The National Energy Training Academy (NETA) has welcomed Energy Minister Eamon Ryan's announcement of measures to encourage the on-site generation of electricity in homes and farms across Ireland - which could provide major opportunities for the construction sector.

Mayo-based NETA 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 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 programs for both future Instructors and Installers of Wind Turbines, Solar Photovoltaic and Micro-Hydro systems.

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To facilitate the uptake of employment opportunities in the sector on the back of the Ministers announcement, the SEI-approved installer academy announced yesterday that Instructor and Installer courses will start from next Monday (2 March 2009).

Paul McCarthy of Teagasc said that Minister’s Ryan's announcement presented farmers with a new enterprise opportunity.

"Farmers already have the land and with additional training can acquire the knowledge, not just for installation but for site survey, product choice, project management and how to incorporate this into their existing business model.

"Teagasc intend to play a leading role with its members in the development of this new expertise and would expect farmers to be a significant majority of both the grant and tariff allocation of 4000 as announced by the Minister."

John Moran, General Manager of NETA, said: "There is much expertise in Ireland as it is a leading player in wind farms and it is important that we filter this knowledge into training programs at domestic level to ensure high quality growth in this sector."

Mr Moran said the industry created 250,000 jobs in Germany when it was launched.

"This announcement will have a significant impact on getting our electricians and construction workers into new areas of employment," he added.

The upcoming training courses have been developed specifically for the Republic of Ireland which has unique climate, 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.

(PR/JM)