Meet Yassine Elaroui, Geotechnical Engineer at ABL Paris
The team at ABL Group shares the passion, vision and values for working in energy and the world’s oceans, de-risking and driving the energy transition. We are driven by the idea that the best work is born from professionalism, diligence… and fun. You know ABL Group, but do you know our team?
Give us a glimpse into your day-to-day life at ABL. What keeps you on your toes?
On a daily basis, I support clients by providing independent studies and third-party reviews of project documentation, mainly related to subsea cables and the installation of subsea assets.
I work closely with clients, often taking projects from FEED studies through to execution, leveraging ABL France’s extensive experience across almost all OWF projects completed or under development. What keeps me on my toes is the variety: every project brings unique technical challenges and requires collaboration across disciplines.
What drew you to our industry and what keeps you passionate about it?
I’ve always loved engineering, and growing up in a family of engineers set the bar high for me. My career began as a design engineer on large-scale onshore projects in Africa. Later, I pursued a second master’s in geotechnical engineering at École des Ponts, which led me to join a major offshore contractor, working in Paris and then Aberdeen on both O&G and Offshore Wind projects.
Being raised in Tunisia, I’ve always been passionate about energy and climate change. The idea of contributing to clean, affordable energy for communities is what truly drives me.
Can you tell us about something exciting you are working on right now?
There’s a lot happening! We recently completed a CBRA study for an export cable linking a pilot tidal farm, the first of its kind in France. It’s exciting to support innovative technologies. I’m also leading a FEED drilling study for OSS installation off the French coast, which requires multi-disciplinary expertise and close collaboration across ABL Group.
Finally, I’m involved in the Gulf of Biscay Interconnection project linking France and Spain, with operations expected to start in Q2 2026. Seeing these projects take shape is incredibly rewarding.
From a geoscience perspective, what would you say is the most critical subsurface challenge facing offshore wind or CCS projects today, and how does our work at ABL help address it?
One major challenge is drilling in rocky seabeds, particularly off the French Atlantic coast. These conditions can pose significant hazards if a robust ground model isn’t in place. ABL France has worked on nearly all OWF sites in France, and with support from colleagues worldwide, we provide clients with comprehensive, multi-disciplinary insights to mitigate these risks effectively.
In addition, ABL France holds extensive expertise in asset protection via trenching, with a deep understanding of trenching tool performance from both a design and operational perspective, a unique capability in the consultancy world. Recently, I supported our client by performing a thorough review of ground conditions and assessing the suitability of the proposed trenching tool, which helped them secure a key commercial agreement.
Beyond the work, what’s your favourite part about being part of the ABL team in France? Any fun team moments you’d like to share?
The close bond within ABL France is something I truly value. Thanks to Marlene, who always brings creative ideas, we regularly enjoy fun moments at the office. We once organised a Mario Kart event, and I got defeated in the final by the almighty Damien in the last seconds of the game, it still hurts to this day!
More about Yassine
Position: Geotechnical Engineer
Office: ABL Paris
Hobbies: Travelling/ Sports (nearly everything)/ a bit of finance too!
Favourite Movie: Intouchables, which led me to discover Ludovico Einaudi.