Project details
- Client
- Local authority, Pipeshield, Tekmar and Franzefoss
- Location
- Gdansk, Poland
- Duration
- 2026 – Ongoing
- Capability
- Clean energy
- Companies involved
- Hargreaves Mineral Trading
As the world becomes more conscious of the need to shift towards a cleaner energy future, Hargreaves Minerals is helping create a stable one.
In 2026, Hargreaves Minerals began a project alongside partners Pipeshield, Tekmar and the Norwegian supply chain Franzefoss to source a high-quality, stable solution for the stabilisation of Wind turbines off the coast in Gdansk, Poland.
Will Hardcastle, Managing Director of Hargreaves Minerals, explains how the project works. “We have a relationship with Franzefoss over in Oslo, Norway. They produce a high-quality aggregate with a high specific gravity, perfect for the subsea aggregate market.
“We’ve taken this product and put it into the market, and we have found that we’ve had a really strong uptake.”
The project works in several stages.
Firstly, the material is sourced directly from several quarries owned by Franzefoss across Norway. The material is tested to ensure it meets the specific gravity and requirements of the project of 75-200mm grading and is quarried, crushed, graded and processed, ready for shipping.
After being prepared, the material is shipped directly to the port in Oslo, where representatives from Hargreaves Minerals, Franzefoss and Tekmar begin bagging the material.
The aggregates are loaded directly into a purpose-built mould by an excavator. The netting for the rock bags is inserted directly into the mould before the rocks are tipped carefully inside. The bags are then tied off, and a forklift ships them to a storage area in the port where they await the arrival of a chartered vessel for shipping to their final destination in Gdansk.
Upon arrival, the rock bags are designed to be sunk directly into the sea around offshore wind turbines. The rock bags settle naturally at the bottom of the turbine and create a natural barrier around the base of the turbine, which enhances its stability to ensure effective operation.
As they settle on the seabed, the rock bag installation also begins to form a new habitat for marine wildlife.
“We have started this project over in Oslo, as they’re going to sail over to Poland. But we can produce these rock bags pretty much anywhere we have access to supply.”
“You can utilise our ports in the UK where we can pack these out of Lowestoft or Immingham or anywhere around the UK. Using our Logistics fleet, we can haul them, or our Services division can crush or grade the material to the correct size. All of these businesses ultimately mean we can go anywhere in the UK, Europe or across the world to put these rock bags into the clean energy sector, which is a market we’re very interested in getting further involved in.”
For more information on the work the Hargreaves Minerals team does, please click here.
Or if you’d like to get in touch with the team, please click here.
