Manufacturing a world class future...
13 December 2010
Semta, the Sector Skills Council for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies has announced the formation of a new partnership with leading bodies to identify and address the skills requirements created by the growing renewable energy sector in the UK. RenewableUK research estimates that the UK’s wind industry alone could employ 57,000 people by the end of the next decade representing a tenfold increase, with 10,000-20,000 construction, installation, operations and maintenance staff needed to support the sector’s growth.
The move sees Semta join with the East of England Energy Group, ECITB, the National Academy for Nuclear Training, the National Apprenticeship Service and key employers to define the needs of a sector influenced by the Government’s aim to generate 20 per cent of the UK's energy from renewables by 2020. 50 per cent of electricity will need to come from green sources, with the majority of this target to be met through wind energy. Ultimately the group’s analysis will lead to the creation of new apprenticeship programmes to meet the industry’s requirements. The group’s focus on targeting business needs will deliver Semta’s objective of supporting UK businesses to achieve global competitiveness through skills.
Philip Whiteman, Chief Executive of Semta said: “The growing demand for renewable energy, combined with the UK Government’s commitments will have a huge impact on engineering skills needs over the coming decade. We already know that companies in the renewables industry have reported difficulties in recruiting skilled personnel. This is partly due to a shortage of graduates specialising in such disciplines in the UK. Apprenticeships are an effective means of bridging this particular skills gap for industry, both in the immediate future and the long-run. In fact apprenticeships could have an increasingly important role to play in equipping the UK’s engineering workforce in light of Government plans regarding tuition fees.”
Construction of the proposed 7,200 MW-capacity offshore wind farm at Norfolk Bank, due to commence in 2014, will create one of the biggest infrastructure projects for wind energy in the world. Alongside this a new nuclear reactor is to be built at Sizewell in Suffolk, following decommissioning on the site.
Philip Whiteman continues: “These developments impact the East of England in particular and as a result we need to work now to define both the needs and outcomes required to ensure businesses are in a strong position to fully exploit this growth area.”