Global sustainability consultancy SLR has acquired Anchor Environmental Consultants, a specialist marine and natural capital firm headquartered in Cape Town, South Africa, expanding its capabilities across coastal, estuarine, offshore, and biodiversity advisory services.

As reported by SLR Consulting, Anchor was founded in the 1990s by Barry Clark and Jane Turpie and has built an international reputation across ecological, social, and economic assessment, ecosystem services evaluation, natural capital accounting, and research and monitoring. The firm employs more than 45 professionals across its Cape Town headquarters, a satellite office in Windhoek, Namibia, and a marine taxonomy laboratory in Cape Town that holds membership of the North Atlantic Marine Biological Analytical Quality Control Scheme.

Jane Turpie, former CEO of Anchor and now Business Unit Director for SLR's Environmental Sciences unit, said joining the SLR global network significantly enhances Anchor's reach and capabilities, enabling improved client service and increased impact in the marine science, natural capital and environmental economics and policy space.

Tasman Graham, SLR's Managing Director for the Middle East and Africa, described Anchor's natural capital work as world-class, adding that the combination would strengthen SLR's position as a leading provider of services in estuarine, coastal, marine, and offshore environments in line with the firm's strategy to develop global capability in the ports and marine sector.

SLR and Anchor have collaborated for several years across Southern Africa, with recent joint work spanning environmental and social impact assessments for major green hydrogen and ammonia developments, as well as mining, infrastructure, offshore gas, and offshore wind projects. The acquisition formalises that partnership.

Discover the full scope of SLR's acquisition of Anchor Environmental and its implications for marine sustainability advisory in the complete announcement.