Written by: Andrew Mackintosh

The number of careers available in the renewable energy industry will be significantly increased as a result of this week's Government Energy Review, according to leading green energy organisations.

Industry secretary Alistair Darling told the House of Commons on Tuesday that the UK would lift the portion of UK power generated from sources such as wind, tides and biomass to 20 percent by 2020.

"We are expecting fairly rapid industry growth over the next few years, particularly in onshore wind as we move towads 2010, and other technologies such as offshore wind and marine from 2010 and beyond," said Alison Hill of the British Wind Energy Association.

"Wind energy is the fastest growing energy source around the world and our research shows that wind's production profile is going to increase five fold in the UK. Obviously we need a lot of people out there to help us develop and build those windfarms and keep them going once they're up."

A spokesperson for Ecotricity, the green electricity company which takes the money its customers spend on electricity and invests it in clean forms of energy said: "The energy review is obviously good news for people wanting to work in the sector.

"There will be more engineering jobs, operations management and site management jobs, and jobs for people who've got planning experience — especially environmental impact assessment."

Although media coverage has focused on the Government proposals for a new wave of nuclear power stations, there is much to please the renewable energy lobby in the government's plans.

As well as increasing the proportion of renewable energy which electricity companies produce from 15 percent to 20 percent by 2020, the review promises to relax planning laws, making it easier for individuals and companies to install micro-generation units such as solar panels at their homes and offices.

Ecotricity said this would lead to a growth in jobs in the supply side of energy.

"A lot of these renewable energy generators are away from the urban centres, so I think that this could be a big area for work — there's certainly a huge amount of work to be done in terms of public transmission of the grid."

The energy review stressed the importance of household energy efficiency, while low carbon alternatives such as bio mass, solar power and heat pumps will also be encouraged.

As Philip Wolfe of the Renewable Energy Association (REA) told the BBC, "The government has seen the light on renewables."

According to Alison Hill of the British Wind Energy Association, all this is good news for anyone wanting to gain employment in the renewables sector.

"There will be plenty of opportunities. But of course, when you're looking at something as sustainable as renewable energy, you're never going to out of a job."

British Wind Energy Association
www.bwea.com

Ecotricity
www.ecotricity.co.uk

Renewable Energy Association
www.r-p-a.org.uk

Careers in Renewable Energy is your free to download introductory guide to working in wind, solar and tidal power, as well as lesser known renewable energy sources such as biomass and geo-energy.

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