UK plans for 400,000 new jobs in clean energy sector by 2030

The UK Government has published its Clean Energy Jobs Plan, detailing how it intends to upskill and recruit workers needed for net zero, saying it will create over 400,000 jobs in the sector by 2030.

The plan identifies 31 priority occupations for the sector, including plumbers, electricians and welders, which are particularly in demand. 

With the plan, the government hopes that by setting clear workforce estimates within a framework, the industry, the public sector, and education providers will be encouraged to work together and invest in training for specific in-demand occupations. 

To help incentivise this, the plan promises several initiatives, such as five new clean energy Technical Excellence Colleges that will need to train the next generation of workers. These colleges will help train young people into essential roles with skills pilots in Cheshire, Lincolnshire and Pembrokeshire to be backed by £2.5 million ($3.4 million) of funding, which could go towards new training centres, courses or career advisers.

Working with Mission Renewable, the Armed Forces engagement initiative for the UK’s renewable sector, the government is also launching a new programme to match veterans up with careers in solar panel installation, wind turbine factories, and nuclear power stations.

Tailored schemes will be set up for ex-offenders, school leavers, and the unemployed. According to the government, last year alone, 13,700 people who were out of work possessed many of the skills required for key roles in the clean energy sector, such as engineering and skilled trades.

An additional £1.2 billion ($1.6 billion) per year will support skills development, including funding for 1.3 million 16-19 year-olds to access training, supporting an additional 65,000 learners per year.

Over £100 million ($133.9 million) will be invested into the Engineering Skills Package to support engineering skills in clean energy occupations as well as other priority sectors, including £10 million ($13.9 million) to support the provision of engineering T Levels and Higher Education Providers offering clean energy engineering courses at levels 4-5.

The government says it will also support those already in the workforce with a slew of measures.

Oil and gas workers will benefit from up to £20 million ($26.8 million) in total from the UK and Scottish governments to provide bespoke careers training for thousands of new roles in clean energy. The Government is also extending the ‘energy skills passport’, which identifies routes for oil and gas workers to easily transition into roles in offshore wind, to new sectors including nuclear and the electricity grid.

UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband says he will also set out how the government sees trade unions as an essential part of the modern workplace and economy.

According to the government’s release, across the broader energy sector, trade union coverage has declined from over 70% in the mid 90’s to around 30% today. 

Said Miliband in a release: "Communities have long been calling out for a new generation of good industrial jobs. The clean energy jobs boom can answer that call - and today we publish a landmark national plan to make it happen. Our plans will help create an economy in which there is no need to leave your hometown just to find a decent job. Thanks to this government’s commitment to clean energy, a generation of young people in our industrial heartlands can have well-paid secure jobs, from plumbers to electricians and welders."

The plan also includes proposals to ensure that jobs in the clean energy sector have high standards in terms of pay, terms and conditions. 

This includes:

• Closing loopholes in legislation to extend employment protections of offshore oil and gas workers working beyond UK territorial seas, including the national minimum wage, to the clean energy sector.
• A new Fair Work Charter between offshore wind developers and trade unions to ensure that companies benefiting from public funding provide decent wages and strong workplace rights.
• Workforce criteria in grants and procurements to test and pilot innovative ways to drive fair work and skills in DESNZ grants and contracts, including through the Clean Industry Bonus and Great British Energy.

Industry reactions

Reactions to the government’s plan have been widely positive.

Chris O’Shea, Chief Executive of Centrica, said: “I’m proud Centrica has the largest unionised workforce in UK energy and services, and we are delighted to welcome the government’s Clean Jobs Plan as a vital step in recognising the skills, protections and careers that must underpin the energy transition.”

The CEO of EDF Power Solutions  in the UK, Matthieu Hue, said: “We welcome the plan which brings clarity on the scale of the opportunity for people across the UK to work in high quality jobs which will contribute to our electric future.”

Darren Davidson, Vice President of Siemens Energy UK&I, said: “The jobs plan announcement is welcome news, building on the Clean Power 2030 Action Plan that was launched at our Hull offshore wind blade factory.”

Zac Richardson, Group Chief Engineer at National Grid, said: “Secure, affordable and clean energy is essential to unlocking UK economic growth and productivity – ambitions which are underpinned by electricity networks and the unprecedented levels of planned investment in them.

“We welcome the government’s focus on skills and training – especially for technical roles vital to our energy future – and look forward to working together to build a diverse, homegrown workforce that can deliver the grid of tomorrow.”

Tom Greatrex, Chief Executive of the Nuclear Industry Association, said: “This Jobs Plan shows the huge opportunity clean power offers the UK, and the vital role nuclear will play in delivering it. With 100,000 people already working in nuclear in good, skilled jobs across the country, new stations like Sizewell C and a fleet of SMRs will create thousands more — especially for young people — in clean and secure energy.”

Interested in Europe's workforce challenge? Read up on some of our key insights:
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However, there have also been some critiques of the plan, including more policy certainty needed over the long-term.

Energy UK’s Chief Executive, Dhara Vyas, while welcoming the plan as a critical step to build the future energy system’s workforce, said as much: “However, Government needs to provide greater long-term policy certainty across all areas of the energy sector in order to realise this opportunity to scale up the workforce. The skills funding landscape remains heavily fragmented, and a more streamlined and simplified set of structures could also help improve the impact of skills investment.”

UK trade union Prospect similarly welcomed the plan while critiquing its scale. 

Said Sue Ferns OBE, Prospect’s Senior Deputy General Secretary: “If this [clean energy] mission is to be a success, and support the wider industrial strategy and growth agendas, then we urgently need a step-change in the level of workforce development.”

In this context, Ferns welcomes the plan, but adds that “the scale of the challenge, including training new workers and supporting existing workers, including those looking to transition from other roles, requires both more resource and coordinated effort across government.

“In addition, the Energy Secretary’s welcome support for good, unionised jobs and access to unions must swiftly be made reality, including through the proposed Fair Work Charter – failure to deliver on this will only fuel disappointment and distrust.

“The prize for getting this right is immense, with the potential to create thousands of good secure, well-paid jobs across the country, and tackle populist myths about clean energy head-on but swift and more decisive action is needed if this prize is to be secured.”

Europe's workforce challenge

A sufficient workforce to enable the energy transition has been rising a concern for industry professionals in Europe. 

In a report released by Enlit earlier this year, based on the findings of an industry survey and think tank conducted at Enlit Europe in 2024, it was found that a fast-paced workforce transition is taking place, causing an increased need for labour and a simultaneous (and concerning) decreasing labour pool from which to draw.

Key among the challenges listed by survey respondent were a lack of diversity and inferior salaries compared to other sectors. Additionally, almost 55% of survey respondents believed the leading cause of recruitment challenges is losing candidates to competitors.