Building MarineSolar’s foundations in the Basque Country

In the last few months, our Chief Supply Chain Officer Ian Pilkington and Supply Chain Consultant Blanca Perez have been leading a series of activities to help establish the foundations for long-term growth in one of Europe’s leading maritime and industrial regions – the Basque Country.

Thanks to their efforts, we have made significant progress in building the relationships, infrastructure and partnerships needed to support MarineSolar's future growth.

Establishing a presence

A key milestone has been the establishment of our operations in Bilbao, creating a base from which we can further develop our activities across the Basque Country and wider European market.

While establishing a presence in a new country involves navigating a range of regulatory and administrative requirements, close collaboration with local advisers, authorities and partners has enabled steady progress. Throughout the process, Blanca’s expertise and understanding of the local business environment have been invaluable in helping establish our presence in the region and building key relationships.

Building partnerships

Alongside the business setup, considerable effort has gone into developing relationships with organisations that can support MarineSolar’s future operations. The goal is to build a robust and resilient supply chain while working with partners that share our focus on quality, innovation and long-term collaboration.

One of the most promising partnerships is with Lantegi Batuak, an organisation with extensive manufacturing capabilities and a strong reputation for quality. During recent visits, Ian gained first-hand insight into its production facilities and explored how the organisation could support the assembly, testing and logistics requirements of our Nanodeck™ system.

With innovation at the heart of our growth strategy, we are also excited about continuing to develop our relationship with Tecnalia. The company’s expertise in photovoltaic technology, energy management systems and maritime applications aligns closely with our ambitions.

Through ongoing discussions, Ian and Blanca have been exploring opportunities to collaborate with Tecnalia on future research, development and innovation projects that could support the continued evolution of our technologies.

The wider sector

Beyond manufacturing and research partnerships, Ian and Blanca have been actively engaging with organisations across the wider maritime sector.

Recent meetings have included discussions with potential installation partners, logistics specialists and organisations with strong connections throughout the maritime industry. These conversations are helping to build a network of trusted relationships that can support future projects while enhancing our ability to serve customers across multiple markets.

The visits have also highlighted the strength of the Basque Country’s maritime and industrial ecosystem, where collaboration between businesses, research organisations and industry bodies creates an environment well suited to innovation and growth.

Investing in future growth

As part of our growing presence in the region, we have also begun laying the foundations for a local engineering capability that will support future product development and innovation activities.

Combined with the partnerships being established across research, manufacturing and logistics, this reflects a long-term commitment to building a sustainable and scalable presence in the Basque Country.

Ian commented: “The Basque Country offers a unique combination of industrial expertise, innovation capability and maritime heritage. The relationships we are building today will help create a strong platform for MarineSolar’s future growth, while also enabling us to contribute to the wider maritime ecosystem in the region.”

As we continue to strengthen our presence in the Basque Country, our focus remains on building strong partnerships, advancing innovation and developing the capabilities needed to support the next phase of MarineSolar's growth.