Electricians, engineers most needed professions for German energy transition workforce - analysis

The biggest bottleneck in skilled labour supply affecting Germany's energy transition is in electrical construction, according to a report by the German Economic Institute’s (IW) Competence Centre for Securing a Skilled Workforce  (KOFA). In total, more than 18,300 vacancies could not be filled in energy transition related sectors in 2024, a 2.9 percent increase compared to 2023.

The analysis found that there was a shortage of some 14,200 skilled workers on average in electrical engineering, 10 percent more than in 2023. Construction electricians are indispensable for the planning, installation and maintenance of wind and solar systems as well as in energy generation using green hydrogen. Their responsibilities include key areas of the energy transition like the building and maintenance of charging infrastructure for electric cars. Also lacking were specialists in electrical engineering for more than 8,500 vacancies essential for, among other things, planning the integration of renewable energy sources into the power grid.

While Germany's skills gap eased somewhat across the economy in 2024, the energy sector contiuned to suffer from an increasing lack of skilled personnel. The skills gap is the number of vacancies for which there are mathematically no suitably qualified unemployed people.

The report also identified 4,370 vacancies for skilled workers in welding and joining technology, an increase of 20 percent. These skilled workers are needed primarily for the expansion of wind turbines.

Overall, the report’s findings reflect the downward trend in the German labour market. Among various options for securing skilled workers in the long term, the report notes that “recruiting and retaining international skilled workers represents a great potential.” Still, the growing lack of skilled workers is also threatening the energy transition at the global level.