Can this company close the green skills gap?

Inclusive training builds installation and maintenance skills for green energy tech

Spotted: Despite many oil and gas workers expressing interest in transitioning into the renewable energy sector, concerns remain that retraining is not only ‘prohibitively expensive’, but also difficult to access. At the same time, alarm is growing over a projected ‘green skills gap’ of seven million workers by 2030 – a deficit that will be compounded if training availability does not catch up to demand. 

German renewable energy training company Montamo sees filling the green skills gap as a way to solve two problems at once. The startup has created a highly digital training academy, available in multiple languages, to retrain industrial workers and others interested in entering the renewable energy industry, with a particular focus on migrants. In addition to providing a much-needed pipeline of workers for the energy transition, the company’s emphasis on upskilling migrants could provide a blueprint for countries around the world struggling to integrate growing immigrant populations. 

In Munich, the first cohort of trainees will begin the Montamo courses in early 2024. Depending on prior technical experience and expertise, the course takes between six and eight weeks to complete. Trainees then accompany experienced teams out on heat pump installation jobs before being assigned a permanent job on a team. 

Current training is focused on heat pumps, and Montamo will be offering B2B pump installation carried out by its newly trained workers as the first step in its development. From there, the company plans to expand into solar array installation. The startup recently secured €2.1 million in pre-seed funding. 

Transitioning to a green economy is a challenge faced by every industry. For instance, innovations in Springwise’s library showcase ways in which commercial real estate and historic buildings are making changes.

Written By: Keely Khoury