Wind power gives life to employment.
A thousand companies represent more than 20,000 direct and indirect jobs in France (fourth European wind farm behind Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom).
Three regions concentrate 60% of land facilities: Grand-Est, Hauts-de-France, Occitanie.
And 7 offshore parks are being developed in the North and the West.
The sector still only produces nearly 9% of national electricity consumption, but its share is growing exponentially.
Renewable energies, wind power in the lead, should reach 30% of national electricity production in 2030 and 50% in 2050. So many jobs to come, parks to build and maintain, in a technological sector that requires new qualifications.
Among the wind power trades, the project manager, at engineer level, is particularly on the rise.
But the most open is undoubtedly that of maintenance technician.
This involves commissioning the installations, followed by maintenance work to ensure maximum availability and production of the fleets.
"This represents a large pool of jobs in the territories," indicates the Wind Farm Observatory 2020.
Technical and physical qualities
“It's a highly sought-after profession that requires technical qualities,” adds Jérôme Beauduin, head of continuing education at Greta de Montmorillon, in Vienne.
Technical and sporting skills… “From the first day of training, we test the candidates' physical capacities by making them climb to the top of a 30-meter mast,” says Jérôme Beauduin.
"Those who are too dizzy do not stay, but neither do the hotheads ..."
"We have difficulty finding the right profiles," deplores Marc Dumas, director in charge of vocational training at the Dhuoda high school, in Nîmes (Gard).
“There is strong competition with sectors like nuclear”.
The profession is very open, including to candidates for retraining.
There are continuing training centers in Le Mans (Sarthe), Charleville-Mézières (Ardennes), Dijon (Côte-d'Or), Nîmes (Gard) ... Le Greta du Maine even offers wind farm maintenance training at sea.
Training for adults
“This is the particularity of the sector,” explains Marc Dumas, “we have more and more adults between the ages of 35 and 40.
After a career in industry, they are seduced by renewable energies and wind power ”.
In France, 9 Greta thus offer employees or job seekers continuing training at BTS level.
These studies are paid, but often supported by the regions or Pôle Emploi.
"The baccalaureate is not compulsory, a CAP is sufficient if the candidate already has professional experience", specifies Jérôme Beauduin.
“We provide advanced theoretical courses in mechanics, electricity, hydraulics, plastics, in English.
Once the diploma in hand, there are openings, on condition of accepting a real professional mobility ”, concludes the trainer.
This difficult job is not necessarily a job for life.
"You can have a great career development by becoming a team leader or maintenance manager, but also bounce back to versatile functions such as technical sales or engineering assistant in a design office", indicates Marc Dumas.
In addition to continuing education, a BTS in wind turbine maintenance technician has been in existence for five years.
You can also get a professional license in energy or maintenance and technology.
Finally, there is specific training in “wearing a harness and safety in wind turbines”.
An originality: all these training courses must be validated by two German certificates of international value (BZEE or GWO).
Salaries are attractive: 22,000 euros a year gross for a beginner, 30,000 to 40,000 euros for an experienced technician.
Apart from the maintenance technician position, two other key trades exist in wind power: the boilermaker (manufacture and assembly of machines) with a CAP, professional bac or BTS training, and the site manager, with a bac + 3 training at bac + 5, diploma in civil engineering or public works.
"I keep an unforgettable memory"
Those who have tried working at altitude, like Blanche, take a liking to it.
Was it her father, a building maintenance technician, who inspired her?
At the age of 20, the young girl embarked on wind power two years ago.
"I am finishing my BTS and I have unforgettable memories of my internship at 8.2, a company specializing in the inspection of wind turbines," says the young woman.
"I accompanied the experts at a height of a hundred meters".
Dizziness ?
Blanche does not know.
“I was trained as a worker at height and I can even abseil down the mast!
It was one of her teachers who convinced her when she was preparing for her techno baccalaureate in sustainable development.
"I am from Vendée and my parents are ecologists, that may have also played a role in my choice ..."
Read also Renewable energy: NGOs write to Macron to denounce "lies" about wind power
Blanche does not intend to stop there.
She wants to learn to transmit her profession, her passion.
“I'm going to spend three more years in Montpellier (Hérault) to specialize in electrical engineering”.
Always higher…
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