Sustainability: A lack of craftsmen threatens the energy transition

Dusseldorf The heat pump in the basement, a solar system on the roof and the battery plus wall box in the garage. In order to achieve the energy transition, millions of devices and systems have to be integrated, installed and networked. The demand is huge – but the energy industry is also facing a massive shortage of skilled workers: there are not enough craftsmen, fitters and electricians to implement the turnaround.

According to the plans of the federal government, six million heat pumps are to be installed by 2030: “In this short time window of nine years, our companies are missing 60,000 fitters per year for this alone,” calculates Helmut Bramann, General Manager of the Central Association for Sanitary, Heating and Air Conditioning (SHK). After all, you can’t do without modernization and customer service at the same time. And the skills shortage is steadily increasing.