As the hydrogen sector continues its growth trajectory, there will be significant challenges for skills supply and demand. Lucie Booth, product development manager at OPITO, discusses how to supercharge the global hydrogen transformation:
“Global hydrogen demand reached 97 Mt in 2023, an increase of 2.5% compared to 2022. While this represents progress for a nascent sector, most of its potential production is still in the planning stage. Now is the time to consider what it will take to fuel further growth, with skilled and competent people at the centre of the debate around a transition to an integrated energy future.
This is where organisations like OPITO – formed to serve industry and support in the development of a safe, skilled energy workforce – can bridge the gap between where we are today, and future demand.
We’re constantly horizon scanning to anticipate how skills need to flex and evolve. We see hydrogen – a core part of the global drive for energy security and net zero goals – as a major driver of skills development.
We must be realistic, however.
Huge numbers of new hydrogen jobs needed to fuel growth of the sector are not going to be filled entirely by new entrants. Very often across industry we focus on where we’re different as opposed to where we’re similar. But the truth is that that many of the skills needed for the hydrogen economy already exist in industries like oil and gas.
Project managers, gas safety experts, manufacturing specialists, engineers and those with a general appreciation of working in a high hazard environment are all part of a diverse skills portfolio that will build the hydrogen economy of the future.
But because hydrogen is an emerging sector, we cannot be sure about exactly where skills gaps will emerge. What OPITO is doing right now is to provide the ones we do know about with an entry mechanism, and ensure we have pathways and access to thousands of people who have those skills in the short to medium term.
Our newly launched Hydrogen Open Learning course provides learners with a comprehensive understanding of the role of hydrogen in the transition to clean energy.
The is new online programme makes the topic more accessible to a wider audience, from trainee and existing technicians to others looking to gain a better understanding of this fast-growing sector. It allows learners access anywhere, to study at their own pace utilising an interactive learning platform, then undertaking the examination on an assessment platform when it suits them.
We know from past experience that the large-scale transition of skills is possible.
OPITO, with a 50-year heritage of developing products, services and qualifications that best fit the needs of industry, has the track record that proves it.
Take, for example, the development of the Introductory qualifications in Hydrogen, CCUS and Offshore Wind Power for fixed and floating assets – from which the outcomes and criteria for the Hydrogen Open Learnng course were initially borne.
Their development was driven by the Energy Skills Alliance (ESA) – a cross-industry group led by OPITO that was informed by extensive industry consultation at every stage.
The qualifications – designed to provide an introduction to the energy transition and key knowledge of emerging net zero specialisms – received ongoing support during development from a wide range of energy industry stakeholders, and was supported by a £100,000 grant from the Energy Transition Zone.
By aligning the multiple technical and safety standards and frameworks across different parts of the energy industry – seen as one of the main blockers to workers pursuing opportunities to move between sectors – we can create an agile, flexible and mobile workforce equipped to meet the needs of the transition.
This work, along with the development of courses like our Hydrogen Open Learning, demonstrates our ongoing commitment to enhancing and nurturing transferable skills, and enables us to play our part in ensuring the availability of skilled workers, now and in the future.
The work does not stop here, however, and OPITO is committed to extending its Hydrogen portfolio in the near future.
And let’s not forget that time is ticking on that future. It’s time to get to work.”
For more information, please visit OPITO’s website.
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