The Skills Australia Needs event hosted by the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship will target American professionals in the resources, energy and infrastructure sectors May 19-20 in Houston, Texas.

Senator Chris Evans told a press conference the event is intended to fill temporary labour needs which are expected to skyrocket, particularly in mining-related civil engineering industries.

"People would be aware that the large amount of construction occurring in Australia in developing mines, railways and ports, which is putting a huge demand on our existing civil engineering workforce," he said.

"The reality is projections have our workforce going from about 30 or 35,000 currently to perhaps 75,000 or more workers required in those fields."

Minister for Immigration and Citizenship Chris Bowen said holding the expo in the resource-rich state of Texas was part of the program's strategy.

"Because we are particularly focusing on the resources sector and resources employment, the first skills expo will be held in Houston on the 19th and 20th of May," he said.

"The biggest risk to some of our resources projects being completed in Australia is actually getting the necessary skills, the highly specialised skills in many cases, which go to the construction of large resources projects and of course, that has flow on effects throughout the construction sector, to ensure that we have the right mix of skills available."

US ambassador to Australia Jeff Bleich said the program represented a "win-win" situation for both countries.

"One of the great things about US migration here is, as Minister Bowen said, they're mostly 457 visas so we're talking about people who speak the same language, come fully skilled and then leave, so no job will be taken away from Australians, and in fact that's the goal here - to create prosperity that will employ more Australians down the road," Bleich said.