The DemoSATH floating offshore wind demonstrator, developed by Saitec Offshore Technologies, has welcomed Japanese construction company Kumagai Gumi as a strategic project partner. The project will enter a new phase focused on research, testing and knowledge development for floating offshore wind.
Under an agreement between Saitec Offshore Technologies, existing project partner The Kansai Electric Power Company (KEPCO) and Kumagai Gumi, the DemoSATH prototype will continue operating at the BiMEP open-sea test site off Armintza, Bizkaia, Spain, through 2027. The next phase will focus on research, optimisation and knowledge transfer.
Kumagai Gumi will contribute its construction expertise, with work focusing on decommissioning methods and construction procedures that could support future mass production.
DemoSATH comprises a 2 MW wind turbine mounted on a concrete twin-hull floating structure. Located approximately 3.2 km off the Basque coast in water around 85 metres deep, the demonstrator was assembled at the Port of Bilbao before being towed to the BiMEP test site.
Since operations began three years ago, the project has collected data on the installation, operation and power generation of Saitec’s SATH floating technology under offshore conditions. Monitoring has also provided information on the structure’s dynamic and operational behaviour, allowing comparisons with models developed during the design phase.
The demonstrator has experienced waves of up to 13 metres and wind gusts of 100 km/h in the Cantabrian Sea. Through the separate DemoSATH Lab project, it has also been used to test solutions intended to support marine biodiversity and explore potential applications related to aquaculture.
The next phase will cover several research areas, including monitoring key system components, data analysis, predictive modelling and the response of floating wind systems under different offshore conditions. The findings are expected to inform the design and optimisation of future commercial-scale floating offshore wind projects.
