A course to prepare technicians for the UK offshore wind industry is being offered in the North East of England.

The twelve week course in Newcastle Upon Tyne, will cover areas in first aid, manual handling of turbine systems and sea survival. It includes several weeks working offshore on wind turbines.

It’s a partnership between DONG Energy and Maersk Training in an effort to give people a head start in the industry after fears of a potential ‘skills gap’ in the sector. The course is available to experienced professionals and to apprentices and young people looking to enter the industry.

The course will look to recruit people from the Barrow-in-Furness area, home to three DONG Energy wind offshore farms. The farms have a combined capacity of 846 megawatts of electricity.

Stuart Cameron, UK Managing Director at Maersk Training said: “The continued rapid expansion of the offshore and wind energy sector means that high quality technicians are more in demand than ever to fill the increasing number of roles.”

It has been estimated that around 70,500 skilled workers will be needed within the industry by 2023.