According to a current study, the shortage of skilled workers in the electrical trades is endangering the faster expansion of the power grids required for the energy transition. “The shortage of skilled workers is now considered by most companies to be the greatest business risk of the future. The unfilled jobs are also having a slowing effect on the implementation of the energy transition,” says the 82-page study, which Oliver Brückl from the Ostbayerische Technische Hochschule ( OTH) Regensburg on behalf of the Greens in the state parliament. In the first quarter of 2022, 39,000 positions in engineering and IT professions remained unfilled in Bavaria alone.
“The expansion of the distribution grid and the grid connection of renewable energy systems endanger the ambitious goals of the energy transition,” emphasized Brückl when presenting the report “Obstacles in the expansion of the distribution grid and how to overcome them”. Although the federal government has already cleared a few big stones, “many other obstacles still have to be overcome. The regulatory authorities and the federal states as well as the distribution system operators and project planners of renewable energy systems must also make their contribution – and without delay .”
In concrete terms, shorter approval procedures and more staff in the approval authorities are needed. Green MP Martin Stümpfig called on the state government to provide more staff: “The Söder government has planned 100 new jobs, but they will be divided up. That’s not enough. We need at least 200 jobs that primarily process applications for network expansion.” At the same time, an image campaign and offers for further and advanced training are needed to combat the shortage of skilled workers.