Saitec Offshore has completed a test campaign at The Environmental Hydraulics Institute IHCantabria in Spain for the SATH floating foundation designed to support offshore wind turbines in intermediate to deep waters.
The SATH (Swinging Around Twin Hull) technology is being developed within the DemoSATH Project and is funded by SODERCAN.
One of the objectives of the DemoSATH project was to validate the performance of the SATH platform. Saitec Offshore just completed a new test campaign, aimed at the future installation of a 2MW wind turbine in BiMEP, the open-sea test site in the Basque Country.
This 1:35 scale test campaign was performed in the facilities of IHCantabria, and a variety of metocean conditions were simulated, including waves, currents and wind, implementing the real conditions of the wind turbine through a multi-fan system, and taking into account turbulent wind and the effects of the control system.
The results obtained have been incorporated into the technological development of Saitec Offshore Technologies and they will serve as a basis for design optimization and validation. This optimization is focused on further cost reduction of the SATH platform, even in comparison with fixed offshore wind foundations, IHCantabria said.
Earlier this month, Saitec Offshore signed an agreement with Univergy Internacional to establish a special purpose company for the development of floating wind projects using SATH technology in Japan.