Skills, Qualification and Recruitment of Professionals for the district heating
and cooling (DHC) sector

Duration: 2024 - 2027 ● Client: Co-funded by the European Union (Life) ● WIP Role: Coordination and management

The district heating and cooling (DHC) sector is vital to Europe's energy transition, but its workforce faces significant challenges. Skills4DHC is an ambitious European project that aims to revolutionise the sector by addressing two pressing issues: the urgent need to develop the skills and qualifications of DHC professionals, and the challenge of recruiting enough talent to meet the demands of a growing, green-focused industry.
On 30 September and 1 October 2024, the Skills4DHC project officially kicked off in Munich, Germany, hosted by WIP Renewable Energies as the coordinator.
 

Key objectives:

• Build expertise across the DHC workforce: from blue-collars in construction, operations and maintenance to white-collar civil servants involved in heat planning and DHC development, the programme targets a diverse range of professionals.
• University and vocational programmes: the project aims to develop the next generation of DHC experts by offering university courses and vocational training to ensure a pipeline of talent.
• Advanced training programmes: a total of 13 specialised DHC training programmes will be developed, focusing on decarbonising existing systems, improving network efficiency and expanding climate-neutral DHC markets.
• Testing and verification in six countries: Austria, Estonia, Germany, Ireland, Italy and the Netherlands will serve as test beds for the training programmes, ensuring that they are tailored to real-world needs before being scaled across Europe.
• Recruitment and retention: the project will also focus on recruitment activities aimed at attracting new trainees and retaining them in the DHC sector.

This comprehensive approach will strengthen the capacity of the DHC sector and ensure that Europe's energy transition goals can be met with a skilled and capable workforce.

Make sure to follow Skills4DHC on LinkedIn and X (Twitter) to stay up-to-date!