The East of England Energy Group has hosted a series of webinars for the Military Community about employment opportunities in renewable energy sector.
It’s expected that over 6,000 jobs in offshore wind farming will be created by 2030 in the UK, with Norfolk and Suffolk at the ‘epicentre’ of growth in the sector.
Vattenfall UK is working with the Ministry of Defence’s military resettlement organisation, the Career Transition Partnership (CTP), the East of England Energy Group (EEEGR), RenewableUK and the Department of Work and Pensions to make veterans aware about the career opportunities in the energy sector. See their press release.
They launched a series of webinars on EEGR for Armed Forces Day and the recorded sessions can be viewed here.
While turbines out at sea need skilled engineers and technicians to install and maintain their blades, towers and generators, thousands more people are needed in skilled disciplines including IT, health and safety, sub-sea cables, data analytics, artificial intelligence and robots, finance, project management, human resources and communications.
Worley and Global Wind Service have a workforce which is 15 percent ex-military. Meanwhile, the UK arm of Swedish energy group Vattenfall already counts a substantial proportion of former forces personnel in its workforce.
Colin Brown, Senior Business Development Manager for Vattenfall, and Vattenfall’s Armed Forces Champion, said: “If we support ex-military to transfer their expertise and attitude into a fast-expanding industry, it not only supports them, but it is a huge benefit for our business. As a veteran myself, I can clearly see the benefits that ex-forces personnel bring to the industry, from their technical and organisational capabilities, to their determination and work ethic.
Merry Halliday, Armed Forces Covenant Senior Officer for Norfolk County Council said: “Norfolk’s Armed Forces Covenant Board established an Armed Forces Covenant Renewable Energy Group some time ago, specifically to drive forward creating opportunities for the armed forces community to be made aware of job and career opportunities in the renewables sector. As I’m sure you know, the industry is set to expand rapidly, particularly off the East Coast of England, which makes it an exciting time for everyone in the sector.”
Find out more about how the RFCA supports local authorities in the delivery of their Armed Forces Covenant pledges here.