Mr. Michael Fitzgerald:

I thank the Chair and members for the opportunity to address the committee. ESB Networks is the owner and operator of the electricity system in Ireland as well as the transmission system asset owner. As part of our networks for net zero strategy, we are committed to future-proofing Ireland’s electricity network and making the country’s goal of net zero by 2050 a reality. The strategy will underpin an energy transition that will enable electricity customers to adopt new technologies, products and services in the decades ahead. This will change how they generate, store and consume electricity. Crucially, we will need skilled staff to deliver on this vision. As experienced colleagues retire and we further enhance ESB Networks’ capabilities, we will continue to recruit colleagues across a wide array of disciplines from finance to marketing to data analytics over the next five years, along with almost 100 apprentices each year. These will, for the most part, be based in local communities all over Ireland. For this presentation we will focus on apprentices, how we attract them, how we support their training and their importance to both ESB Networks and the wider ESB community.

For generations, the apprenticeship system has been part of our philosophy and ethos in the ESB. Our investment in apprenticeships and in-career training is critical to ensuring we have the requisite skills to maintain, develop and enhance the electricity system so it meets the needs of modern Ireland. The apprenticeship model has worked extremely well for the ESB. We have an excellent national training centre in Portlaoise. Following a multimillion euro investment, our Burnwood 38 kV station at the centre gives apprentices and other staff a real-life environment in which to undertake practical training. We have over 300 apprentices in training at any one time. Network technician apprentices complete four apprentice training levels in our national training centre over 23 weeks. This is in addition to their State training, which helps to instill high safety and quality standards in our business. We have always sought to contribute to the development of apprenticeships in Ireland and worked closely with SOLAS and other organisations in areas such as standards and progression routes. Diversity of intake is essential for ESB Networks. This year 25% of first-year apprentices are female. This is the largest group in the country.

To continue to achieve the necessary standards, we must attract the highest possible field of potential candidates at recruitment stage. Apprenticeship promotion is multifaceted. It spans primary and secondary school levels and involves working with the teaching profession while also engaging with parents via social media. At primary level, we find early positive engagement with science is important to help students to choose STEM subjects at secondary level. In addition to presenting at the national schools summits, ESB Networks supports the promotion of STEM through ESB Science Blast. Through these initiatives, we promote STEM learning to over 20,000 primary school children per year. Both staff and apprentices actively participate. At secondary school level, events such as access networks, Apprenticeship Expo’s career days, Higher Options and SkillsIreland are important engagement opportunities. ESB Networks is a sponsor of and active participant in many of these events. We showcase both male and female apprentices as role models for their peers. In 2022 we visited 55 secondary schools in 24 counties. Over 50,000 contacts were made at these events. We have an annual programme for transition year students, who attend specially prepared events in our national training centre. DEIS schools are an important element, with the active support of our third-level partners.

To support the pipeline of STEM-confident talent in the future, ESB Networks supports a summer placement programme for trainee teachers. Feedback from this group suggests that across the EU, STEM subject decisions tend to be made early and often in primary school. Parents and teachers are key motivators. Reaching the wider secondary school community, including teachers and parents, involves an active social media campaign. Apprentices advocate a diverse, attractive and rewarding way to "earn as you learn" to degree level or beyond. To achieve authenticity, the material is created on site in ESB Networks, using actual apprentices and staff. We are linking with the Irish Career Guidance Association to arrange familiarisation events in 2023 and beyond. Over the years we have invested heavily in our apprenticeship programme, including non-traditional apprenticeships. These investments have been rewarded with a stream of talent into the company that is crucial to our business and to serving the nation in a very different energy future.