- The training courses that will start next February are part of Endesa's Futur-e plan developed with the aim of promoting local employment in the dismantling of the plant, for which a specialist workforce is required.
The territorial delegate for Employment, Training, Self-Employment, Economic Transformation, Industry, Knowledge and Universities and provincial director of the Andalusian Employment Service (SAE), Emilio Ortiz; the mayor of Carboneras, José Luis Amérigo; and Endesa's director of Institutional Relations in Andalusia and Extremadura, Pilar Delicado, today presented the training plan in the context of the dismantling of the Litoral de Carboneras thermal power plant which is being carried out, and the cooperation agreement signed by Endesa, the Andalusian Employment Service and Carboneras town council to facilitate the development of the training plan.
These training courses are part of the Futur-e plan developed by Endesa with the aim of promoting local employment in the dismantling of the plant and the installation of renewable plants which will come on stream as alternatives following the closure of the plant, for which specialist personnel is required. Endesa has earmarked over 150,000 euros for these training courses that will take place in Carboneras and benefit 500 people.
Endesa's director of Institutional Relations in Andalusia and Extremadura, Pilar Delicado, stated that "Endesa's commitment to Carboneras and the province of Almería is ongoing following the closure of the Litoral plant. To this end we have drawn up an economic stimulation and reindustrialisation project, the Futur-e Plan, based on social and environmental sustainability criteria". She added that this plan "offers new employment opportunities in the area, both in the dismantling of the plant and in the development of new renewable plants to replace the generation capacity of the plant, a burgeoning sector in Andalusia". She also highlighted "the outstanding collaboration between Carboneras town council and the Andalusian regional government through the Andalusian Employment Service to bring this project, which is being very well received, to fruition".
The territorial delegate for Employment, Emilio Ortiz, emphasised "the commitment of the regional government to foster the rollout of alternative projects that replace the thermal plant as a driver of economic growth and employment generation in Carboneras and its region". In this regard he alluded to the cooperation agreement for the training plan and offered "the resources of the Andalusian government to foster business activity, and the incentives for industrial development, channels for attracting strategic investment, support for internationalisation and the experience and capacity of the experts of the Andalusian Innovation and Development Agency (IDEA) to collaborate on the evaluation of industrial and tourism projects presented at the international competition of ideas organised by Endesa".
The mayor of Carboneras, José Luis Amérigo Fernández, regards the agreement signed as "the translation of the concern, interest and involvement of all parties in generating these new employment opportunities for the municipality, which Carboneras town council is fully committed to making a reality". He emphasised the prioritisation of those workers affected by the closure of the Carboneras plant and unemployed people in the municipality, adding that the council has always been keen to ensure that "the participants did not have to travel to other municipalities to carry out the training, making a variety of local spaces available to Endesa and the SAE so that the courses can be carried out here".
The training plan
The courses, which will start in February, will be carried out under the cooperation agreement signed by the Andalusian Employment Service (part of the Ministry of Employment, Training and Self-Employment of the regional government of Andalusia), Carboneras town council and Endesa. According to the provincial director of the SAE territorial delegate for Employment, Emilio Ortiz, in accordance with this agreement the SAE will be responsible for selecting the course participants and be involved in communication and their recruitment.
In this regard, Emilio Ortiz referred to the two information sessions organised on 25 and 27 January in the Teatro Casa de la Música in Carboneras, which was made available by the town council for this purpose. A team of six technicians and two administrators from the Andalucía Orienta network of the SAE provided information and advice to the 120 participants and collected 97 registrations for the courses. They also helped prospective trainees with other procedures such as registration and reregistration as job seekers. According to Emilio Ortiz, 121 people have so far asked to take part in one or more of the courses in the training plan, applications for which are still being accepted. Prospective participants can register at any employment office in the province and by sending an email to cursoscentraltermica.al.sae@juntadeandalucia.es or calling 600 155 025, 600 155 016 and 600 155 009.
The first course that will be offered in the premises provided by Carboneras town council focuses on the dismantling of the Litoral plant. The 200 trainees on this course titled "Training course for the dismantling of thermal power plants" will receive theoretical and practical classes in four rounds from February to January 2023. In total
200 hours of training for each of the rounds will provide the necessary tools to be able to carry out the dismantling of facilities such as the Litoral plant.
There are also plans under Endesa's Futur-e project to train the local population in the renewables sector, a burgeoning area which will be key in the Carboneras region as the company is planning renewable energy capacity of around 1200 megawatts, chiefly voltaic, in the province of Almería, which will replace the 1,159 megawatts of the Litoral thermal plant.
This new capacity will entail an investment of around 1,200 million euros and the creation of more than 2,000 equivalent jobs during construction and 400 in the operation and maintenance phase. This is why training courses in "solar panel mounting" and "operation and maintenance of wind and solar plants" have been scheduled. These courses will be delivered to around 200 people in several rounds.
Finally, technical training in sectors with potential is planned. This is aimed at around 100 people from the vicinity of the plant and its content will be finalised by the monitoring committee for the training agreement, taking into account, inter alia, the projects resulting from the international competition organised under the Futur-e Plan.
Requirements for participating in the courses
Once the registration process is complete, the SAE will start selecting the participants in accordance with the priority criteria established in the agreement. Therefore, priority will be given among those registered with the SAE and who have asked to take part in the courses to people who are affected by the closure of the plant and/or residents in Carboneras.
First priority will be given to people registered as seekers of jobs and/or services, resident in the municipality of Carboneras, including in the Just Transition Employment Exchange. Next will be seekers of jobs and/or services, resident in the province of Almeria, included in the same Just Transition Employment Exchange.
These are followed by unemployed people, registered as seekers of jobs and/or services, resident in the municipality of Carboneras, ahead of unemployed people in the province.
Finally, the requests will be considered of active workers who are registered as seekers of jobs and/or services resident in Carboneras or, secondly, in the province. For each of these categories, women will be prioritised as participants.
Plan Futur-e
The Futur-e Litoral Plan is an Endesa project aimed at mitigating the potential impact of the closure of this plant on the population via 4 lines of action: a proactive search for employment; promoting economic activity in the area; training in skills for the local population and sustainability initiatives within the municipality.
On 21 January the assessment committee for the Futur-e Project International Competition formed by Carboneras town council, the Andalusian regional government, the Institute for the Fair Transition at the Ministry of Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, the University of Almería, the Port Authority and Endesa convened to analyse the 14 proposals selected in November 2021.
In addition, there are also plans to develop more than 1,200 MW of renewable capacity in Almeria, which will replace the capacity of this plant, and the training plans presented today.
About Endesa
Endesa is the largest electricity company in Spain and the second largest in Portugal. The company is also the second largest gas operator in the Spanish market. Endesa operates an end-to-end business from generation to marketing and through Endesa X also offers value-added services aimed at the decarbonisation of energy uses in homes, companies, industries and public administrations. Endesa is firmly committed to the United Nations SDGs and therefore strongly supports the development of renewable energies through Enel Green Power España, the electrification of the economy and Corporate Social Responsibility. The Endesa Foundation is also active in CSR. We have a workforce of 9,600 employees. Endesa is a division of Enel, the largest electricity group in Europe.