What's it all about?
The essential energy and utilities sector covers the generation, transmission, distribution and supply of electricity; the transportation, distribution and supply of gas; the collection, purification and distribution of water; waste management and the collection and treatment of sewerage; and nuclear fuel processing. The Apprenticeships in this section provide entry routes into all of these areas.
Keeping gas, electricity and water supply in check isn't easy. By nature, gas hates being in an enclosed space and is always looking for a place to escape. A gas leak could potentially cause an explosion, so anyone working with this substance needs to be highly skilled - any mistake could have serious consequences.
This section also features two Apprenticeships in the growing nuclear industry, which produces roughly 20% of the electricity in the UK. The provision of nuclear power and the safe decommissioning (or closing down) of the UK's older nuclear power plants both rate highly on the government agenda. This sort of work involves skills that are transferable to other sectors within this industry, as well as engineering.
The many roles in this sector require people with all sorts of skills. Practical roles like pipe fitting, line repair and cable jointing are in high demand, as are plant operatives. There's also a large administrative and commercial side to the industry.
Every household and company in the country has an electricity bill to pay - that's a lot of customers to look after, and a lot of administrative work. All the major supply companies have large contact centres to deal with areas like customer service and sales.
Apprenticeships are a popular method of entry into this sector, and many of today's managers and supervisors were once apprentices. Also, much of the skilled workforce is now approaching retirement age, which means excellent career prospects when you qualify.
- Electricity industry (Contact www.euskills.co.uk)
- Gas industry (Contact www.euskills.co.uk)
- Gas network operations (Contact www.euskills.co.uk)
- Nuclear decommissioning (Contact www.cogent-ssc.com)
- Specialised process operations (Contact www.cogent-ssc.com)
- Water industry (Contact www.euskills.co.uk)