The lack of qualified personnel will become a vulnerability in the development of the energy sector, if we do not find quick solutions – Chiriță, Electrica

The lack of qualified personnel in the energy sector is a problem that requires quick solutions, otherwise it will become a vulnerability in the development of the energy sector and in the energy transition process we are going through, said on Monday, Electrica CEO Alexandru Chiriță, at ​​a specialized event, quoted by Agerpres.

“I will raise an issue that I think we do not talk about enough: a silent crisis in the energy sector, namely the lack of qualified personnel, which requires quick solutions, complex solutions, which, if we do not identify and put into practice as soon as possible, will become a vulnerability in the development of the energy sector and in the energy transition we are going through,” Chiriță said.

In his opinion, there is a need for educational reform and academic collaboration, as well as a review of university and pre-university curricula.

“I will go straight to the solutions, I will not develop the problematic part too much, because it is well known. We believe that we need an educational reform and academic collaboration, we need a review of the university and pre-university curricula. We need to introduce modules dedicated to the energy transition into these programs, and this can be achieved through a public-private partnership in education. We, as companies, must actively get involved in academic life, we must identify financing solutions, both from our own funds and from European or government-supported funds. We can also offer our support through various internship programs, which we are currently running, but these still need to be escalated,” said the Electrica boss.

Chiriță believes that specialists from companies could get involved in the teaching process to transmit know-how to young people.

“Specialists from energy companies are convinced that they can get involved in the teaching process, they can give courses and they can transfer the know-how they have to the new generations, so that we can attract more and more personnel to this sector. We are optimistic about this aspect. We see a permanent change and adaptation of the sector to the academic environment and we believe that by 2030 these things can be solved as long as we all contribute and put all our effort into solving them”, concluded Alexandru Chiriţă.

The General Director of Electrica, Alexandru Chiriţă, participated, on Monday, at the conference “Uncertainties and Opportunities for Energy Investments – Present and Future”, organized by Focus Energetic at the Palace of Parliament.