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Australia is rolling out a new national plan to build the skilled workforce needed to decarbonise infrastructure and reach net zero by 2050.
Australia has made a bold commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2050 – a goal that demands a complete transformation of the way we plan, design, build, and operate our infrastructure.
Infrastructure will play a central role in the energy transition, with investment in energy infrastructure expected to increase six-fold over the next five years. But it’s also one of Australia’s biggest emitters, directly responsible for nearly one-third of national carbon emissions and indirectly for more than half.
In short, we can’t decarbonise Australia without decarbonising infrastructure.
Governments and industry bodies are uniting behind a new national game plan for the construction sector to overcome worker shortages that are holding Australia back from decarbonising infrastructure projects in the bid to reach net zero by 2050.
In its Delivering Net Zero Infrastructure: Workforce Report, Infrastructure Australia identifies the make-up of the Infrastructure Net Zero Workforce that can decarbonise infrastructure projects, while pinpointing four recommendations to help it upskill and grow.
Infrastructure Australia CEO Adam Copp said the success of reducing these emissions will be dependent on the strength of the Infrastructure Net Zero Workforce, which currently stands at 130,000 workers across 36 occupations, including construction managers, engineers, architects, and trades.
Defining the Net Zero Infrastructure Workforce
The Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA) Clean Energy Generation report laid the foundation for how Australia will build a skilled workforce capable of driving the clean energy transition. It identified infrastructure as an “enabling sector,” one that underpins the success of every net zero initiative.
However, until recently, there was no consistent definition of the workforce and skills required to decarbonise infrastructure projects.
That gap has now been addressed by the Infrastructure Net Zero initiative, supported by the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC). Their Delivering Net Zero Infrastructure: Workforce Report provides the first detailed analysis of what it will take to develop a truly “Net Zero Infrastructure Workforce.”
The report identifies 130,000 workers currently engaged in roles that directly contribute to reducing emissions across infrastructure projects — representing about half of Australia’s total infrastructure workforce.
These professionals include engineers, scientists, architects, project managers, technicians, trades workers, and labourers, as well as specialists such as economists, cost controllers, and policy professionals who play critical supporting roles.
But with only half of the workforce currently involved in decarbonisation activities, the challenge — and opportunity lies in engaging the rest. Extending awareness, accountability, and practical skills across the sector will be essential to meet net zero goals.
Future growth
The Net Zero Infrastructure workforce is expected to grow to 200,000 by 2030, following a period of slight decline between 2023-2024. This short-term contraction likely reflects a normalisation of workforce dynamics after a temporary surge in supply from 2020 to 2023 due to COVID-19 impacts, which included delayed retirements and workforce re-entry.
Developed as part of the Infrastructure Net Zero initiative overseen by the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC), the report’s key recommendation calls for governments, industry and educators to develop a new industry-wide training program to ensure there is a nationally consistent approach to decarbonising projects.
Training initatives
Several targeted initiatives around the country have been recently established to address this need, for example:
• The Western Australian Clean Energy Skills National Centre for Excellence (commenced in December 2024) will design and deliver training in clean energy science, engineering, construction, and operation in support of Western Australia’s clean energy transformation. It is co-funded by the Australian and Western Australian governments through the National Skills Agreement and Turbocharging TAFE Centres of Excellence measure. Laying the groundwork for infrastructure workforce decarbonisation
• Melbourne Polytechnic’s Clean Economy Skills Lab for Residential Building and Construction (announced August 2024), funded by the Victorian Government, aims to equip workers with expertise in emerging sustainable development and clean energy fields. It will work with industry and TAFE partners to co-design new approaches for skills development, aligned with industry directions and projected need.
• In New South Wales, the Institute of Applied Technology Construction (opened in February 2024) is focused on future innovations and leadership in Construction. Working in collaboration with TAFE NSW, Western Sydney University, and CPB Contractors, it aims to design and deliver market-leading training rapidly adapts to industry needs. It currently offers a range of short courses on sustainability. Most of these initiatives are currently at the initial stages of needs definition and testing market demand for new or updated training offerings.
Read the Delivering Net Zero Infrastructure: Workforce Report, here.
What It Means for the Industry and for You
The race to net zero is also a race for skills. Demand is growing rapidly for professionals with experience in sustainable design, carbon-efficient construction, and lifecycle analysis.
At ConsultANZ, we’re already seeing this shift firsthand. Civil engineers, project managers, and estimators who can demonstrate knowledge of low-carbon materials, renewable integration, or emissions-reporting frameworks are becoming highly sought-after across Australia and New Zealand.
Building the infrastructure of the future will take more than innovation – it will take a workforce ready to lead the transition.
Because in the end, Australia’s journey to net zero won’t just be powered by technology. It will be built by people.
Source: © Copyright, Commonwealth of Australia
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