The Escola Europea – Intermodal Transport shared this Monday, November 17th the main conclusions and progress from its Executive Committee meeting, held in Barcelona. The meeting acknowledged the notable growth in training activity during 2025 and approved the work lines and objectives for 2026, placing special emphasis on consolidating in-person courses, as well as strengthening the Port Virtual Lab (PVL) and its complementary tools, such as the Chiron program for teachers.
During 2025, the Escola Europea delivered 229 training activities which brought together 7,431 participants, “consolidating its practical training model oriented towards a sustainable port and logistics sector,” according to the Escola Europea. These activities include vocational programs in all its ports: the Forma’t al Port and Talent programs and the Port Academies in Italy; university training on board ships, with the MOST Management program; and courses for professionals, among which the artificial intelligence courses for port logistics communities stand out, along with a wide range of custom courses and technical visits. In addition to all this, there is the distance learning based on the Port Virtual Lab simulation tool.
As the academic entity states, the Port Virtual Lab (PVL) “has shown sustained and significant growth in 2025.” The platform now has 31 training centers in 11 countries. Throughout the year, the Chiron program, aimed at teacher training, was launched, which has consolidated specific training sessions for teachers and trainers. Multiple train-the-trainer activities have been developed, bringing together dozens of institutions from different countries to train teachers in the pedagogical use of the simulator.
Furthermore, new functionalities and products have been launched within the PVL ecosystem, among which the following stand out: an insurance module and a river navigation module, and the creation of new port nodes in the Port Virtual World.
Among the additions in 2025 is the first pilot edition of the Ship (Short-Sea High Efficiency Intermodal Planning) course, aimed at nautical and naval engineering students, which opens the door to a new audience.
The diversity of the student body is reflected in the participation of 78 nationalities, and in the commitment to teaching in English across the entire catalog. As the Escola Europea states, the Executive Committee “very positively assessed these results” and approved the growth plan for 2026 and the strategic lines, which contemplate the consolidation of the PVL’s international expansion, the creation of logistics communities in the Port Virtual World, and the launch of the Education Beyond Intelligence program on the occasion of the Escola’s 20th anniversary.
