Government schemes and initiatives to install 100 gigawatts of solar power capacity by 2022 have boosted investment in the energy management sector and led to increase in job opportunities, says Dr Atmanand
With the availability of various resources and the fact that their proper use can fuel phenomenal economic and technological growth of a nation, the energy sector has a great role to play in the development of any country. A study shows that renewable energy investments in India jumped to $10.9 billion in 2015 from the annual average of $8 billion in the last three years, driven by the solar energy sector. India joined countries like China, Africa, US and latin America, which also saw an increase in clean energy investments. Government’s ambitious push to install 100 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacity by 2022 has boosted this investment. Government’s initiatives in energy sector have led to the increase in job opportunities.
Tailored courses in Energy Management studies prepare students to make the most out of their career in conceptualising new ways to manage the present and the future of energy resources. The aim of these courses is also to make students adept in formulating solutions which can help tackle the critical environmental and economic problems that arise as a result of excessive consumption of energy. Taking up a career in this field can be very satisfying at a personal level and also extremely rewarding in terms of monetary and professional growth.
Government initiative
The Union Budget of India, 2016-17 has set a budget of Rs 798.84 in addition to the State Government’s budget for the development of the power sector. Schemes by the Central Government, such as Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Yojna and Integrated Power Development Scheme, along with the recently launched Ujjwal Discom Assurance Yojna ensure a number of employment opportunities in the form of businesses and jobs. The field of work includes the installation of Ultra Mega Power Projects and power generators, construction of transmission lines along with the consolidation of the electricity distribution framework. Power finance companies, power trading companies both small and big players and energy consulting organisations are going in a big way for massive expansion of their business which will require energy professionals.
Job prospects
As the majority of the responsibilities in the power sector, especially the distribution and the transmission verticals are carried out by distribution companies and transmission companies which are run by States, there is a larger scope of significant job opportunities in fields related to IT, smart grid and renewable energy sources, to name a few. The big-budget expenses for this sector along with the expertise necessary to execute various business verticals can be seen as lucrative opportunities. Despite the presence of companies such as Rural Electrification Corporation limited and Power Finance Corporation limited, other private and public banks finance the power sector considerably. This introduces the scope of finance and banking prospects in the industry as well.
Combined understanding of various areas and subjects such as IT, finance, and power management with specialised skills in subjects such as operations, consultancy services and programme management, are going to be mandatory for jobs in this particular sector. Due to the increased focus on IT and electronics for various purposes such as production, transmission and distribution, power production has to be executed in massive scales. The courses enable students to learn how to efficiently distribute, manage and plan the power transmission in various urban and rural grids.
Challenges
With time, the attention on the loss reduction has increased most in State-owned discoms. The issue of energy loss is being tackled through a number of solutions such as the use of renewable energy sources, energy efficient alternatives such as the lED distribution scheme which promotes the use of lED, metering of feeders and distribution transformers and installation of smart meters and grids.
The stake holders need to understand the significance of information technology and the impact which it has on the various processes such as remote data acquisition, billing of electricity, supervisory control on grid and power purchase, among others. Some of the most basic devices such as electronic meters need the support of a software system and a platform along with a communication network. Power finance companies, power trading companies, hard core power companies both small and big players and energy consulting organisations are going in a big way for massive expansion of their business which will require energy professionals.
Due to this, the stake holders need to upgrade the skills by creating more employment for professionals who have a profound knowledge about the state-of-the-art technologies and the operations. There are a number of institutes which have specially designed programmes for the students and working professionals.
Start-up
A number of start-ups in areas such as consultancy firms, distribution of renewable energy and decentralised generation, are also mushrooming steadily. They will help provide specialists in areas such as Sales and Marketing, Energy Accounting, Banking, Consulting, Programme Management and other services such as field work. Mobile platforms and applications are also going to come up, in order to provide decision making support systems to help manage and execute the daily business processes for the aforementioned fields. This obviously means that the Energy Management space is all set to get more lucrative for professionals who wish to take up a career in this realm.
(The writer is Economics professor and Consulting Dean at the Management Development Institute, Murshidabad)