Offshore wind needs a 100,000-strong workforce by 2030, according to the Offshore Wind Industry Council. To meet demand, ScottishPower Renewables is beckoning skilled people from other industries.
The team running ScottishPower Renewables’ East Anglia ONE offshore wind farm is a model of transferable skills, attracting talent, expertise and experience grown in fossil fuels, hydraulics, fabrication and other industries to join the green energy revolution.
The nerve centre of the 102-turbine wind farm is a melting pot of diverse skills and backgrounds. Careers shaped in a range of industries have come together on the mission to decarbonise the UK’s energy supply.
More than 100 people work at the £2.5m operations and maintenance base in Lowestoft, with many successfully and seamlessly transitioning their transferable skills to benefit a relatively new and fast-growing industry. The myriad of backgrounds brings depth of expertise and different perspectives to the team.
Its leader, Steve Hodger, is the role model, whose career history has travelled through oil and gas well testing, helicopter services, health and safety, to offshore wind. As principal operations and maintenance manager, he sets the tone for transferable skills.
A well test engineer and supervisor on oil and gas fields for Schlumberger from 1997 to 2004, he then moved to CHC helicopters as helicopter services supervisor at North Denes heliport, where he managed the seven-aircraft operation with overall responsibility for operations and aerodrome health and safety.
After just over four years, he moved to offshore oil and gas services company Epic International in Great Yarmouth as HSE advisor. He was in charge of regulatory compliance, building and controlling the business’ systems to ISO standards, supporting operations teams working in the SNS, maintenance of asset safety case files and onshore and offshore HSE support to the field teams, monitoring, auditing and reviewing process and procedural compliance.
He made the move into wind 14 years ago, when it was a young industry, joining SSE as an offshore wind compliance engineer during the construction of the Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm, off Lowestoft – then the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
There, he established a safe and effective management system and regulatory compliance, which included the UK’s first wind turbine helicopter transfer operation and nine work boats for crew transfer, ensuring seven-day working in most weathers.
His previous knowledge and experience of offshore operations proved a valuable tool in his transition to a new industry, and he went on to become site manager and integration engineer before joining ScottishPower Renewables in 2017 to ensure the East Anglia ONE site was ready for full operations for the end of construction.
In 2018, he became principal operations and maintenance manager, building a highly-skilled, multi-discipline team to conduct operations and maintenance activities with a health-and-safety-first attitude for East Anglia ONE in its goal to be the safest and most efficient offshore wind farm.
Recruiting local people with transferable skills has been Steve’s key aim, including his two deputies: Richard Domiczew and Tommy Rudd.
Richard started as an apprentice at a power station before moving to renewables 13 years ago, working on Greater Gabbard Wind Farm before joining East Anglia ONE three years ago.
Tommy, a senior authorised person (SAP), worked as an electrical maintenance technician at SLP Engineering in Lowestoft, working on offshore platforms for both renewables and the oil and gas industry.
“I worked on two projects at SLP – for the Thanet Offshore Wind Farm and a BP module,” says Tommy. “I was made redundant in the third year of a four-year apprenticeship during the 2008 recession, and was taken on as a trainee BOP (balance of power) wind turbine technician with SSE when Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm was in construction.
“I became qualified as an authorised technician for Siemens and worked as a BOP technician for about four years while learning high voltage at the same time, which meant I left SSE with my Authorised Person qualification.”
He was deputy supervisor in operations when he moved to East Anglia ONE in 2018 as deputy site manager.
“I wanted to see the construction side of East Anglia ONE and was one of the first in operational and maintenance joining Steve.”
Now 34, he is delighted to have been able to build a career in his home town, Lowestoft, where he is bringing up his two young sons.
“I enjoy the variety this job gives. It is a challenging industry and fast developing with a great team.”
From cherry pickers to turbines
Adam Ablitt, 26, swapped servicing the hydraulic workings of cherry pickers for offshore turbines.
After achieving a BTEC in engineering, he left cherry pickers to follow a career in offshore wind.
He studied mechanical and electrical engineering at the Open University and enrolled on the offshore wind skills programme at East Coast College.
Adam joined RMI Engineering and worked on East Anglia ONE as a contractor before joining the team full time in 2021 as a BOP maintenance technician, providing fault-finding, maintenance and repair on all turbine associated systems, including mechanical, electrical, hydraulic and pneumatic assemblies.
He is training to become a high voltage technician with HV experts ONRG, alongside continuing his Open University degree.
“Since I moved to SPR, I have done transition training and hope to become a SAP to add versatility, work scope and knowledge to my skill set and safely operate HV equipment. These skills will give me a lot more responsibility.
“I have also been to Berlin on a three-day course with Siemens – one of the best courses there is.”
Adam has never looked back from swapping his career.
“There is such great morale here. I look forward to coming into work. It is a great team and we are more than colleagues.”
Tommy Rudd says: “We knew Adam was the right person for us when the position became available. It is better to have our own HV person on site.
“It takes time and investment. It is all part of a long-term plan to build a team.”
From a two-hour commute to a short ride by bike
During his decade working at Bacton Gas Terminal, Troy Allen had watched the offshore wind industry develop in his hometown and decided he wanted to be part of it.
Then a lead electrical instrumentation technician for Interconnector, he applied to train as a wind farm controller on East Anglia ONE. Now, with his two-hour daily commute cut to a few minutes on a bicycle, Troy monitors turbine operations on the wind farm from the myriad of screens in the control room.
Data collection and interpretation dominates Troy’s day, from gathering weather information and monitoring vessel movements, to electrical trip-outs on the 7MW turbines and technicians abseiling down the 75m blades for repairs.
Managing and coordinating safe transfer of people and equipment from the onshore base to the offshore work by marine vessels and helicopters is also the responsibility of the senior wind farm controller.
“I’ll also spend a portion of my day liaising with different contractors and partners on logistics, supporting them in their roles through the live data we’re collecting on site,” says Troy, 35, who
is also training in high voltage to gain Authorised Person (AP) status.
“Seeing the level of industry coming to Lowestoft and the scale of what is to come was a big driver for me. It is a massive opportunity in an industry that is growing fast.
“You can’t drive past the port and not see it. Being an offshore hub is great for the town. It isn’t just short-term investment; it is a massive long-term commitment that will continue to change this area.
“My electrical background stood me in good stead for the new training, including specialist authorisation wind turbine safety training by Siemens Gamesa.
“The opportunities in this industry are global. ScottishPower Renewables is part of Iberdrola, and its portfolio is massive. This is a whole new start for me.
“People don’t always understand that they have transferrable skills. I personally know 20 to 30 people now working in the wind industry who have transferred from other industries and who live locally.
“When I was looking for my next career move, a huge pull of my current role was ScottishPower’s commitment to the UK’s net zero targets, and knowing I’d be directly contributing to this if I were to make the leap.
“Reaching net zero emissions requires us to keep advancing. We’re doing our bit by installing new wind farms and improving the infrastructure in our current sites, as well as investing in staff training, recruitment and the creation of new roles.
“The breadth of different business areas, jobs and talented individuals within ScottishPower makes it feel more than just a company. It’s a collective working towards one shared goal, and I take pride in feeling part of something bigger.”
Troy works alongside former Bacton Interconnector colleague Jonathan Howes. Jonathan started his career training as an operations and maintenance technician at Shell Expro’s Technician Training scheme, working for Shell, Great Yarmouth Power Station, Interconnector and Centrica Energy in King’s Lynn before joining the East Anglia ONE team.
Their 12-hour shift can include switching off turbines for high voltage maintenance campaigns or for routine repairs, vessel trips out to the turbines, alerts or health and safety.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here