ECITB: Time to get on with the job of preparing workforce for net zero

ECITB: Time to get on with the job of preparing workforce for net zero

As the race to reach net zero picks up pace, the building blocks are one by one falling into place. Last month saw the publication of yet another milestone, the North Sea Transition Deal which sets out the crucial role the oil and gas industry will play in the quest to decarbonise.

However, one critical component of the energy transition still remains relatively unexplored: that is, what skills will be required to deliver planned net zero projects?

There is a general consensus that we will need to grow the volume of people working in the UK's engineering and construction supply chain. This transferable workforce will be required to deliver a panoply of major projects, including the decarbonisation of industrial clusters, a new nuclear facility, new offshore wind farms as well as decommissioning.

Although the scale of redundancies over the past year might suggest otherwise, the skills of workers in the oil and gas supply chain will very much be in high demand. For engineers working in carbon-intensive sectors, net zero will be about understanding how to adapt operations to improve efficiency and reduce emissions. They will also find their core capabilities are directly transferable to the operation and maintenance of new carbon capture