This is 8 minutes - a podcast helping you understand the energy and climate challenge in just a few minutes . I'm your host , Paul Schuster . Often we think about the energy transition as being one of technology . Transitioning from internal combustion cars to electric vehicles , or from coal power plants to solar rooftop installations .
But the transition is just as much about the workforce and the challenges and opportunities that arise with shifting entire occupations into the clean energy economy . Today , I'll touch on what the green workforce of tomorrow is likely to look like and discuss some of the challenges facing companies and policy makers in ensuring that that change is a just transition .
8 minutes it's how long it takes the sun's rays reach earth . Or about how long I was able to help my daughter on her math homework last night . Oh , it's not like I got the right answers in 8 minutes . It's just embarrassing it took me that long to remember that I was really bad at pre-calc ! Let's get it on .
The World Economic Forum anticipates that the energy transition is going to be a massive job creator over the next decade . The WEF estimates that over 10.3 million clean energy jobs will be created by 2030 in new industries such as solar , wind , electrical efficiency and electric vehicles .
Similarly , even though the same institution estimates that around 2.5 million fossil fuel industry jobs will be eliminated , the expectation is that , for every one of those jobs lost , about 4 green economy jobs are created .
We're already seeing this in the US In 2022 , the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that 21,000 new jobs were created in the solar and wind industries and an additional 38,000 new jobs were created in the electric vehicle segment .
There's a huge demand for skilled labor to support the energy transition but , as the WEF alluded to , it also means that some jobs are going to be eliminated . Can it be as simple as just shifting those jobs over , upskilling oil and gas workers , for instance , to work on renewable energy projects ?
Well , there's definitely an argument to be made that shifting certain jobs can work . For instance , transitioning a transmission tech to work instead on the battery packs for an electric vehicle , or a rig operator used to drilling wells in Texas can now find their skills useful for geothermal applications .
On an even broader scale , certain companies have shifted their entire strategy to fully focus on green energy technologies . Take the old Danish oil and natural gas company Dong Energy , which pivoted in 2017 to double down on the offshore wind market .
They're now known as Orsted and now exceed $25 billion in market cap , or Equinor , formerly Stat Oil , which has similarly gone hard .
After the offshore wind sector , pipeline companies are investing in translating their capabilities into either other areas of linear infrastructure , such as electrical transmission , or are doubling down on pipelines for hydrogen or carbon capture . Auto companies are set to invest on the order of $100 billion into the next generation of manufacturing capabilities for EVs .
So companies are making the shift . The challenge is to see if they can bring their workforce with them , because not every old energy job has a direct correlation to tomorrow's workforce , like oil and gas engineers with backgrounds in geophysical engineering or reservoir engineering , drillers , machine operators .
The technical skills for the clean economy are simply different . These new skills are likely to be more digital in nature data-driven management , analytics and modeling , strategic planning skills to support advanced energy management platforms that are built on a foundation of digital technology .
In fact , the WEF estimates that , globally , nine out of every 10 jobs a decade from now will require some form of digital skills . So it's not just a clean energy issue , but while the green economy is on the front edge of this challenge .
To address this , community colleges , trade schools , unions they've all stepped in to start to provide the upskilling required , and the federal government is helping out , deploying 72 million dollars from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to support those organizations in rolling out green energy training programs .
The current issue these programs tend to be more mechanically based , focused on energy efficiency or solar installs , and less on the digital skills in demand in the new economy .
The colleges , technical schools and unions will need to figure out not just how to elicit demand for these new digital skills , but how to pay for the programs themselves to upskill workers , which is where corporations and large companies are stepping in .
These college industry partnerships are shaping not just the content for workers to learn but also the availability of well-paying jobs at the end to help ease that transition into a clean energy market , because a big part of this transition is ensuring that nobody is left behind .
This just transition needs to occur not only for the individual workers but for the regional areas in which they live . Oftentimes , these regional economies have depended upon certain industries that well may be disappearing .
Enabling the transition of those workers into new jobs is paramount , which is why companies such as the long-duration battery manufacturer , formenergy , recently announced the construction of a new battery facility in the middle of West Virginia . But the just transition isn't simply about employing oil and gas workers either .
It's about connecting with at-risk communities and those most susceptible to climate-related emergencies , enabling those communities to have a hand in the development of the solutions , while giving them a leg up via the new clean economy .
For companies in this space , the lack of highly qualified talent is still an issue , even with all the efforts of the various participants . The growth of the industry has outpaced the ability to hire new workers , but there are still some things that companies can do to give themselves a path forward to meet their needs .
First , lay the foundation of opportunity and value . This is a change , and change is tough , but the other side of this transition is one where the individual is more fungible , more flexible , more valuable , while enabling the organization the ability to scale , grow and adapt . Outline and demonstrate a culture where learning is an integral part of the job .
Second , develop the upscaling campaigns from a human-led perspective . Deliberately focus on buy-in and address the challenges at the individual level , understanding that by doing so , you will inevitably address them at the corporate level as well .
Partner with those outside organizations that can scale up quickly and deliver the digital training required in the new environment . Work with your community , college and trade schools to articulate the need for those digital skills and be prepared to bring those institutions along on this journey , as they're figuring it out as well .
And , lastly , instill an ethos of continual learning throughout the organization . The technology is changing quickly . The business models and value propositions are evolving almost daily .
There is a ton of change in the air , and those organizations that realize that this change isn't the last , those are the companies that are positioning themselves for successfully creating a just transition . I'm Paul Schuster , and this has been your 8 Minutes .