Vineyard Wind, the offshore wind developer poised to build America’s first industrial scale offshore wind farm, will hold a job fair at the Oak Bluffs library on April 28 from 6 to 8 pm (doors open at 5 pm).
Eric Peckar, general manager of Vineyard Power, Vineyard Wind’s on-Island partner, told the Chilmark select board Tuesday night that the jobs on offer are associated with the Tisbury Marine Terminal. The marine terminal will berth two offshore maintenance vessels for Vineyard Wind. As The Times previously reported, that terminal was approved by the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, Tisbury conservation commission, and Tisbury select board and is awaiting a license from the Army Corps of Engineers. Vineyard Wind and R.M. Packer Company officials told The Times that Ralph Packer, landlord for the marine terminal, signed a lease with Vineyard Wind last week.
Peckar said representatives of several suppliers for the Vineyard Wind 1 project will be in attendance at the job fair.
“General Electric, Semco, Avagard [Renewables] and other contractors will be there speaking with any and all who are interested,” he said.
Peckar went on to say, “There’ll be a virtual reality set there that folks can try on that simulates getting on a vessel, a crew transfer vessel, going out to the turbines, climbing up a tower, and being on top of a wind farm in the middle of the ocean.”
ACE MV executive director Holly Bellebuono later told The Times that the Vineyard’s first two cohorts of candidates for offshore wind technician certificates will be graduating in mid May.
“It’s huge,” Bellebuono said. “It’s exciting.” ACE MV has run a certificate program in cooperation with Bristol Community College. The graduates are expected to be prospects for work out of the marine terminal. Two have already sent in applications to General Electric, Bellebuono said. The 62 turbines for Vineyard Wind 1 will be manufactured by General Electric.
The job fair will also offer office jobs. In addition to its New Bedford office, Vineyard Wind plans to include office space in its pending operations and maintenance facility, according to a flier. As The Times previously reported, that facility is slated to be located on the old Hinkley Hardware site on Beach Road in Vineyard Haven.