Work has started on a new Energy Transition Skills Hub (ETSH) for Aberdeen.
Millions of pounds of public and private funding have already been secured for the project.
It is expected around 1,000 people will be helped to move into greener jobs within the first five years of the new facility opening on the Altens campus of North East Scotland College (NESCol) in 2014.
ETZ Ltd, a not-for-profit company driving forward plans for an energy transition zone in Aberdeen, announcerd details of the ETSH earlier today.
This flexible space will adapt to the skills requirements of the future.”
Sir Ian Wood
The project is backed by £4.5 million of Scottish Government Just Transition Funding over two years. ETZ and energy firm Shell UK are chipping in £800,000 and £1.8m respectively.
Energy industry veteran Sir Ian Wood, ETZ’s chairman, said: “This initiative… will support the transition to low carbon energy by providing the future workforce with the skills to drive the energy transition, while ensuring the north-east remains globally competitive in the low-carbon energy sector.
Project focused on ‘engaging young people’
“This flexible space will adapt to the skills requirements of the future, such as hydrogen fuel cells, wind turbine technician training and heat pump installation, while bringing in the next generation of technology to improve the experience for trainees.
“Equally important, it will allow for development of the local workforce, while engaging young people at an early stage so they can see opportunities for them in the energy
transition.”
ETSH will have flexible teaching spaces, a demonstration and teaching facility. and a welding and fabrication academy, all delivered by NESCol.
It is being built on the site of an old dairy, as an extension to NESCol’s Altens campus.
The new training centre is expected to quadruple the capacity of existing training facilities at the college.
Groundworks have already begun on the site. Construction work is expected to start soon.
Plans for skills ‘hub’ include removing barriers to learning and new opportunities for flexible training
ETSH is one of five specialist campuses proposed for the energy transition zone, for which a planning and consultation process got under way earlier this year.
According to ETZ, the new “state-of-the-art” teaching facility will foster “greater local community and school engagement”. Plans are already under way for an outreach programme. A mobile classroom staffed with an outreach worker and equipped with interactive technology will visit local schools, aiming to inspire the next generation about the energy transition.
The funding also includes plans to remove barriers to learning and provide new opportunities for flexible training.
Net Zero Cabinet Secretary Mairi McAllan visited NESCol’s campus today to meet trainee electrical engineers.
Ms McAllan said: “The Energy Transition Skills Hub will put the norh-east of Scotland at the forefront of the clean energy transition, helping prepare local young people for highly-skilled jobs and opportunities in the renewables sector.
“Supported by £4.5m from the Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund, it will benefit Aberdeen and the wider region as we accelerate our journey to a greener, fairer, net-zero economy.”
Robin McGregor, vice-principal, curriculum and quality, NESCol, said: “The Energy Transition Skills Hub is a hugely significant project for the college and our partners.
“This investment in the environmental and economic sustainability of the region comes at a time of great opportunity for the north-east.
“The college has a crucial role to play in ensuring the knowledge, skills and expertise that provide the foundation for energy transition are at the heart of that bright future.”
The Energy Transition Skills Hub is a hugely significant project for the college and our partners.”
Robin McGregor, NESCol
Shell’s investment is part of the company’s wider drive to help 15,000 people into greener jobs overr the coming decade.
Simon Roddy, senior vice-president, Shell UK Upstream, said: “The UK is on the verge of a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape the country’s workforce, with the aim
of being an international leader in the energy transition.
“Today’s unveiling of the Energy Transition Skills Hub is a very important moment.”
Conversation