Germany lacks 300,000 workers for renewable energy expansion

Germany will need to secure an additional 300,000 skilled workers by 2030 to meet its targets for expanding solar and wind power plants. That is according to a study by the German Economic Institute (Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft Köln), published last week.

The German Economic Institute has increased its estimate of the skilled-worker shortfall needed to meet Germany’s targets for expanding wind and solar power plants by 2030. While it estimated the shortage at around 216,000 last November, this year’s study puts it at at least 300,000.

According to the institute, demand for workers in Germany’s wind and solar power sectors rose by 91% between 2019 and 2022.

"The sharp rise in demand for workers in the wind and solar power sectors highlights one key point: if we are to manage the expansion of renewable energy, we must invest significantly more in training and further education for workers," said study author Jana Fingerhutová.

The international news outlet Clean Energy Wire noted that the shortage of skilled workers has been identified as one of the biggest challenges to meeting Germany’s ambitious renewable energy expansion targets. The country is currently aiming for renewables to account for 80% of gross electricity consumption by 2030. By comparison, the share was around 52% from January to September this year, almost five percentage points higher than in the same period last year.

To achieve its 2030 target, Germany will need, according to published plans, to expand installed capacity to 215 GW for solar power plants, 115 GW for onshore wind farms and 30 GW for offshore wind farms.