Renewable energy jobs · Heat Pumps

Heat Pump Jobs in Renewable Energy

Heat pump professionals design, install, commission, and maintain the air-source, ground-source, and water-source systems that replace fossil-fuel heating in homes and commercial buildings. Europe's heat pump sector employs roughly 433,000 people directly and indirectly, though the workforce contracted by at least 4,000 positions in 2024 after sales fell 23% from their 2023 peak.

That contraction proved temporary. Sales across 16 European countries recovered to 2.62 million units in 2025 - a 10.3% year-on-year increase - bringing the continent's installed base above 28 million systems. Germany alone accounted for over 500,000 new installations, helped by BEG subsidies covering up to 70% of costs. Finland, Norway, and Sweden continue to lead per capita, each selling more than 30 heat pumps per 1,000 households annually.

What the work actually involves

The dominant role is installation - stripping out gas boilers and fitting air-source or ground-source units, which requires plumbing, refrigerant handling, and electrical engineering skills. But heat pump work extends well beyond installation. System designers calculate building heat loads and specify equipment. Commissioning engineers optimise performance after installation. Field service technicians handle warranty work and seasonal maintenance. Sales engineers survey properties and advise homeowners on system sizing - a role that blends technical knowledge with customer-facing skills.

The job titles on Rejobs reflect this range: heating engineer, plumber, HVAC technician, renewable energy surveyor, and sales manager all appear regularly. Many German listings specifically seek SHK-Anlagenmechaniker (HVAC mechanics) qualified for heat pump work, reflecting the country's structured trade certification system.

Who is hiring

The largest employers span energy retailers, cleantech installers, and industrial heat specialists. 1KOMMA5°, a German-headquartered installer consolidator with over 1,000 employees, posts the most heat pump roles on Rejobs. Octopus Energy runs a growing UK installation arm alongside its retail energy business. Vattenfall, GP Joule, and Enpal round out the major European hirers, while Brightcore Energy and Zero Homes recruit in the US market.

Most heat pump jobs cluster in Germany - Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart - reflecting the country's dominant market position. The UK remains a smaller but fast-growing hiring market, particularly as the government pushes toward its 600,000 annual installations target by 2028, up from roughly 60,000 in 2024.

The skills bottleneck

The workforce gap is the sector's defining challenge. In the UK, only 50% of HVAC installers regularly worked on heat pumps in Q1 2025 - down from 60% a year earlier. Germany is better positioned, with over 80% of HVAC professionals heat-pump qualified, but even there the pace of deployment strains available capacity. UK employment in residential heating is projected to grow from 69,000 FTE in 2025 to 144,000 by 2035, with heat pump roles accounting for 82% of that total.

For career switchers, this gap creates genuine opportunity. Plumbers, gas engineers, refrigeration technicians, and electricians can retrain through manufacturer-led courses or college programmes, typically in weeks rather than years. The combination of heat pump installation with energy retrofitting, building energy performance assessment, or district heating design commands a premium, as these professionals can handle whole-building decarbonisation rather than a single appliance swap.

Where this field is heading

Policy direction is clear across Europe: heat pumps are the default replacement for gas boilers in most decarbonisation plans. The question is not whether demand will grow but whether the workforce can keep pace. Professionals who combine installation skills with system design or energy efficiency auditing will find themselves consistently in demand as the sector scales from millions of units to tens of millions.