NESA receives £1million Just Transition Fund award

Over the coming two years, this funding will enable NESA to determine the skills required to meet the needs of a just energy transition. The research and development project will leverage the North East of Scotland’s leading academic institutions to assess the energy transition skills landscape from now until 2030, and design pilot training programmes.

The pilot programmes will support people in joining the energy transition by creating accessible, demand-driven courses to attract new entrants, re-skilling opportunities for people impacted by redundancy or transferring from other sectors such as oil and gas, and up-skilling options to improve regional job retention. The pilot scheme will be a testing ground for innovative and novel delivery methods and pave the way for future large-scale programmes. This project will help establish Scotland’s North East and Moray as an energy transition hub, bringing further investment and opportunities to the regions’ workforce and communities.

NESA is a collaborative initiative between world-renowned institutions Robert Gordon University, the University of Aberdeen and North East Scotland College and is supported by key partners Skills Development Scotland and Energy Transition Zone Ltd. Supporting the changing needs of energy sector employers and the workforce as they respond to energy transition opportunities, NESA aims to accelerate the up-, re- and new-skilling of both the existing and future workforce.

The Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund for the North East and Moray aims to support organisations, businesses, communities and individuals to transition to net zero. The 10-year, £500 million fund looks to strengthen the North East economy, creating jobs in low carbon industries and contributing to the region’s future prosperity.

Sarah Hillyear, Head of Business Development at RGU, said: "We are delighted with this award from the Just Transition Fund which recognises both the opportunity for people to transition from oil and gas to new energy sectors, as identified within the RGU Making the Switch report, and the capability of the institutions in the North East to work together to deliver the programmes."

Professor John Underhill, NESA Chair and University of Aberdeen’s Director of Energy Transition, said: “NESA is delighted to receive an award from the Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund to deliver new knowledge on the green energy skills landscape of the future and develop innovative new pilot training programmes. This work will help prepare the education pipeline for the anticipated surge in key skills requirements and lay the foundations for upskilling and re-skilling to benefit sustainable energy careers for existing workers and future generations.

"Through its partner organisations and industry partnerships, NESA embodies the collaboration that will be key to maximising the workforce opportunities that energy transition brings. This funding will enable us to develop a robust Just Transition Skills Plan for the energy sector, and design scalable pilot training programmes to the local and regional workforce. NESA aims to establish a legacy that benefits the North East of Scotland for years to come."