Clean Power Jobs: The roles that will make or break 2030

The UK Government's Clean Power 2030 mission requires a scale and pace of infrastructure delivery the UK has not attempted in a generation. However, it is at risk because the country does not currently have enough skilled people to deliver hundreds of major energy projects, all at the same time.

The focus of debate about energy jobs is often on the North Sea region, the tradespeople, and the large volumes of people needed to physically build infrastructure. However, this can overlook professional delivery roles, without which projects never get to construction.

Oaklin's analysis finds that demand for this professional delivery workforce peaks in 2027, more than three years ahead of the 2030 target, and that over half the current workforce has to be hired again by 2030. The report sets out where demand is concentrated, which delivery capabilities face the sharpest gaps, and how the centre of gravity shifts to the grid.

The Clean Energy Jobs Plan rightly proposes investment in long-term technical skills and new colleges. Whilst these are important for the 2030s, they will not materially address the skills demand by the end of the decade. The risk is not that the UK fails to act, but that it acts too late.

While the timing is particularly challenging, the scale is manageable. The report's three recommendations are drawn from Oaklin's experience of delivering these programmes and are designed to convert the ambition into delivered capability within the window that matters. If the government acts now, this gap can still be closed. 

Read the full report here and please do get in touch with Oaklin Partners Shikha Goyal and Ben Parsons to discuss the findings. If you would like to learn more about our work in the Energy sector, click here.