November 19, EuropeOn and GCP Europe co-hosted the conference “Growing Renewable Skills in the Installation Sector”, in collaboration with the EU-project RESkill4NetZero, as part of the Installers’ Summit 2025. Besides our members, the event brought together experts, policymakers, and the rest of the industry to discuss the challenges and opportunities for the development of renewable skills in the electrical and mechanical contracting sector.
The event kicked off with the welcome speeches by EuropeOn and GCP Europe Presidents, Kimmo Hallamaa and Ola Mansson, and an introduction to the RESkill4NetZero project by Oana Penu, Skills Institute Director at InnoEnergy. This was followed by a keynote speech by Rémi Mayet, Advisor to the Director for “Just Transition” in the European Commission’s DG ENER
The programme was structured around two panels: one exploring the strategic and theoretical context, and the other showcasing practical examples. The first panel “Getting the Skills Right” explored key strategies to strengthen the workforce, featuring insights from Dr Elisa Forestan-Barnes, Director of Skills Intelligence Solutions at Abodoo, responsible for the coordination of the RESkill4NetZero project’s strategy. Anna Banczyk, Head of Unit “Vocational Education and Training, CEDEFOP” (European Commission), focused her speech on the Commission’s upcoming VET Strategy (expected next year). The aim of the strategy is to increase the attractiveness, excellence and inclusiveness of VET, so that VET becomes as valued as higher education. In view of this, our organisations published in July a collective statement on the VET Strategy. Finally, Cedric Borzee, Member of the RESkill4NetZero Advisory Board and Director at NIIT provided some conclusions.
The second panel “Getting the Growth right”, showcased best practices from across Europe that can be replicated. Jan Cromwijk, Programme Manager for EU Projects at Centraal Register Techniek, representing Techniek Nederland, provided examples with a focus on the heat pump ecosystem. Paul Morolz, Managing Director at WKO Steiermark, showed how Austria is revising its apprenticeship system and improving the sector’s attractiveness. Johnny Petré, CEO of Installatörsföretagen, presented a new full-time electrical reskilling programme targeting adults and striking the right balance between accelerated learning without compromising on quality standards.
A major highlight of the day was the formal launch of the Renewable Skills Alliance, with a keynote from Eva Schultz, Member of Cabinet of Commission EVP Roxana Mînzatu, who emphasized the central role of skills in driving the EU’s energy transition and industrial competitiveness. The European Renewable Energy Skills Alliance will work on building a robust, scalable, and industry-aligned skills ecosystem that supports workforce growth development across all renewable energy sub-sectors
A morning full of valuable insights on tackling workforce and skills shortages in the electrical and mechanical sectors, followed by a networking lunch. A perfect way to wrap up the Installers’ Summit 2025!
