This is where the future offshore wind workforce is trained. Interactive Educational Center opens in Darłowo.

Students at the Maritime School Complex in Darłowo now have a new place to gain the knowledge and skills needed to work in the offshore wind energy sector. On 23 October, the school officially opened the Interactive Educational Center. The center’s launch coincides with preparations for the commercial operation of Poland’s first offshore wind farm, Baltic Power (a joint project of ORLEN and Northland Power).\

The modern teaching classroom was created as part of the “Inspired by the Wind” project, funded by the ORLEN Foundation for Pomerania and Baltic Power. Together, the partners contributed  PLN185,000 for this initiative.

Work on the classroom began in 2023, the year when Baltic Power reached final investment decision and transitioned from the planning and development to construction phase. Today, all 76 turbines and two offshore substations have been installed at the windfarm on the Baltic Sea. While cable installation and turbine commissioning are nearing completion. In July 2026, the farm delivered its first electricity to the national grid, and the project is expected to enter full commercial operation in early 2027.

The operational phase will involve many years of daily work both at sea and on land. The farm must be serviced, monitored, and supported logistically. This requires a wide range of specialists – from turbine technicians, electrical infrastructure experts, service vessel crews, offshore operations coordinators to logistics professionals. The same skills will be required for future offshore wind projects that are under construction or in the planning stages, and it is precisely these skills that will be developed at the newly opened facility in Darłowo.

When we started discussions about this training facility, nothing had been happening at sea. Today, the Baltic Power wind farm is already generating energy, and in a few months it will begin full commercial operation. The operational phase means decades of daily work and requires qualified people for this job. That is why this school’s focus on offshore is so important to us—not only for Baltic Power, but also for the wind farms currently under construction and those in the planning stages. “Our contribution to the project goes beyond equipping the lab with state-of-the-art multimedia equipment; we want this space to be a venue for regular meetings and workshops with industry experts who will inspire young people to work in offshore wind sector and highlight the opportunities of such career paths,” says Krzysztof Bukowski, Head of Communications and Stakeholders Management at Baltic Power.

Equipping the room is the first step in the process. The center features computers, an interactive display, a projector, and educational materials related to offshore wind energy. Its purpose goes beyond regular classes - it will host workshops, lectures, and meetings with professionals from the offshore wind industry and university professors.

The Maritime School Complex in Darłowo is a unique institution on a national scale and, at the same time, the oldest maritime school in Poland. For decades, the school has been training future seafarers and maritime economy specialists so they could work on ships, in ports, and at companies in the maritime sector. Today, offshore wind energy sector is becoming another choice in their future career paths.

Location also plays an important role. Darłowo lies at the junction of the Pomeranian and West Pomeranian provinces. As a result, the school’s graduates can find work on projects carried out along the entire Polish coast. The school has been collaborating with the offshore wind sector for several years and is well acquainted with its needs. The curriculum emphasizes both technical knowledge and industry-specific English - the primary working language on offshore wind projects used from safety briefings to technical documentation.

For several years now, we have been involved in projects related to the offshore wind industry. We are looking for ways to help our graduates enter the job market and develop the right and demanded skills. One of the options that we are now considering is introducing a specialization within the marine mechanic technician program. As part of this specialization, students will gain qualifications related to the offshore sector,” says Magdalena Miszke, Director of the Maritime School Complex in Darłowo.

According to the estimates by the Polish Wind Energy Association, investments in offshore wind energy in Poland could create over 11,000 jobs in coastal regions in the coming years. In the long term, taking into account the entire supply chain and the industry ecosystem, this number could exceed 40,000, and according to some analyses, it could even reach 100,000.

We are deeply committed to supporting young people in their development and education related to offshore wind energy. This is a new and highly promising industry, and offshore wind farms are being built not far from here. We want young people from the region to gain knowledge and, in the future, help shape such projects. Our support for the facility in Darłowo is part of the ORLEN Group’s strategy to advance Polish science and create opportunities for the development of a skilled workforce for the energy sector of tomorrow,” says Liliana Ciechanowicz, a member of the board of the ORLEN Foundation for Pomerania.

The opening ceremony of the educational center was attended by school principals, students, representatives of Baltic Power, the ORLEN Foundation for Pomerania, local government officials, and representatives of the Port of Darłowo.