MEMBER NEWS: OPITO Calls for Unified Action to Empower Energy Workforce in Achieving UK’s Net Zero Ambitions

July 2, 2024
MEMBER NEWS: OPITO Calls for Unified Action to Empower Energy Workforce in Achieving UK’s Net Zero Ambitions

OPITO, the not-for-profit, global safety and skills organisation for the energy industry, has issued a call for concerted efforts to champion the pivotal role of the energy workforce in the UK’s journey towards net zero. In its newly launched Skills Manifesto: Empowering Tomorrow, OPITO outlines a strategic framework to enhance the skills and adaptability of the energy sector’s workforce.

Working in close collaboration with governments, regulators, trade unions, trade associations, and other sector-wide organisations, OPITO designs and implements skills enhancement programmes across the sector.

OPITO’s new Skills Manifesto emphasises the need for a carefully managed transition. This approach is crucial for unlocking the workforce’s potential, maintaining the UK’s leadership in energy safety and competence, and attracting global investment.

The manifesto advocates for several key actions to ensure industry readiness and workforce adaptability including:

  1. National Skills Strategy: The creation of a unified and cohesive National Skills Strategy for the energy industry will help shape the country’s economic future, ensuring that individuals and businesses have the skills they need to thrive. The government must demonstrate leadership and stability to foster a collaborative dynamic within industry and provide assurance of long-term investments.
  2. Action over words: Active government involvement helps create a stable, innovative and resilient industrial and economic landscape, benefiting the entirety of the energy industry.
  3. Addressing the skills shortage: Bridging the skills gap requires a multi-faceted approach, including clearly defining job requirements, offering training and development opportunities, building relationships with educational institutions, nurturing transferable skills and embracing the use of emerging technologies. Further government incentives are required to reverse the decline in employer investment in training.
  4. Championing social mobility: STEM-related subjects introduce a wider variety of perspectives that support greater innovation and competitiveness. The arts foster design, creative and critical thinking proficiencies. Both are essential for building the clean energy workforce of tomorrow.
  5. Fuelling future demand: OPITO is calling for adequately funded apprenticeships to ensure a diverse range of people can access quality training, regardless of their background. This will help alleviate skills shortages currently being faced across the energy industry.
  6. Ensuring stability: The impact of stable and considered energy policy is vital to influence economic growth, environmental protection, social equity, and technological innovation. The government must provide a clear and stable future policy direction to 2030 and beyond to ensure sector alignment and establish boundaries.

“The multi-disciplinary nature of our current offshore workforce is invaluable,” said Stephen Marcos Jones, CEO of OPITO.

“With 90% of the UK’s oil and gas workforce possessing transferrable skills, there’s a tremendous opportunity for these professionals to transition into adjacent energy sectors. This transition encompasses a broad spectrum of roles, from technical and engineering positions to leadership and digital skills, both onshore and offshore.”

“Skills foster innovation. Achieving the key asks contained within our manifesto will lead to a highly competent, adaptable energy workforce to drive economic growth, social mobility, and competitiveness for the future energy system.”

To download OPITO’s Skills Manifesto: Empowering Tomorrow, please visit OPITO’s website.

Get in touch

AREG is the original energy transition organisation, working on behalf of members to empower the energy supply chain and champion its expertise. Please get in touch if you have any questions or would like to find out more about membership.

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AREG has played an important role in the growth of Scotland’s renewable energy sector, engaging the supply chain and developing the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre. However, we are only at the very beginning of the transition that AREG was established to both lead and support so there are still opportunities for companies to get into the constantly evolving renewables supply chain. We look forward to continuing our work together as renewables builds on its place as Scotland’s main source of power, and as we seek to deliver real change in the crucial areas of heat and transport.

Scottish Renewables
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Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce has worked closely with AREG since its formation. The recent progress in the developments of offshore wind projects by Equinor and Vattenfall are as a result of the work of the group over many years. The north-east is known as the oil and gas capital of Europe. At the Chamber, we believe the region must evolve its position to being recognised as the energy capital. Whilst hydrocarbons will continue to be essential in driving our economy for years to come, the generation of renewable resources will play an increasingly important role in providing cost-effective power, innovative development and economic growth.

Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce
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The enthusiasm and dedication of the early group that would become AREG was fundamental in us choosing to launch All-Energy in Aberdeen. The first tiny show was held in 2001, and AREG’s Chairman at the time, Jeremy Cresswell, played such an active role that I often describe him in terms such as All-Energy’s ‘midwife’. All-Energy is now the UK’s largest renewable and low carbon energy exhibition and conference in terms of number of attendees, space booked, and number of exhibiting companies. As AREG became firmly established, their presence and support for the event grew spectacularly over the years. We thank them most sincerely for their invaluable input.

All-Energy
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Vattenfall has forged a strong working relationship with AREG through the development of the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre. AREG has worked tirelessly on behalf of the North East and it can take enormous credit for the growth of sustainable energy in the region and the path it has cleared for the region to capture further investment.

Vattenfall
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Aberdeen City and Shire is emerging as a key location for renewables by successfully transferring its world-class oil and gas expertise into the sector and AREG has done much to advance this through a broad range of initiatives. It has acted as a catalyst in driving further investment in the local economy by engaging with companies, Government, public bodies and existing projects and we have been pleased to support their efforts. Scottish Enterprise will continue to engage with AREG as we increase Scotland’s use of renewable energy.

Scottish Enterprise