Siemens AG, Europe's biggest engineering company, doubled staff at its wind-power unit to help meet demand for the fastest-growing renewable energy source.
Staff numbers have increased to 4,000 from 2,000 in the past two years, Mike Rolls, director for business development at Siemens U.K., said today at the British Wind Energy Association's annual conference in London. In Britain, employees have more than doubled in the period to 200, he said.
Governments and utilities are working to reduce carbon emissions from power production, prompting a surge in demand for renewable energy and increasing competition for qualified employees. In the U.K. wind-power industry, 46 percent of businesses struggle to fill project manager positions, according to a Bain & Co. study.
“People are absolutely critical,'' Rolls said. “This isn't a U.K. problem, it's not even a European problem,'' because growth in other regions including the Middle East and South America absorbs available labor resources, he said.
Siemens last month won a contract valued at more than 1 billion euros ($1.42 billion) to supply E.ON AG with 500 wind turbines, the single largest power deal in its history. E.ON will use the turbines, which have a total capacity of 1,150 megawatts, for new projects in the U.S. and Europe.
The Bain study was commissioned by the British Wind Energy Association and published this year. The U.K., Europe's third- biggest electricity consumer, is the world's largest offshore wind-power operator.
