The National Energy Training Academy (NETA ), which is based in Mayo, has welcomed Energy Minister Eamon Ryan's announcement of measures to encourage the on-site generation of electricity in homes and farms across Ireland. The organisation, said the ability to sell electricity to the grid was an important step for the renewable industry but also for job creation.
Among the measures announced today is a guaranteed price of 19 cent per kilowatt hour of electricity produced. The feed-in tariff will apply to the first 4,000 micro-generation installations countrywide over the next three years. Eligible installations include small scale wind, photovoltaic, hydro, and combined heat and power.
Established in 2006, NETA has developed specialist training programmes for both future instructors and installers of wind turbines, solar photovoltaic, and micro-hydro systems. To facilitate the uptake of employment opportunities in the sector on the back of the Minister’s announcement, the SEI-approved installer academy announced that instructor and installer courses will start this week.
The upcoming training courses have been developed specifically for the Republic of Ireland which has a unique climate and legislative and regulatory requirements including a robust grid connection process requiring certification by a registered electrical contractor under the controlled works process. The courses are largely practical in nature with skills such as wind turbine towers, solar photovoltaic roof installations, and wind turbine assembly. Courses are already heavily booked and some subsidised courses are available in the initial phases. For more see www.neta.ie
