A new college aiming to deliver ‘oven-ready’ technicians capable of overcoming a skills shortage in small-scale renewables has opened in Merseyside.

The Green Energy Training Centre (GETC) was opened early in November, at the premises of Stiebel Eltron, a renewables manufacturer based in Wirral International Business Park.

The £280,000 facility has been equipped with £60,000 of the latest renewables technology, and could, the company says, be the first in a wave of colleges such as this, specialising in national microgeneration training.

Students will be taught how to install ground source heat pumps, air source heat pumps and solar photovoltaic panels.

Once the course is completed, students can apply for the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MSC), which will award them the certification required to install renewable energy systems that qualify under the UK’s Feed-in Tarrif scheme.

The week-long courses will also be available for plumbers, electricians and heating and ventilation specialists looking to broaden their skills for the renewables market.

Mandi O’Shea, managing director of training provider Scientiam said: "With strict building standards and European carbon reduction regulations it is essential to create a generation of renewable energy installation specialists."

She added: "It is so vital we train up installers now to meet the future demand for renewable energy systems in new builds."

Mark McManus, Stiebel Eltron UK managing director, said: "If the green industry is to grow as the Government has announced it should, then we need to create hundreds and thousands of more microgeneration installers across the UK."

www.scientiam.co.uk