Beginning February 5, 2024, SUNY Maritime College, in partnership with RelyOn Nutec, will offer all five modules of the internationally recognized offshore wind Basic Safety Training (BST).  This training is certified by the Global Wind Organization (GWO).

Maritime College will be one of only two Maritime Academies in the US offering GWO-certified offshore BST training.  The BST program offers hybrid courses, with the classroom portion taught online and assessments taking place on campus utilizing our offshore wind training facility.  More information about this training can be found on our website at https://www.sunymaritime.edu/global-offshore-wind-training

Offshore wind power or offshore wind energy is the energy taken from the force of the winds out at sea, and transformed into electricity and supplied into the electricity network onshore. It is predicted there will be a need for 58,000 full-time offshore wind industry workers needed annually by 2030.  With its waterfront location and state of the art training facilities, Maritime College is an ideal location to train workers and seafarers involved in the construction and maintenance of wind farms taking place off the coasts of New York and New Jersey as well as other locations on the Eastern Seaboard and Gulf regions. 

Maritime College is also working with RelyOn Nutec to develop certified GWO Basic Technical Training (BTT).  The BST and BTT course development, GWO certification, and training facilities were made possible by a US Department of Labor Community Program grant sponsored by Representatives Ocasio-Cortez and Tom Suozzi as well as a NYSERDA grant.  The grants, totaling $ 1.5 million, are also being utilized to establish the Maritime College Center of Excellence for Offshore Wind, which will be focused on research and scholarship, academic programs, workforce development programs, and outreach and education.

The President of SUNY Maritime College, Rear Adm. Michael Alfultis, Ph.D., commented, “We are thrilled to offer a training program such as this. Offshore wind power has been growing on a steady trajectory over the last decade, and Maritime College can be an asset in training individuals for this thriving Maritime industry.“