Opinion: Skills gap threatens hydrogen ambitions

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With the global race for green hydrogen accelerating, Tshepang Sekgobela warns that nations including South Africa risk falling behind because of a shortage of specialised skills. Without urgent investment in training, she argues, the country could miss its 2030 hydrogen targets and lose the opportunity to remain competitive in the growing sector.

• Ms Sekgobela works in the Office of the CEO at the Chemical Industries Education and Training Authority (CHIETA), South Africa. 

• She says South Africa must prioritise integrating green hydrogen training into Community Education and Training (CET) and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges to build an inclusive, job-ready workforce capable of supporting large-scale hydrogen projects.

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By Tshepang Sekgobela

The global green hydrogen transition is underway, but without the right skills, South Africa risks falling behind. For instance, Namibia is already making progress on large-scale hydrogen projects in collaboration with European partners, while South Africa has only initiated a one-megawatt electrolysis facility. Without urgent investment in skills development, South Africa may miss the opportunity to lead.

The shift towards clean energy has brought green hydrogen into the spotlight. Produced by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable electricity, green hydrogen has the potential to replace fossil fuels in industries such as transport, chemicals, and energy. The South African Hydrogen Society Roadmap outlines ambitious targets, including 500 kilotons of green hydrogen by 2030 and deploying 10 GW of electrolysers in the Northern Cape. Yet, the ability to realise these ambitions requires skilled professionals that are available within multiple fields.

Certainly, universities and research institutes will contribute to innovation, but CET and TVET Colleges are uniquely positioned to provide the technical and practical skills that are necessary for implementing solutions at scale. Developing a green hydrogen economy demands collaboration across a wide range of skills. This integration is essential for South Africa’s Just Energy Transition by making new opportunities both accessible and inclusive.

Currently, there are existing skill gaps in areas like electrolysis operations and maintenance, hydrogen safety and storage, chemical engineering and renewable energy integration, and logistics for hydrogen transport and export. Electrolysis is at the heart of green hydrogen and hydrogen energy is what makes the industry viable. Without intervention, South Africa risks lagging in both industry readiness and workforce preparedness.

CET and TVET colleges are central to South Africa’s skills ecosystem. There are currently 50 public TVET colleges with over 270 campuses nationwide, making them the most extensive skills delivery in the country. Integrating them into the green hydrogen economy can offer the following benefits: Firstly, it expands access to skills development. TVETs train technicians, artisans, and operators, who will keep the hydrogen facilities running. Secondly, their training is hands-on and practical. TVET colleges focus on applied, job ready skills which perfectly align with the daily demands of hydrogen plants and infrastructure. Thirdly, incorporating green hydrogen into CET and TVET curricula can ensure that the youth, women, and historical disadvantages have a real stake in the economy. This supports the broader socio-economic goals of South Africa’s Green Hydrogen Commercialisation Strategy (GHCS).

CHIETA has already undertaken several interventions to prepare for the hydrogen economy. These include the Green Hydrogen Centre of Specialisation, developed in partnership with other SETAs and the CSIR; the three GH2 skills programme that is designed to align training with industry needs, and the Pan-African Green Hydrogen Skills Conference, which brings together stakeholders across academia, industry, and government to help close the skills gap. These initiatives show CHIETA’s leadership role, but their success depends on deeper integration with CET and TVET colleges.

The transition to a green hydrogen economy brings several opportunities for South Africa. It opens doors to building a skilled workforce that can attract both local and foreign investment, while also positioning the country as a continental leader in green hydrogen training. By expanding access through rural training centres, growth can be more inclusive creating jobs and opportunities in areas that have often been left behind.

However, there are also key challenges that should be addressed to realise this potential. CET and TVET curricula need to be updated to include green hydrogen technologies, safety standards, and relevant content to the industry. It is found that many institutions also face infrastructure constraints from lack of specialised equipment to which requires urgent investment, to outdated labs. Most importantly, lecturers and teachers need reskilling so they can have the ability to deliver new content effectively and confidently.

South Africa’s ambitions in the green hydrogen economy cannot be realised without meaningful investment in human capital. CET and TVET colleges offer the most direct path to equipping a broad and inclusive workforce with the technical skills that are needed for hydrogen production, safety, and export. The government and industry must take decisive action by 2026 to revise curricula, invest in modern training infrastructure, and establish long-term funding partnerships. This urgency is critical for South Africa to meet its 2030 hydrogen targets and remain globally competitive.