Wind turbine training tower is a first for UK (From The Northern Echo)

Wind turbine training tower is a first for UK

9:16am Friday 19th March 2010 in

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THE UK’s first wind turbine training tower was officially opened yesterday.

The 27 metre high training facility at the New and Renewable Energy Centre (Narec), in Northumberland, is designed to allow education and training providers to deliver academic and industrial training programmes for technicians working in the wind industry and at height, onshore and offshore.

The tower is the result of a collaborative training partnership, backed by regional development agency One North East, between Northumberland College, Mainstream Renewable Power and Narec. It is an open access facility.

The skills gap is a key issue for the UK as it ramps up wind generating capacity offshore over the next ten years and this collaboration will lead to an increase in the number of technicians suitably qualified to install, operate and maintain new and existing farms.

Andrew Mill, chief executive at Narec, said: “The industry is predicting that technicians in their tens of thousands will be needed to install, operate and maintain wind generating capacity offshore and the tower marks the first stage of the creation of a national training centre for the industry in the North- East.”

Ian Williams, director of business and industry at One North East said: “Firms across the North-East have already won more than £150m of offshore wind contracts.

“The creation of the wind turbine training tower and the training partnership developing between Narec, Northumberland College and Mainstream will ensure the North-East has skills to capitalise on the £100bn investment that will be made over the next decade.”