Report: N.M. added 3K jobs in solar industry last year

Crews work on the installation of solar panels. The solar market is booming, but there aren’t enough skilled workers to fill the jobs available, said Andrea Luecke, executive director of The Solar Foundation.

New Mexico added nearly 3,000 jobs in the solar energy industry in 2016 — more than double what it added in the prior year — part of a national boom in the industry, according to a report released Tuesday.

The seventh annual jobs report for the industry was produced by the nonprofit Solar Foundation in Washington, D.C., which tracks industry data and promotes solar energy use.

The solar market is booming and there aren’t enough skilled workers to fill the jobs available, said Andrea Luecke, executive director of The Solar Foundation. “Right now it’s a demand side story. These are good paying jobs,” she said.

“The shortage of skilled workers is a real thing,” Luecke said. “It’s becoming increasingly difficult every single year. Companies are nearing a crisis stage.”

New Mexico has 76 solar companies, according to The Solar Foundation survey. Of the solar jobs added in 2016 in the state, 1,160 were for installers, 851 were in manufacturing, 451 were in sales, 172 were in project development and the rest were in training, research and development.

The rise of solar is mirrored by data from the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department. The state had less than 1,000 kilowatts of solar installed on New Mexico homes in 2009. By 2016, the installed solar capacity hit nearly 40,000 kilowatts.

Nationally, the solar industry added 51,000 related jobs in 2016 in installation, manufacturing, sales, research and project development. States that saw those jobs increase the most were California, Massachusetts, Texas, Nevada, Florida and New York.

In total, the industry has added 260,000 solar workers nationwide since 2010, according to The Solar Foundation.

According to the report, the growth of solar jobs outpaced employment in all other energy sectors, including natural gas, oil, coal and wind.

Because there are more solar industry jobs than people to fill them, pay is good, Luecke said. The median

wage is $26 an hour, she said.

When the construction industry took a hit during the 2008 recession, many skilled workers such as electricians turned to solar to fill their job gap. But in the last two years, as the economy improved and construction began booming again, those workers returned to traditional construction jobs, Luecke said. “That left a gaping hole in the solar industry,” she said.

Tax credits, metering payments from utilities to customers with solar, the declining cost of solar panels and increased interest from buyers have made solar power comparable in price to conventional electricity. New Mexico lawmakers are considering several bills to extend the solar market tax credit, which expired in 2016, or make it permanent.

The Solar Foundation’s report is based on data from 3,888 employers in solar energy businesses, organizations and training programs.

source: https://www.pressreader.com