Decarbonize steel manufacturing, serve as fuel for trucks, ships and planes, or store solar and wind electricity… Green hydrogen is expected to play a key role in the ecological transition, provided that we are able to produce it in quantity.
By converting electricity into gas or liquid form, hydrogen has undeniable advantages. Many countries are banking on it. Including France, which is allocating 9 billion euros to build its “hydrogen” sector, hoping to become one of the world leaders.
100,000 people to be trained by 2030
A year ago almost to the day, Elisabeth Borne announced that the State would devote part of this envelope to the development of ten “gigafactories” in the territory, linked to green hydrogen. We plan to manufacture electrolyzers, fuel cells, hydrogen tanks, etc.
It remains to fill these factories. Not so simple in the current context of labor shortage in the industry. And it is even less so since the hydrogen sector anticipates colossal recruitment needs. A study submitted to the government on Thursday by France Hydrogen, which brings together the players in the sector, estimates the number of people to be trained by 2030 at 100,000. And this in more than 80 professions: welders, boilermakers, risk management specialists, many salespeople, “developers » business and maintenance engineers.
Three recruitment phases expected by 2030
To carry out this study, entitled “Def’hy », the organization has joined forces with six employment and training players, including Pôle Emploi, the National Agency for Adult Vocational Training (Afpa) and the Adecco group, but not National Education .
The sector has already gone from 3,500 direct jobs in 2021 to 5,800 in 2022. This dynamic is also seen in terms of job offers. The study identified 6,800 last year, an increase of 77% compared to 2019.
In detail, “Def’hy” anticipates three phases between now and 2030, each corresponding to recruitment peaks for very specific profiles. The first, between today and 2025, is that of innovation and project development. It will require the vast majority of engineers and business developers (80% of the profiles sought) with high qualification levels (bac + 5). The rest of the recruitment (20%) will be done in a few technical professions which are involved in this design phase.
The second phase, expected between 2026 and 2028, will correspond to the start-up and commissioning of the projects. It will gradually increase the need for technicians, particularly in hydrogen applications linked to mobility. From 20%, we will go to 40%, estimates Def’hy. This need for technicians will be even greater in the third phase, between 2028 and 2030. This is the stabilization stage for the hydrogen sector, which at this stage should have moved to the industrial phase, with several installations operating at full power. 80% of recruitment needs will be for technician profiles to operate and maintain its installations, with lower qualification levels.
Ten concrete proposals to facilitate recruitment
Positive point, underlines Def’hy, “the training offer is in development and in full structuring”. The study identifies 216 training courses. The problem: the offer suffers from a lack of visibility and readability. And “65% of companies consider them insufficient despite their number and diversity,” points out Def’hy.
In their report, France Hydrogène and its partners list ten concrete proposals. Many aim to raise awareness of these new professions. The study therefore recommends the creation of an observatory of professions and skills in the hydrogen sector, or the creation of a dynamic directory of hydrogen training. It would not just list them, but also specify the outlets, the technical means mobilized, the dates… In the same vein, France Hydrogène proposes to set up a network of ambassadors “to promote the sector within middle schools, high schools and businesses.”