Reflecting on Industry Collaboration through Standardised Training at the ACP OMS Conference 2026

As the world’s second largest wind market, and with solar as its leading source of new electricity deployments, the US renewables market continues to prosper. At this year’s ACP Operations, Maintenance and Safety conference, representatives from GWO’s teams joined leading renewable energy employers and training providers in North America to discuss workforce development, training standardisation and potential collaboration.

A Renewable Energy Market in Transition

With renewables accounting for 26% of US electricity supply in 2025 and 36% of installed generating capacity in 2026, the US market has entered into a period of record-breaking installations across solar, wind and battery storage, with all three adding a further 50.3 GW of capacity in early 2026. While federal policy shifts and infrastructure bottlenecks add fresh challenges into the mix, the country is still on track for 99% of new generating capacity additions to the US grid to derive from renewables and battery storage by year end.
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From new federal restrictions on tax credits, as renewables developers scramble to make headway on construction projects before phase-outs, to the drain of AI data centres on national electricity reserves, the reasons for a growing energy demand are numerous. And with 24 GW of utility-scale storage planned for 2026, battery storage capacity is set to play a key role in stabilising the grid’s intermittent supply.

Assessing Workforce Strategy in the Light of Industry Growth

With continued demand for new energy generation in the US, the North America  region remains a key growth market for standardised workforce training to build a skilled workforce at scale in the years to come. Establishing training pathways for the energy workforce begins with understanding the need for stronger alignment with globally recognised training frameworks, such as the ACP Guidelines GWO co-released with ACP in 2023.

At this year’s ACP Conference, discussions continued on how standardised safety and technical training, with the help of entry-level technician guidelines, can empower organisations to reassess their workforce and training strategies as the industry undergoes rapid growth.

Reflecting on the workforce conversations at the ACP OMS 2026, Jakob Lau Holst, CEO of GWO, remarked:

Connecting with members and Training Providers at this year’s ACP OMS reinforced the importance of collaboration across the industry. In the US market, standardised training will continue to play a crucial role in scaling the workforce in the years to come. Working together to ensure access to localised career pathways with strong progression will therefore be key to meeting the growing demand for skilled professionals within renewables.

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