---
title: "European Environment Agency report on clean energy technologies in the European Union; employment growth and regional job shifts"
sdDatePublished: "2026-09-09T15:49:00Z"
source: "https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/publications/clean-energy-technologies-in-the-eu-implications-for-quality-jobs-skills-and-just-transition/clean-energy-technologies_report-2026_07-09.pdf/@@download/file"
topics:
  - name: "energy industry"
    identifier: "medtop:20000261"
  - name: "employment"
    identifier: "medtop:20000509"
  - name: "environmental policy"
    identifier: "medtop:20000423"
  - name: "economic growth"
    identifier: "medtop:20000357"
  - name: "women"
    identifier: "medtop:20001327"
locations:
  - "Navarra"
  - "Skellefteå"
  - "Silesia"
  - "Lower Saxony"
  - "Brandenburg"
  - "North Rhine-Westphalia"
  - "England"
  - "Norway"
  - "Lithuania"
  - "Germany"
  - "Switzerland"
  - "United States"
  - "Italy"
  - "Sweden"
  - "Latvia"
  - "Netherlands"
  - "Poland"
  - "Ireland"
  - "United Kingdom"
  - "Finland"
  - "India"
  - "Austria"
  - "Croatia"
  - "Hungary"
  - "Portugal"
  - "France"
  - "Russia"
  - "Estonia"
  - "Slovenia"
  - "China"
  - "Spain"
  - "Belgium"
  - "Ukraine"
  - "Denmark"
  - "Slovakia"
  - "Brazil"
  - "South Korea"
  - "Bulgaria"
  - "Iran"
  - "Greece"
---


European Environment Agency report on clean energy technologies in the European Union; employment growth and regional job shifts

Clean energy technologies in the European Union — implications for quality jobs, skills and a just transition

EEA Report XX/2023
EEA report
Clean energy technologies in the European Union
Implications for quality jobs, skills and
a just transition

European Environment Agency
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Denmark
Tel.: +45 33 36 71 00
Web: eea.europa.eu
Contact: eea.europa.eu/en/about/contact-us
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© European Environment Agency, 2026
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More information on the European Union is available on https://european-union.europa.eu/index_en.
EEA report 08/2026
ISBN: 978-92-9480-789-2
ISSN: 1977-8449
TH-01-26-037-EN-N
doi:10.2800/4663174
Cover design: © European Environment Agency
Cover image: © European Environment Agency
Layout: Eworx/European Environment Agency

3
Clean energy technologies in the European Union — implications for quality jobs, skills and a just transition
Acknowledgements
5
Key messages
6
Executive summary
8
1
Introduction
12
2
Reshaping the EU′s industrial policy framework — balancing
decarbonisation, competitiveness and a just transition
17
2.1
Supporting the EU clean energy transition — strategic, regulatory
and financial foundations 17
2.2
A just transition to net-zero industry — social and territorial
considerations
25
3
Europe′s clean-tech industry in transition
36
3.1
Overview of clean energy technologies
36
3.2
Economic significance and market growth
42
4
Employment and the workforce in the EU clean energy sector
52
4.1
Employment trends across clean technologies
52
4.2
A look into the future — employment projections
57
4.3
The geography of clean-tech jobs in Europe
60
4.4
The workforce across the value chain
64
4.5
Women in the clean-tech industry
68
4.6
Age composition of the clean-tech workforce
72
5
Occupational profiles, skills and job quality
76
5.1
Key job roles in the featured technologies across value chains
76
5.2
Labour shortages
83
5.3
Skills and training
85
5.4
Job quality
96
6
Conclusions and way forward
107
List of abbreviations
111
References
113
Contents

Contents
4
Clean energy technologies in the European Union — implications for quality jobs, skills and a just transition
Annex 1
Methodological annex
127
A.1.1 Approach for analysing employment in clean energy
 technologies
127
A.1.2 Approach for modelling employment projections
129
A.1.3 Approach for analysing the gender composition of
 the workforce
129
A.1.4 Approach to identifying key occupations
130
A.1.5 Approach to assessing relevant skills
131
A.1.6 Approach to assessing occupational shortages
131
A.1.7 Approach to assessing wages and salaries
132
A.1.8 Approach to analysing data from the European Working
 Conditions Survey 2024 133

5
Clean energy technologies in the European Union — implications for quality jobs, skills and a just transition
Acknowledgements
The European Environment Agency (EEA) would like to thank its partners from the
European Environment Information and Observation Network (EEA member countries
and European Topic Centres), its Scientific Committee, the Directorate‑General (DG)
for Environment, DG for Climate Action, DG for Regional and Urban Policy,
DG Research and Innovation, DG for Energy, DG for Employment, Social Affairs
and Inclusion, the European Commission Joint Research Centre, the European
Foundation for the Improvement of Working and Living Conditions (Eurofound) — in
particular for its guidance on the analysis of European Working Conditions Survey
(EWCS) data — the European Labour Authority (ELA), the European Centre for the
Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop) and the European Investment Bank
(EIB) for their valuable input at different stages of the project. It would also like to
acknowledge the contributions and analytical support of Prognos AG and Ramboll
Management Consulting under contract to the European Environment Agency, as well
as all the participants in the expert workshops.

