Energize Weekly, April 4, 2018
The solar industry lost jobs in 2017—seeing a 3.8 percent decline equal to 9,800 positions—for the first time since employment statistics were tracked in 2010 by the non-profit The Solar Foundation, the group said in its annual Solar Jobs Census.
The foundation saw a host of reasons for the decline, including a slowdown in activity after the record-setting pace in 2016 and uncertainty in the industry over the tariff on solar cells and modules levied by the Trump administration.
The drop comes after years of strong job growth. Since 2010, jobs in the industry across the country have risen to 250,000 from 93,000.
There had been a rush in 2016 to get projects going before the expected expiration of a 30 percent federal tax credit for solar projects. Installed capacity in 2016 doubled over 2015 to 15.1 gigawatts (GW).
The tax credit was extended, and in 2017, project installations were down 22 percent compared with 2016.
In January 2018, President Donald Trump approved a 30 percent tariff on imported solar cells and modules under Section 201 of Trade Act of 1974. The tariff will step down 5 percent a year over four years to 15 percent. The first 2.5 GW of imports will be exempt each year.
The Solar Foundation conducted its survey in October and November of 2017 before the tariff was enacted, but 86 percent of the companies said that if restrictions were imposed, it would hurt them, and 71 percent said they had already felt negative effects due to the uncertainty over the final decision.
Installation companies were hardest hit with 7,700 positions lost between November 2016 and October 2017—79 percent of all solar job losses.
The job cuts varied by state with the decline driven by reductions in California, 13,636 positions lost; Massachusetts, 3,053 jobs lost; and Nevada with 1,807 jobs cut.
“California, which is home to about 40% of U.S. solar capacity and grew by a staggering 24,500 jobs in 2016, has traditionally been the largest solar job generator,” the census said. “But a combination of factors, including rainy weather, changing industry business models, and policy uncertainty, have stymied the market.”
California still has 86,414 solar jobs—46,000 of those in installation.
If California were removed from the census, the country would have seen solar job growth, the census said. Despite its losses, Massachusetts still ranks as second in the nation in total solar jobs with 11,530.
Twenty-nine other states and the District of Columbia had solar job growth, including states with emerging markets, such as Utah, which saw a boost of 1,762 jobs, and Minnesota with 1,383 jobs. In Utah, 72 percent of the jobs were in installation, as were 51 percent of the Minnesota jobs.
Among the other states with increases in solar employment were Arizona (1,070 jobs), New Jersey (1,050 jobs), New York (877 jobs) and Tennessee (863 jobs).
While solar represents less than 2 percent of overall U.S. energy generation, it employs twice as many workers as the coal industry, three times as many as wind energy and almost five times the employment in nuclear energy, the census said.
“While the industry faces major short-term challenges—including the impact of new tariffs—the declining price of solar installations, along with continued interest in decarbonization, resilience, and financial savings at the commercial, state, and local levels, all point to a strong long-term outlook for solar,” the report concluded.
