25,000 reasons Queensland’s 10-year energy plan will fail
Electrical peak body Master Electricians Australia (MEA) has welcomed the Palaszczuk Government’s plan to generate 70 per cent of the state’s electricity with renewable technology by 2032.
But the Government’s 10-year energy plan will go nowhere without equally ambitious investments to double the number of apprentice electricians the state produces.
“The Queensland Government has now produced its 10-year energy plan and the Federal Government has got its Power Up Australia plan but the lights are just not going to stay on if we can’t produce another 25,000 electricians to power up all these plans,’’ Mr Richards said.
“We’re already facing a massive skills crisis in the electrical industry. Basically, we need business to double the number of apprentices they are taking on if we are going to get anywhere near these kinds of targets.’’
Mr Richards said by far the majority of electrical employers taking on apprentices were small businesses who cannot take on the risk of employing extra people without financial and other supports and incentives.
He said the MEA had argued for a range of measures at the recent Federal skills summit but the organisation is still concerned its projections of a skills shortage are underdone.
“With a million extra electrical vehicles coming by 2030 that will all require charging and accompanying additional infrastructure, I worry that even an extra 25,000 electricians will not be enough,’’ Mr Richards said.
“If we don’t have a plan to dramatically boost the number of skilled electricians available across the state, good luck finding someone to work in your home in a couple of years because they will all be working on the more lucrative Government-funded renewable energy projects.’’
Mr Richards said the answer is to increase subsidies to encourage employers to take on more apprentices. Around 85 per cent of apprentices are employed by small contractors.
“The industry is currently flat out meeting current demand. We estimate we have a backlog of two years for work on renewable energy projects,’’ Mr Richards said.
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