Clean energy technologies in the European Union — implications for quality jobs, skills and a just transition
6
Key messages
•
Important progress has been made towards the European Union′s
(EU′s) ambition to ensure access to clean, affordable and secure
energy; the share of energy consumption from renewable sources
has more than doubled since 2005. Against this backdrop, Europe′s
transition to climate neutrality is reshaping parts of its industrial
base and labour markets.
•
Among the clean energy technologies studied in this report, wind
energy was the largest employer with an estimated 273,500 direct
jobs in the EU in 2023. While manufacturing remains an important
value chain segment for wind energy, around 77% of jobs are in
downstream activities in the operations segment.
•
The solar photovoltaic (PV) energy technology sector directly
employs over 227,000 people, with operations representing roughly
half of the workforce and construction activities accounting for 36%.
•
The heat pump sector directly employs an estimated 80,100 workers,
mostly in construction activities (65%). While heat pumps remain
under-deployed across the EU, this technology holds strong
growth potential.
•
The battery sector has experienced the fastest employment growth,
with the number of jobs expanding rapidly between 2018 and 2023.
With a total workforce of around 33,000 workers, most jobs are in
manufacturing. Research and development (R&D) remains vital for
next-generation battery technologies.
•
Despite ongoing industry uncertainty and challenges, employment in
the clean-tech sector is expected to continue growing. By 2030, wind,
solar PV, batteries and heat pumps could each employ hundreds of
thousands of workers.
•
Across Member States, Germany accounts for the largest workforce
in absolute terms in wind (125,000 jobs), solar PV (nearly 84,000
jobs) and batteries (12,300 jobs), but not the largest share relative to
total employment in the country. Portugal, Spain and Italy account for
the highest absolute number of heat pump related jobs. Hungary and
Poland show the fastest employment growth in the battery sector.
•
The expansion of clean energy technologies does not automatically
translate into inclusive labour markets. Women remain significantly
under-represented, with a participation rate ranging from 26% in
wind and batteries to 14% in the heat pump sector, highlighting the
need to ensure that the clean energy transition delivers inclusive
employment outcomes.

Key messages
vii
Clean energy technologies in the European Union — implications for quality jobs, skills and a just transition
•
Workers aged 15-24 accounted for only 6-7% of the workforce across
the value chains for wind, solar PV and heat pumps in 2023. Young
people must be better integrated into the transition, particularly at
a time when digitalisation and artificial intelligence are becoming
critical enablers.
•
Skill shortages threaten the deployment of clean energy technologies;
most Member States report gaps in critical installation‑ and
construction‑related technical roles. Coordinated policy action is
needed in to expand training, reskilling and workforce availability
at scale.
•
Job quality must improve to attract and retain workers. The quality of
jobs is currently variable in terms of remuneration, employment status
and contractual stability, physical risks and worker health and safety.
•
A competitive and just clean-tech transition requires strong social
and territorial cohesion to ensure that investments in skills, job quality
and inclusion translate into high-quality, futureproof employment, while
advancing Europe′s climate and competitiveness goals.

Clean energy technologies in the European Union — implications for quality jobs, skills and a just transition
8
Executive summary
The European Union (EU) is rapidly transforming its economy to achieve climate
neutrality, guided by legally binding emissions targets. At the same time, it faces
ongoing geopolitical uncertainties, including recent tensions in the Middle East.
As such, it is necessary to accelerate the EU′s clean transition and further reduce
its dependence on imported fossil fuels and vulnerability to energy price shocks.
Europe′s transition to climate neutrality is reshaping its industrial and employment
landscape, although clean energy technologies in the EU face structural challenges
such as relatively high energy and labour costs, permitting and planning bottlenecks,
and some limitations in access to critical raw materials (CRMs). In spite of this, clean
tech is becoming an essential pillar of the transition, accounting for a growing share
of economic activity and job creation.
The evolving policy framework at the EU level signals a shift from a predominantly
market-led industrial policy to a more integrated, strategic and state-supported
approach. This shift is happening against a backdrop of intensifying global
competition, shifting supply chains and growing geopolitical pressures.
Crucially, Europe′s long‑term competitiveness and climate neutrality objective will
depend on this kind of enabling policy and regulatory framework, innovation and
investment. It will also rely on a skilled workforce and quality employment. Ensuring
that workers have the right skills, that job quality keeps pace with expanding labour
demand and that opportunities are accessible across regions and social groups are
all key factors for a just transition.
This study examines these dimensions by analysing employment trends, workforce
composition, skill needs, labour shortages and job quality across four clean energy
technologies (wind energy, solar photovoltaics (PV), heat pumps and batteries).
The aim is to inform evidence‑based policymaking and the EU′s evolving industrial
transition agenda — spanning the Net-zero Industry Act (NZIA), the Clean Industrial
Deal (CID), the proposed Industrial Accelerator Act and AccelerateEU — and to
support quality jobs, skills initiatives and just‑transition instruments.
A fast‑growing economic and employment engine
The clean energy sector has become an important and fast-growing part of the EU
economy, employing close to one million people and generating EUR 138 billion in
gross value added (GVA) in 2023.
The EU maintains a strong position globally in the wind energy sector — particularly
in offshore wind — in spite of increasing competition. Based on the modelling
approach used in this report, in 2023 wind energy remained the largest employer of
the four featured technologies, with approximately 273,500 direct jobs. Around 77%
of employment in wind energy is concentrated in the operations