Abstract
Testing and research centres for offshore renewable energy, exemplified by facilities like BIMEP on the Basque coast of Spain, play a crucial role in driving the energy transition. In this study, we utilize standardized data for this infrastructure, such as high resolution bathymetry or sediment samples, to conduct a comprehensive geological analysis including both sedimentary and rocky seabed. Our approach could serve as a methodological example that offers a cost-effective means to characterize offshore energy sites. We present a geological map that extends the main lithological formations from onshore to the continental shelf and identifies the main structures, including NW-trending folds and fractures predominantly oriented NE-SW. Sedimentary bottoms are analysed through a Seabed sediment map, illustrating a NE-SW oriented banded distribution attending to granulometry. Bedforms are also studied, they are asymmetric and mainly oriented NE-SW. The Seabed sediment map and the bedform analysis reveal the effect of a SE-directed bottom current as the main mechanism controlling sediment mobility. This current matches with the predominant swell from the NW and with the most energetic waves in the area.