Strong growth in global wind sector heralds demand for nearly 600,000 additional workers by 2027
- Annual wind energy capacity addition is expected to double to 155 gigawatts (GW) in 2027 from the current pace of 78GW globally, report from GWO and GWEC says
- Total wind fleet worldwide seen rising to 1,581GW in five years, a doubling of capacity from the levels before the Covid-19 pandemic, it says
The global wind energy industry will need almost 600,000 technicians over the next five years, with China accounting for more than 40 per cent of this additional labour demand, highlighting workforce challenges and opportunities in the clean energy sector under the global climate transition plan.
Annual wind energy capacity addition is expected to double to 155 gigawatts (GW) in 2027 from the pace of 78 gigawatts (GW) recorded in 2022, taking the total wind fleet worldwide to around 1,581GW in five years, a doubling of capacity from the levels before the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a new report published by the Global Wind Organisation (GWO) and Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) on Wednesday.
To keep pace with such strong growth, the global wind sector would require over 574,200 technicians by 2027 to construct, install, operate, and maintain the anticipated global wind fleet, the report found.
Over 40 per cent, or more than 240,000 of these roles will be for new recruits in the industry, joining from an education and recruitment pipeline or transfers from other sectors, such as offshore oil and gas, according to the report.
“A strong workforce and healthy supply chain will be crucial to the colossal growth of wind capacity in this decade,” said Ben Backwell, CEO of GWEC in a statement. “Without a skilled and sustainable workforce for wind and renewable energy, the energy transition will not materialise in time.”
The report highlighted the labour shortage challenges in climate transition, and the opportunities it presented to local and national governments, who could leverage renewable energy expansion projects to foster jobs, training and reskilling possibilities to create a skilled workforce for the energy transition.
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Almost 70 per cent of the demand for wind technicians over the next five years will be from the 10 markets of China, the United States, India, Brazil, Australia, Japan, Egypt, South Korea, Columbia, and Kenya, the report said.
China, the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter and its biggest wind market, will require around 249,300 wind technicians for both the onshore and offshore wind sectors by 2027, comprising 40 per cent of the global requirement.
The country had an installed capacity of 334GW onshore and 32GW offshore wind power facilities in 2022, and this is expected to increase by 300GW and 64GW respectively by 2027, according to the report. The onshore wind sector will need around 219,600 technicians by 2027, about 87 per cent of the total workforce required by the country’s wind energy sector. The offshore wind sector will require over 29,600 technicians in the next five years.
“China is already a major employer and developer of talent in wind energy,” said Ralph Savage, director at Global Development and Stakeholder Relations at GWO. “To operate commercially in international markets, its companies increasingly apply global standards for training and this is likely to continue. We believe there is also strong potential for growth domestically for this training as it can provide value for developers in terms of safety, productivity and reassurance.”
“By spreading industry standard training across public education systems China can make it available to a broader pool of young people and combat the talent gap,” he said.
China’s wind sector is poised for further growth under the national climate pledges of reaching peak carbon emissions by 2030 and net-zero emissions by 2060. It would also be driven by its commitment to having 80 per cent of its total energy mix from non-fossil fuel sources by 2060 and 1,200GW of solar and wind generation capacities by 2030, a target established by the State Council, the country’s highest executive body.
These lofty wind power ambitions must be reinforced by a strong culture of health and safety and a trained workforce, according to the analysts.
“It is vital that the growing workforce is provided with the tools to train properly, with an approach that puts health and safety at the heart of industry growth,” said Backwell at GWEC.
