Number of North West energy jobs leaps by 25%

The North West has more jobs directly supported by the energy sector than any other region in the UK, according to new data, with the total number rising by a quarter in the last year.

The latest Powering the UK report, conducted by professional services giant Ernst & Young (EY) on behalf of trade association EnergyUK, found that 18.7k jobs in the North West are directly dependent on the energy sector, a year-on-year rise of 25%.

Jenn Hazlehurst, a North West-based partner and energy sector leader at EY, said of the findings: “While a lot of other major sectors are concentrated in specific regions of the UK, the energy sector is truly national in the distribution of its companies and assets.

“Steady industry investment over recent years has been good news for jobs in the North West, where there is a wide range of different strategically important energy infrastructure assets, as well as a strong sector skills base.

Speaking further, Jenn said she believes the importance of the sector in stimulating growth and prosperity across the UK is “underestimated”.

She continued: “Whether investment continues to increase further towards a pathway consistent with meeting our energy objectives will depend to a large extent on the stability of the regulatory and policy landscape, as well as the ability of energy firms to attract and retain a highly skilled workforce that will allow them to continue the current transformation in the way that energy is generated and consumed.

“The recent announcements of Chinese participation in the Hinkley Point project and a biomass energy park in Holyhead are tangible examples of the scale of the investment needed, and the opportunity that exists to create economic value in the UK.”

In terms of total number of energy jobs, the North West tied with Scotland in first place, followed by the East Midlands, West Midlands and South East.

The report claims that last year, energy companies drove £83bn gross value added (GVA) into the UK economy and employed around 133k people. It has been estimated that one in every 48 UK jobs is related to the energy sector.

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