A training facility is to be established in the Port of Taichung to cultivate talents needed for the development of wind energy operations, the Taiwan International Ports Corp (TIPC) said yesterday.

The Kaohsiung-based state-run company, which is in charge of the offshore wind farm project in the port, said the development of a training center by July is in response to the urgent industry demand for personnel with safety training in wind energy operations.

No such training is available in Taiwan at the moment, it said.

Key players, including Taiwan Power Co, China Steel Corp, CSBC Corporation, Swancor Holding Co and CWind Taiwan, were invited to jointly build the training center and TIPC and the companies yesterday signed a joint venture letter of intent to establish a company to manage the facility, TIPC said.

China Steel Corp is a member of Wind Team, which is a group of Taiwanese companies manufacturing the parts and components needed for the development of wind energy, TIPC said, adding that Swancor Holding is a pioneer in wind farming in Taiwan and CWind has global wind organization (GWO)-certified wind farm training centers in the UK.

“These companies need to work together to develop a strong team and educate people working in the wind energy industry,” TIPC said.

The company said that the training center would also seek GWO certification through its partnership with CWind Taiwan, so the technology can be developed at a local level.

The training center is expected to start offering training courses on wind energy safety in January next year, TIPC said, adding that people working in construction, operations and maintenance of the wind farms must undergo training at the center first.