The UK’s energy sector will need to recruit several hundred thousand workers if it is to meet the target to deliver net zero emissions by 2050, according to research published by National Grid.
The employment and skills impact of the 2050 net zero target is explored for the first time in a new report from National Grid, ‘Building the Net Zero Energy Workforce’.
The report estimates the industry will need to fill 400,000 jobs, bringing opportunities for skilled tradespeople, engineers and other specialists across every region of the country, with up to a quarter of the figure based in the north of England.
By the end of this decade the UK will need to recruit over 100,000 people to work in clean energy, if the net zero target is to be achievable. By 2030 a fifth of employees in the energy sector are due to retire, the report found.
Written in partnership with Development Economics, the report looks at the implications of the Committee on Climate Change’s advice that net zero will require fundamental changes to how energy is generated, distributed and used.
These changes, which include an increase of electrification to support a widespread shift to electric vehicles as well as the introduction of low carbon heating for millions of homes, will offer employment opportunities the “length and breadth of the country”.
In the north-east, for example, the research shows more than 21,000 new recruits will be needed to deliver offshore wind and the interconnector off the coast of Blyth in Northumberland.
Almost 28,000 roles will be needed to work on projects including the development of offshore wind farms in the east of England, while the development of carbon capture and storage in the Yorkshire and Humber region is projected to support the creation of over 17,000 jobs.
In Scotland, workers with net zero-related skills will be needed to fill over 48,000 jobs by 2050 with a further 25,000 roles expected in Wales.
National Grid executive director Nicola Shaw said: “Britain reached a major milestone last year as we saw zero carbon electricity outstrip fossil fuels for the first time. But there’s still a long way to go. As the pathway to net zero becomes clearer, so must our understanding of the jobs and skills we need to succeed.
“Our research shows that to deliver net zero, the energy industry needs to recruit hundreds of thousands of people over the next thirty years – and that really is the tip of the iceberg in terms of the wider impact of net zero across other industries.
“The time is now for the sector to rise to the challenge and overcome the long-standing issues we face in recruiting a diverse workforce with the right skills to deliver on the UK’s ambitions.”
The GMB trade union welcomed the report.
GMB national officer Stuart Fegan said: “The scale of the challenge is clear, now the government must step up to make net zero a cast iron reality by paying for what is required towards our transition out of general taxation.
“This report recognises the importance that the energy sector makes towards the UK’s GDP and that key decisions will need to be made in the immediate future to transition our economy away from producing carbon towards an ultra-low carbon future.”
However, he added that while the report produces evidence of a desire amongst the UK population to work for organisations that will contribute towards net zero, it does not address how it will be paid for.
“Net zero emissions is in our national and international interests. GMB calls for these essential decisions to be paid for from general taxation to ensure that net zero does not become a regressive tax on the poorest in our society,” Fegan said.