New report shows job growth in UK offshore wind industry

New report shows job growth in UK offshore wind industry

A new report by the Offshore Wind Industry Council shows a surge in the number of people working in the UK offshore wind industry, and a substantial increase in private investment.

The UK Offshore Wind Skills Intelligence Report reveals that the sector supports over 31,000 jobs, a 16 per cent increase on the 26,000 jobs reported in last year’s survey.

19,600 are direct jobs (solely in offshore wind) and 11,500 are indirect (supply chain companies which manufacture products for the offshore wind industry as well as goods for other sectors).

30 per cent of the jobs are in Scotland, and the English region benefitting most is Yorkshire and The Humber, where 15 per cent of the jobs are located.

The report states that between 2022 and 2030, the industry will see £155 billion of private investment in new offshore wind projects, taking the average annual spend to over £17bn a year. This is significantly higher than the level of private investment reported last year, which showed an average annual spend of just over £10 billion.

The increases reflect the expansion of the UK’s total pipeline of offshore wind projects at all stages of development over the past 12 months, which now stands at 86GW. This 60 per cent increase has been driven mainly by major leasing round announcements by The Crown Estate (8GW) and Crown Estate Scotland (25GW of ScotWind).
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The report also highlights the need to address the risk of recruitment gaps by introducing measures to increase the number of people with high-level electrical and digital skills entering this innovative sector, to meet current and future demand.

RenewableUK’s Deputy Chief Executive Melanie Onn said:

“The UK offshore wind industry is a powerhouse for job creation. I’ve seen at first hand the way that my home town of Grimsby is being transformed by this dynamic sector which is bringing billions of private sector investment into coastal communities up and down the country.

“This report shows that we’re making rapid progress in seizing the economic benefits of the Green Industrial Revolution, and that we’ll need to continue to grow fast to ensure that we meet the Government’s target of 50 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030 - a fivefold increase in our current capacity. That’s why it’s important for industry and Government to work together to address skills shortages in areas like electrical engineering and data analysis, so we can boost the number of high-quality green jobs in offshore wind throughout this decade”.

Energy Minister Greg Hands said:

“This report demonstrates the extraordinary potential of renewable energy to create jobs, drive investment and secure cheaper, clean electricity. We have ambitious plans to go even further as the UK becomes a global renewable energy powerhouse”.

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