Electricity and Heat Production and Supply Workers

How to become a Substation Operator

Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 变配电运行值班员

Also called: Substation Duty Operator

Operates, patrols, monitors and maintains equipment in substations, distribution substations and converter stations.

Main tasks

Patrolling and monitoring equipment in converter stations, distribution networks and substations
Carrying out switching operations on the dispatcher's orders
Spotting and analysing equipment problems, reporting them and dealing with them
Analysing and managing equipment operating data for the station
Maintaining equipment in substations, distribution networks and converter stations
Accepting equipment that is new or has just been repaired
Filling in operating logs and technical records

Ways in

Vocational majors: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Hydropower Station and Power Grid Technology (430103). Vocational major 430103 Hydropower Station and Power Grid Technology (水电站与电力网技术), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Substation and Distribution Operation and Maintenance.; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Power Plants and Power Systems (430101). Vocational major 430101 Power Plants and Power Systems (发电厂及电力系统), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Substation and Distribution Operation and Maintenance; Relay Protection Maintenance; Power Generation Centralised Control Operation and Maintenance.; Secondary vocational school (中职) major: Power Plant and Substation Operation and Maintenance (630101). Vocational major 630101 Power Plant and Substation Operation and Maintenance (发电厂及变电站运行与维护), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Substation and Distribution Operation and Maintenance; Substation Primary Equipment Installation; Substation Secondary Equipment Installation.
National qualification: Licence to practise: Special Operations Personnel. You need this qualification to work in the job. Listed in the national vocational qualifications catalogue (国家职业资格目录, 2021) as Special Operations Personnel (特种作业人员), run by Emergency Management Authorities; Mine Safety Supervision Authorities. Peernovo links it to this occupation.

Pay · AI and this job

Median pay in China: CN¥79,000 a year (2025).
Middle half: CN¥55,300 to CN¥123,900. One in ten earn less than CN¥42,100 and one in ten more than CN¥188,500.
This is the figure for the mid group Electricity, Heat, Gas and Water Production and Distribution Workers, not for this job alone.
National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
Guangzhou only: median CN¥110,055 a year (2025), middle half CN¥76,127 to CN¥193,057.
This is the figure for the minor group Electricity and Heat Production and Supply Workers, not for this job alone.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

The census group Electricity, Heat, Gas and Water Production and Distribution Workers holds 0.14% of everyone employed in China; 17.1% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
30.1% are under 35, 56% are 35 to 54 and 13.9% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 40 to 44.
Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Substation Operator?

Ways in include: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Hydropower Station and Power Grid Technology (430103); Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Power Plants and Power Systems (430101).

How much does a Substation Operator earn in China?

Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥79,000 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group Electricity, Heat, Gas and Water Production and Distribution Workers. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥110,055 a year (2025).

Will AI change the work of a Substation Operator?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.

Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.

Updated 5 October 2026