Bute Energy’s first ever Summer Internship: Aaron

At Bute Energy, we’re helping to tackle the climate emergency by powering Wales with clean, green energy, which will in turn empower our communities through investment, jobs and skills. We’ve created an environment where learning is encouraged, shared and celebrated and summer 2023 saw the beginning of our internship programme – an opportunity to offer Welsh college and university students an exciting opportunity to build their commercial awareness, skills and confidence.

The successful candidate would be working on live projects from the moment they arrive, working alongside our industry experts in a range of teams, including Land Management, Development, People and Engagement, Community Benefit, Grid, and External Affairs. We were looking for a passionate student to help us power a positive energy future for Wales, and in June 2023 we had the pleasure of welcoming Aaron to the Bute Energy family as our first ever intern.

As an Electrical & Electronic Engineering student at the University of South Wales, Aaron showed great passion for sustainability and renewable energy and shared the core values of courage, community and integrity that are crucial to Bute Energy. We were thrilled to invite him onto our new program to support his development in building skills to help broaden his academia and career path. Aaron’s passion and confidence blossomed over the summer, he explained,

“I’d definitely say the internship had a very profound impact on my future academic pursuits as well as my career aspirations. And the reason I say this is because when I first came into Bute Energy, I only had a limited knowledge of what the industry actually held.”

At Bute Energy, we’re passionate about opening new doors in the renewable industry and supporting the education system wherever possible. It’s important for us to provide insightful experiences to students and those developing their skills by highlighting the multitude of career paths that are available within our industry in Wales. He added,

“I always had quite a strong drive to want to push myself into that industry. So originally when I came in, I only really thought it was STEM based subjects, and what I found was, that’s not the case. There’s so many different careers that are involved with getting a wind farm consented from start to finish, how these careers actually all fit into place to make that sort of work.”

It was fantastic to provide Aaron with this unique opportunity to gain valuable insight and real-life experiences with each of our Bute Energy teams. From Land Management and Grid to Community Benefits and External Affairs, Aaron was able to expand his knowledge and hone in on his passion for sustainability and renewable energy. He explained,

“I also now know more about external affairs, how the grid routes are designed and environmental considerations behind that. I also now understand the whole development lifecycle and process to getting a wind farm consented.”

Continuously wanting to learn and grow is something to be celebrated, and this is a value and outcome we strive for with students we work with across Wales. We asked Aaron how this summer internship had influenced his career aspirations or future academic pursuits, to which he responded,

“I’m coming out of this internship with more of a direction of where I want to target myself in the future. I feel like I’m now better positioned to make that lasting impact that I really want to. When I originally came in, my knowledge was very limited, whereas now I feel like I not only have the technical understanding of wind turbines but now know they work with different aspects that allow the functionality.”

People are at the heart of Bute Energy. From job creation and social value to the crucial goal to develop and maintain a healthier, wealthier Wales. We’re glad that the positive impact our work will have on the future of Wales was demonstrated throughout the internship. As well as being involved in the technical areas of our work, Aaron shared,

“I even now understand community benefits and how the work that they are doing is adding social value to the local communities surrounding these wind parks, and how that will add a lasting impact to future generations.”

Having Aaron as our intern over the summer months was an honour and it was fantastic to see him continuously learn and grow throughout his journey at Bute Energy. We look forward to sharing these unique opportunities with more Welsh students as our work continues with communities across Wales.

To find out more about how we’re making the Welsh weather work for Wales, take a look at our website Bute Energy.