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A Sunny Picture: Solar Industry Jobs in Texas Growing
- Updated: March 13, 2015
Texas has the country’s sixth-highest number of workers in the solar industry at nearly 7,000, according to the latest National Solar Jobs Census. Photo: Paul Sableman/Flickr.
by John Michaelson/TNS
AUSTIN, Texas – The sun is shining a bit brighter on the solar industry in the Lone Star State, as the latest analysis shows the state continues to gain jobs in that market.
Andrea Luecke, president and executive director of The Solar Foundation, says the number of solar energy-related jobs in Texas has grown by 68 percent since 2013, with the total now at nearly 7,000.
“It’s currently ranked sixth in the nation,” she says. “There are 365 solar companies, predominantly demand-side, with a small amount of manufacturing.”
The National Solar Census also found there are now nearly 29,000 homes in Texas powered by solar, ranking the state 15th in home solar use in the country.
Luecke notes that while residential and commercial demand for solar-generated power in Texas remains modest, the state’s utility market is growing quickly.
“Utilities such as Austin Energy and CPS [Energy] in San Antonio have procured large amounts of utility-scale solar power through power purchase agreements,” she says. “These are some of the lowest prices ever seen for solar in the U.S.”
According to Luecke, the solar industry now employs more than 173,000 workers nationwide, with the top sectors being installation, sales and distribution, and manufacturing.