THE Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) has awarded £400,000 to help deliver a dedicated Energy Transition Skills Hub (ETSH) in Aberdeen.
Plans for the hub were unveiled in September 2023 with the venture involving the Energy Transition Zone (ETZ), Scottish Government, Shell UK and North East Scotland College (NESCol) as part of a consortium of private and public investment.
This extra funding, which comes from the ECITB’s investment in Regional Skills Hubs, will further support the establishment and operation of the training facility, which is designed to help meet the current and future training needs of the energy transition.
The investment will fund the equipping and fitting of a welding academy, including 32 welding bays, to help meet demand for welders in the region.
ECITB chief executive Andrew Hockey said, “Our Labour Forecasting Tool predicts that the ECI could need thousands of additional workers over the coming years for major projects, including those that contribute to the country’s net zero goals. Without a pipeline of trained, skilled workers all this risks not being achieved, which is why we’re working with industry partners in the UK’s industrial cluster regions to grow the number of skilled engineers and craftspeople we need now and in the future.”
The project has received £4.5 million from the Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund, £2.3 million from ETZ Ltd and £500,000 from NESCol to transform a disused dairy adjacent to the college’s Aberdeen Altens Campus into a skills facility. Shell has also committed £1.8m towards the running costs for the first five years with a view to supporting 1,000 jobs in the region.
The hub will include a community space for local groups and a new, flexible curriculum, including weekend and evening courses, to increase availability of training for individuals who experience barriers in accessing traditional modes of attendance.
The project will also see the deployment of an outreach mobile vehicle to promote careers in the energy sector.
Subject areas covered by NESCol in the hub will include welding, wind, general engineering and fabrication skills, carbon capture, usage and storage, renewables, hydrogen and electrical.
Robin McGregor, NESCol vice principal curriculum and quality, said, “The Energy Transition Skills Hub is a hugely significant project for the college and our partners. NESCol works very closely with industry to ensure the skills required in the jobs market are reflected in the courses we offer and the learning environment we create, with the new facility underlining the ambition the partners share as a driving force in the journey to net zero.
“This investment in the environmental and economic sustainability of the region comes at a time of great opportunity for the north east and 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.”
