Building the energy transition workforce in the GCC

The GCC’s energy sector is changing shape. The UAE has committed to net zero by 2050, Saudi Arabia by 2060, and Oman by 2050. Oman has also set out an ambition to produce at least one million tonnes of green hydrogen a year by 2030, with its national hydrogen company Hydrom allocating land for large projects.

Ambitions like these depend on people. Solar farms, wind projects, hydrogen plants, battery storage and green ammonia facilities need engineers, technicians, project managers and commercial specialists, many in roles that barely existed in the region a decade ago.

The skills gap is broader than engineering

Technical skills matter, but they are only part of the picture. Energy transition projects also need:

• Project and commercial skills. Project finance, contracting, risk and stakeholder management.
• Digital skills. Data, monitoring systems and automation across new assets.
• Safety and operational discipline. New technologies bring new hazards and procedures.
• Behavioural skills. Communication, teamwork and problem solving across multinational project teams.

Graduates often arrive with strong theory but limited exposure to how these projects actually run.

Why academy models work

One-off courses cannot build a workforce at this scale. Academy models can. A well-designed energy academy runs rolling cohorts with:

1. A shared core. Business, safety, digital and professional skills delivered to every participant.
2. Specialist tracks. Parallel streams in areas such as solar, wind, hydrogen, battery technology, green ammonia, and energy and project finance.
3. Team leaders and coaches. Dedicated people who support each group through the programme and track progress weekly.
4. Capstone projects. Teams solve real challenges set by industry partners and present to their leaders.
5. Industry exposure. Site visits, guest speakers and placements that connect learning to real assets.

We saw the power of industry exposure on TAQA Group’s graduate programme, where an Industry Week brought in more than 20 speakers from global leaders in energy and water. Our article on building a corporate academy explains how to set up the operating model behind programmes like these.

Questions for energy employers and policymakers

• Which roles will your projects need in the next three to five years, and how many people for each?
• Which of those can be developed from national graduates, and how quickly?
• Who are the industry partners that can provide projects, placements and expertise?
• How will you measure job readiness and placement, not just completion?

Getting started

Start with a skills demand map built from your project pipeline. Then design the academy around those roles, recruit cohorts with a strong selection process, and agree success measures with industry partners from day one.

The energy transition will be built by people. The organisations that invest in that workforce now will be ready when the projects arrive.