The Lower Saxony Ministry for the Environment and Climate Protection is supporting the establishment of a further education course in offshore wind energy at the Centre for Wind Energy Research - ForWind in Oldenburg with 50,000 euros. "The offshore wind energy sector is booming, but there is still a lack of qualified specialists - this is one of the biggest obstacles to the expansion of offshore wind energy in Germany. I am very grateful to ForWind that this gap is now being closed," explained Environment Minister Hans-Heinrich Sander on 25 January when handing over the funding decision to the Managing Director of the Centre for Wind Energy Research, Dr Stephan Barth, in Hanover. "The funding from the Ministry for the Environment and Climate Protection emphasises the uniqueness of the offshore wind study programme both nationally and internationally. Thanks to its innovative concept, specialists in the wind energy sector are being offered specialist knowledge at an academic level for the first time," said Dr Stephan Barth in his speech. Until now, there has been a lack of comprehensive qualification opportunities to meet the demand for subjects and managers in the offshore wind energy industry. The offshore wind study programme responds to this development by being part-time and international. In this way, ForWind is making an important contribution to the further development of the offshore wind energy industry and its managers. "The Offshore Wind Energy Foundation welcomes ForWind's initiative and the funding from the Lower Saxony Ministry of the Environment. Several thousand people are already employed in the offshore wind industry in Lower Saxony today. The demand for skilled workers will grow rapidly with the realisation of further offshore wind farms in the coming years,' says Andreas Wagner, Managing Director of the foundation. "Offshore wind energy is of great importance for Lower Saxony as a business location," emphasised Sander in conclusion. With the designation of the cable route via Norderney with a transmission capacity of 3,000 megawatts and the preparation of a further route with a capacity of 5,000 megawatts, Lower Saxony has created excellent framework conditions for the development of offshore wind energy in the German North Sea. The ports of Cuxhaven and Emden in Lower Saxony also offer excellent conditions for the offshore industry.