Network Plus for Sustainable Solar Energy Systems (SES)

Global energy sustainability, achieving net-zero carbon emissions, and energy security are overarching societal challenges. Solar currently provides 5% of the UK's electricity and is expanding five-fold to 70 GW by 2035. The cost of solar electricity is now often cheaper than fossil fuel-generated electricity without subsidy, thus providing a solution to achieving net-zero.
The UK is an essential participant across the solar value stream and a recognised leader in solar research and innovation. Key facets of the UK solar industry are world-class: specialised glass materials manufacturing, new solar materials development, analytics, new approaches to maximise ecological benefits, asset management, and solar power plant design, development and installation.
The solar industry alone is expected to require 60,000 jobs in the UK by 2035. Many of these are high paying careers. An additional 6000 new engineering graduates are needed in the solar sector to achieve the 2035 goals. The significant impediment to solar achieving a preeminent role in the UK energy mix is the deficit of knowledgeable workers. The increasing complexity of solar installations will require additional interdisciplinary skills that can be successfully applied at a systems level. New and existing solar professionals will need a meaningful, practical knowledge of such diverse topics including modules, installation approaches, and performance analytics, ecological consequences, policy, finance among others.
This Sustainable Solar Energy Systems (SES) Network Plus will develop an industrially facing, practical coalition for skills and workforce development to enable widespread solar implementation and ultimately net-zero in the UK. The Network will create, coalesce and share both new knowledge and best practice through skills development programmes. These will be open to Early Career Researchers and industry professionals looking to expand their capabilities. Rather than focus on a single topic, these programs will present a systems perspective giving the participants an interdisciplinary understanding. We will develop a Network Plus drawn from Universities, Industry, Government, Finance, and the legal profession involved in solar implementation and systems development. The SES Network will provide participants with the tools to understand and interact across this broad landscape. Activities will include:

Industry Led Skills Development Workshops bringing best practices and new solar specific "add on" skills to jump-start and promote careers in the solar industry.
Innovation Support Programs: This new seed fund will support innovation needed by the industry while fostering collaboration between diverse stakeholders.
A new Peer To Peer Mentoring Program will support the dissemination of best industry practices, extend the learning from the workshops while promoting the participation of underrepresented groups.
An industry-aligned International Travel Fund will enable travel to key conferences, industry events and training opportunities not directly sponsored by the Network.
An Industrial Secondment Fund will allow participants to develop solar specific skills through internships at leading companies active in the solar value stream.
Public policy and engagement approaches will be developed to more broadly promote the need for solar and interdisciplinary skills development.