Maritime school aims to go global

Ireland’s only maritime college has set its sights on becoming the world’s first global training hub for officers of ocean-going super-tankers.

The National Maritime College of Ireland, Europe’s only purpose-built maritime education college, confirmed yesterday that it has reaffirmed and extended its landmark contract with shipping giant Chevron, which has now set it on course to land similar contracts with oil majors such as BP, Shell, and Total.

“We have developed a training model that can be adapted to an oil major’s ethos,” NMCI head Conor Mowlds said last night.

“We are now hoping to become a designated oil- major training college. It would be a world first.

“It would see us training deck officers and engineer officers for the most sophisticated LNG, LPG and chemical tankers operating around the world today.”

The news emerged last night as the NMCI concluded a day of celebrations marking its 10th birthday.

Based in Ringaskiddy, Co Cork, the NMCI, a constituent college of Cork Institute of Technology, brings together the Irish Naval Service and Merchant Marine under one roof in the most advanced maritime academy of its type in the world.

It was the first third-level college in the country to be built under the Government’s public-private partnership scheme.

This model has allowed it to concentrate on education while the private partner, Cofely GDF Suez, has been responsible for services to the college and the maintenance of its facilities.

Marine and Defence Minister Simon Coveney hailed the NMCI’s contribution to marine education over the last decade. “This magnificent facility has both a national and international reputation, with students from as far away as the Seychelles,” he said.

“The historic partnership between CIT and the Irish Naval Service has enabled the emergence of this world-class centre for education and research.”

CIT president Brendan Murphy said its success is due in large measure to the senior management of both organisations, who had the vision and commitment to make the college what it is today.

Mr Mowlds said that the NMCI is fulfilling its role not only in the development of Irish maritime professionals, but in supporting the growth of Irish maritime and offshore business.

The NMCI signed its landmark €2m training contract with Chevron last May — the single largest maritime training contract in State history.

The college will deliver a range of training courses to about 450 Chevron Shipping officers from around the world over the next four years.

The courses include skills training for Chevron’s entire junior officer corps, and engine room workshop skills for its junior engineers.

However, such has been the success of the contract that Chevron’s fleet director Terry Luke visited the college a few weeks ago to expand it.

Chevron now intends to take its cadets from maritime training colleges around the world and place them in the NMCI.

Mr Mowlds said the expansion will mean about 40% of Chevron’s European cadet intake will be Irish, and that within a decade, NMCI-trained officers will be in senior command positions with one of the world’s biggest shipping firms.

“And there is 100% employment for these graduates. They are being trained for high quality and highly paid positions, where they will earn up to €150,000,” he said.

Mr Mowlds said the quality and adaptability of their training courses, the strength of the business relationships they have forged, when combined with Cork’s strengths as an accessible and safe city, played key roles in the NMCI landing the new business.

The new training contracts have created some 70 direct and indirect jobs over the last 12 months.