The two companies launch the ‘Keep it Local’ program which offers 20 young people from Southern Italian regions professional training in the wind energy sector.
EDP Renewables (Euronext: EDPR), the fourth largest wind and solar energy producer worldwide with a presence in 28 markets, and Vestas, a leading company in the manufacture, sale, installation, and maintenance of wind turbines, launch the ‘Keep it Local’ program to grant training scholarships for young people living in small towns.
‘Keep it Local’ aims to contribute to youth training and help create employment to fight local depopulation. The program will offer the young participants the opportunity to enter the labor market close to where they live, becoming drivers of the local economy.
The chosen candidates will enjoy free enrollment for the 5 week semi attendance course, run by Elis, a nonprofit organization whose goal is to offer professional training with a social purpose. Three weeks of the course will be held in Rome. The receivers of the scholarship will also be included in both companies’ recruitment processes, as well as complement their training with the basic occupational health and safety certificate and the GWO certificate for working at heights and first aid.
Roberto Pasqua, South&East EU Executive Director at EDP Renewable, commented: “In addition to playing a significant part in the energy transition process and increasing a nation’s independence from fossil fuels and imports, wind farms also open up new job opportunities locally. Our aim is to give young people in Southern Italy the chance to establish their professional future near their homes in a rapidly expanding and sustainable industry by providing specialized training in wind farm maintenance”.
Francesco Amati, General Manager of Vestas Italy and Turkey, says: “We are really proud to be part of this initiative and we are also very glad to implement it for the first time in the South of Italy together with our partner EDPR. In the past two years, Keep it Local has showcased the role that wind energy can play not only in the fight against climate change, but in creating long-term, sustainable jobs in rural areas.”
Application is open to candidates aged between 18 and 30 who live in geographical areas such as Campania, Apulia, Molise, Basilicata, Sicily, Calabria and Sardinia where both companies have a presence through wind farms, provided they have completed their compulsory secondary education.
Candidates must submit their application by April 28, 2023 by completing the form here. Once received, a jury made up of EDPR and Vestas representatives will choose the winners of the scholarship based on the competition criteria.
Since the launch of the first edition in Spain in 2021, the results have been positive. Within six months of concluding the course, 1 out of every 3 students was working in the sector, living in their home cities. One year later, this figure increased to 50% of the students. Moreover, the program was successfully launched for the second time in Spain and for the first time in Brazil in 2022.
