Ocean Winds, together with the Industrial Development Academy (PAR), has summed up the third edition of the ‘Career with the Wind’ programme – an educational initiative aimed at preparing technical school students for work in the offshore wind energy sector. The programme is aimed at young people from across Poland to familiarise them with career opportunities in the growing renewable energy sector.
‘Careers with the wind is an educational programme that we run as Ocean Winds together with PAR’ – Aleksandra Jampolska, spokesperson for Ocean Winds, explains. Through the programme, students can gain knowledge about offshore wind energy and familiarise themselves with employment opportunities in this rapidly growing industry.
Over the three years of the project, young people have had the opportunity to learn about the specific challenges of working offshore. ‘The programme includes workshops on offshore wind energy – lectures, but also soft skills workshops. The students, over the three years of running this project, were able to learn together with us the secrets of first aid, creative thinking, working in groups’ – says Krzysztof Tomaszewski of PAR.
One of key elements of the programme is study visits to companies cooperating with the offshore wind energy sector and GWO training centres, where students can see what it is like to be certified to work on wind turbines. Such experiences allow young people to understand what day-to-day duties on wind farms are like.
The programme reaches students in the northern and southern regions of Poland, taking into account the local communities and the future demand for specialists in the industry. ‘So far, we have educated in offshore wind energy and RES job opportunities, about 600 students in Gdańsk, Szczecin, Kłanin, Puck and Częstochowa – because we have to remember that also the south of Poland is rich in students connected to the industry that can be involved in the supply chain for offshore wind energy’ – Aleksandra Jampolska, spokesperson for Ocean Winds.
BC-Wind wind farm – Ocean Winds’ key investment in the Polish Baltic Sea
One of Ocean Winds’ key projects is the BC-Wind offshore wind farm, located about 23 km north of the coast in the Krokowa and Choczewo municipalities. This investment, with a planned capacity of up to 500 MW and an area of almost 91 km², is at an advanced stage of development and already has an environmental decision and grid connection conditions. BC-Wind is one of the key offshore wind energy projects in Poland, and ‘Career with the wind’ is an example of activities that aim to support future staff for such investments.
Source: OW
