On March 28, 2024, CIP officially launched the publication “Offshore wind workforce” in both English and Vietnamese. The guide provides an overview of the workforce demand throughout the Development, Construction, and Operation phases of an offshore wind farm, a list of typical jobs, and detailed job descriptions of over 70 different positions. It also shows the necessary skills and qualifications, and available training programs in Vietnam that can support the entrance in this industry.
With this book, students interested in the offshore wind industry can choose a major that matches their future career right from the beginning, Vietnamese personnel who wish to change their job to transition to the offshore wind industry can proactively improve their knowledge and participate in related training courses and understand where there existing skill sets are applicable. The document can also act as a reference point for ministries and academic institutes to understand the skill sets that can be developed in parallel to support this industry.
Bebow are some key takeaways from the guide. To download the publication in either of the two languages, please visit: https://offshorewindvietnam.com/
Offshore wind industry will create thousands of high-quality jobs for Vietnamese people
With reference to the Power Development Plan VIII (PDP8) which was approved on 15th May 2023, Vietnam plans to increase the capacity of offshore wind from 0 at the present to 6GW by 2030 and a vision of 70 – 91.5 GW by 2050 to contribute to net zero targets established at COP26. To achieve this goal, developers and contractors need to have an available and appropriately skilled workforce for each phase of renewable energy projects, and with offshore wind the scale and variety of this workforce has a huge potential.
Throughout the life cycle of an offshore wind farm (about 35 – 45 years), a number of positions are needed in all three main phases including Development, Construction & Operation, while some other positions will only be involved for one or two phases of the project. The Construction phase has the highest demand for human resources (accounting for 49% of total jobs created throughout the project life cycle), followed by the Operations & Maintenance phase (35%), the Development phase (10%) and the Decommissioning phase (6%).
Among these positions, some are completely new and have never existed in Vietnam yet, such as the positions in charge of analyzing wind output, manufacturing monopile foundations, installing offshore wind turbines, maintaining offshore turbine blades, operating & maintaining offshore wind turbines, etc.
Vietnamese personnel have potential and advantages to join the offshore wind industry
While offshore wind is a completely new industry in Vietnam, many roles within this industry can be undertaken by people from other industries and transition relatively easily into this, such as oil and gas exploration and production, nearshore and onshore wind project, onshore construction etc., which share similar engineering, safety and working practices, however this experience is by no means a must.
In addition, candidates for administrative or support roles have a higher degree of flexibility from transition from various other sectors if they possess appropriate qualifications, experience, knowledge, and soft skills. Candidates with limited relevant experience can also start a career in offshore wind industry in apprenticeship level positions, graduate & intern programs.
Training is the key for Vietnamese people to quickly meet the job requirements in the offshore wind industry
There are many different certifications or other training requirements that may be needed to work offshore wind.
Currently in Vietnam, some long-term programs can already support offshore wind projects of the future, such as Coastal and Offshore Engineering, Oil & Gas, Construction Engineering, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Maritime Navigation, Mechanical Engineering, Power Management, Ship Control, Ship Machinery, Renewable Energy, Geological engineering, Environmental engineering etc. This training can be completed in several Vietnamese universities, including (but not exclusive to) University of Science and Technology, Electric Power University, University of Civil Engineering, Maritime University.
Alternatively, some short-term programs including Basic Safety, Rescue Training, Enhanced First Aid, Basic Technical Training also provide necessary skills for some technical offshore wind jobs.
Establish the offshore wind industry to support Vietnam in achieving PDP8 goals
Offshore wind power projects bring many socio-economic benefits through job creation for Vietnamese people and the development of the local supply chain. During the early stages of the industry, clear and encouraging policies will help the investors have necessary certainty to make long-term commitments and decide on billions of dollars investment, the local contractors can proactively plan its production and recruitment activities, the universities can proactively update and adjust its curriculum to better prepare graduates for the future workplace.
