Fast Facts: Jobs in Solar Energy
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Massachusetts-based Evergreen Solar received $58 million in state aid and tax incentives to build a plant to produce solar panels. The company upheld its end of the bargain, creating double the number of jobs it promised the state. But Evergreen still lost $167 million in the last year, and has decided to send 200 jobs overseas to China in order to stay afloat.
China is investing billions in what it sees as a 'future' industry, trying to corner the market on green technology, and with a cheap labor force, many American companies are left with little option.
Fox News is on the Job Hunt, checking out job opportunities in the growing industry of solar energy.
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Solar Energy in the U.S.
• Solar energy comprises less than one percent of the world's total electricity generation
• Solar power accounts for slightly less than 1 percent of the nation's energy supply
• Renewable energy accounts for some seven percent of the nation's power
• Solar energy provides electricity and hot water to more than 100,000 homes, businesses and utilities in the United States
• 2008: The U.S. had about 8,800 megawatts (MW) of installed solar capacity
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• One megawatt of solar PV capacity can power 150 to 250 homes - 8,800 megawatts can power some 2.2 million homes
• Germany and Spain are the top markers for solar electricity
• Solar panels typically weigh between 30 and 40 pounds; batteries can weigh double that- or more
• Germany, the world leader in solar power (5,400 megawatts), gets about 1% of the country's total energy generating capacity from the sun
Cost to the Consumer
• Installation of a solar panel rooftop system is likely to cost at least $20,000
States and Solar Power
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• 22 states and the District of Columbia offer rebate programs to promote the installation of solar water heating or solar panels for electricity generation.
• There are nearly 50,000 solar-panel installations in California
• Solar capacity in California grew by 1/3 from 2007 to 2008
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• California's solar capacity represents about two-thirds of the national total
• The energy California gets from the sun represents about one-quarter of 1 percent of its total energy capacity
• New Jersey, Colorado and Nevada follow California for the most solar capacity in the United States
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• 10 states, led by Colorado and including Hawaii, Connecticut, Oregon, Arizona, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts more than doubled their rooftop solar capacity in 2008
Solar Energy Jobs
• 2007: 62.5 percent of all clean energy generation jobs in the solar industry
• From 1998-2007, jobs in solar energy increased 19.1 percent
• There are about 7,000 solar photovoltaic installers working on the United States
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• About half of all solar PV installers work in California
• Wages for entry-level solar PV installers are about $12 to $15 an hour and vary by location, with crew leaders making between $20 and $25 an hour
Stimulus Funds and Solar Energy
• American Reinvestment and Recovery Act dedicates $117.6 million to expand and accelerate the development, deployment, and use of solar energy throughout the United States.