Clean Tech Bright Spot in Dreary Times
Although hiring plans in many industries have dwindled over the past year, executives in the energy sector remain optimistic. That’s according to the third quarter 2008 McKinsey Global Survey on the economic and hiring outlook. The survey reveals that 43% percent of the energy executives polled expects hiring levels to increase - by far the most in any industry. According to McKinsey, it seems likely that “energy companies are drawing on their enormous profits to continue exploring.”
Energy’s Central’s Ken Silverstein underscored this view in a recent report. He states, “Pessimism abounds, but the nation’s energy future is perking up in the long-term. Predictions from all corners are that green energy’s share of the generation pie will expand, all of which is now precipitated by a rapid growth in the level of clean technology investing. Indeed, the technologies that underscore wind, solar and energy efficiency are winning market acceptance and have become among the best performers.”
Executive search firm, A.E. Feldman, says right now opportunities are opening up for investment professionals with expertise in energy and alternative technologies. The firm reports that right now across the country, the wealth of individuals and institutional investors getting involved in the energy and clean technology sector is high. A growing number of law firms with close ties to the VC community and strong IP practices have also jumped onto the green energy bandwagon. The firm notes that legal jobs are opening up as firms build practice groups that target the clean tech sector.
President-elect, Barack Obama has already called for a national renewable portfolio standard to mandate that utilities get 10% of electricity from renewable sources–wind, solar, and geothermal–by 2012, and 25% by 2025. Silverstein adds that there is hope for such renewable technologies thanks to The Renewable Energy and Job Creation Tax Act of 2008 - the legislation that extends the tax breaks given to renewable investments passed by Congress.
Proponents of such government incentives argue they could generate jobs amid economic turmoil, says Silverstein. According to Silverstein, the tax credit provisions for solar investment alone will create 440,000 new jobs and inspire $230 billion in investments.
Already, the renewables sector employs about 2.3 million people globally, according to the Worldwatch Institute. The wind power industry employs roughly 300,000 people, the solar photovoltaics (PV) sector accounts for an estimated 170,000 jobs, and the solar thermal industry, accounts for at least 624,000. The Worldwatch Institute also reports that more than 1 million jobs are found in the biomass and biofuels sector.
Pennsylvania Governor, Edward G Rendell has also stepped forward saying that clean energy projects will create jobs. Rendell recently announced the investment of nearly $12 million in alternative clean energy projects that will create at least 1,200 full- and part-time jobs and attract nearly $118 million in private investment.
California Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, is another vehement supporter of clean technologies. In fact, in a statement he said solar power and other clean-technologies are a bright spot in a dark economy. The Governor has set a goal of increasing California’s renewable energy sources to 20% by 2010, and he supports reaching 33% by 2020. According to Schwarzenegger, clean-technology businesses are getting venture capital dollars and hiring new employees at a time when nearly every other segment of the economy is lagging.
“Government officials now have yet another reason to put the full weight of their support behind renewables,” says Michael Renner, Senior Researcher for Worldwatch. “In addition to protecting our planet and phasing out an increasingly limited resource, policies that support renewable energy also support job creation.”
Silverstein concludes, “With more progressive leadership across the globe — policies that push renewable energy and energy efficiency — it says that green jobs could expand by the millions in the decades to come. Its best case scenario projects global wind power employment to increase to as much as 2.1 million in 2030 while solar photovoltaic job creation would generate as many as 6.3 million new jobs by 2030.”
A separate United Nations’ Environment Program study also finds that efforts to reduce climate change could lead to millions more jobs worldwide. Development of alternative energy should create more than 20 million jobs around the world in coming decades as governments adopt policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to the U.N. report. Creation of the jobs, however, will depend on countries implementing and broadening policies, including capping emissions of greenhouse gases and shifting of subsidies from old energy forms to new ones, according to the study.
The U.N. report adds that investments in improved energy efficiency in buildings could generate an additional 2 million to 3.5 million green jobs in Europe and the United States. It also contends that employment in alternative energies may rise to 2.1 million in wind and 6.3 million in solar power by 2030, and that 12 million could be employed in biomass and biomass related industries such as agriculture.
Silverstein adds, “With the backing of their national governments, global enterprises are allocating more capital to clean technologies, all of which adds opportunities and jobs. It’s the one bright spot in an otherwise dreary time.”
Are you working in energy or clean technologies? If you want to grow your career or your company’s bottom line, contact A.E. Feldman’s President, Mitch Feldman, today!
