wider portfolio.
• Arcadis: Global design and consultancy firm with a coastal, marine and offshore renewables practice delivering EIA, consenting and habitat services. Competes with ABPmer on UK and international offshore wind projects.
• Fugro: Global marine site characterisation and survey firm providing geophysical, geotechnical and hydrographic surveys that overlap with ABPmer's survey and monitoring services, though at much larger scale and broader scope.
• WSP: Global environmental and engineering consultancy with a UK offshore wind, marine consenting and habitat creation practice. Provides overlapping EIA, marine planning and metocean services, though as part of a much broader portfolio.
• Mott MacDonald: Global engineering consultancy with an established marine and coastal environment practice covering ports, offshore wind EIA, consents and metocean studies. Competes with ABPmer on large offshore wind and port masterplanning commissions.
• ERM (Environmental Resources Management): Global environmental consultancy with strong offshore wind, marine permitting and impact assessment capabilities. Overlaps with ABPmer on EIA and consenting for offshore renewables, with broader geographic reach.

Direct peers

• HR Wallingford: UK-based marine and coastal consultancy with comparable metocean, estuarine and numerical modelling capabilities. ABPmer and HR Wallingford are already explicit partners on the Estuary Guide, making them the closest direct peer in scope and customer set.
• DHI Group: Specialist water and marine numerical modelling consultancy providing hydrodynamic, metocean and coastal process modelling tools. Directly comparable to ABPmer's bespoke numerical modelling capabilities in design support and metocean analysis.
• SLR Consulting: Mid-sized global environmental consultancy with comparable marine, coastal and offshore wind EIA practices. Similar size profile to ABPmer and directly competes on UK offshore wind consenting and coastal process work.
• APEM Group: UK-based specialist aquatic and marine environmental consultancy delivering ecological surveys, EIA and monitoring for offshore wind and marine developments. Highly comparable in size, scope and customer base to ABPmer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/abpmer

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ABP Marine Environmental Research