Jobs in large-scale solar farms tripled last financial year, overtaking the hydro sector for the first time, and helping to drive an overall expansion of employment in the renewable energy sector.
Data from the Australian Bureau of statistics shows the number of full-time equivalent jobs in the industry rose 28 per cent in 2017-18 from a year earlier. The total of 17,740 jobs was up about 60 per cent from its recent low in 2015-16.
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| Jobs surge in large-scale renewables: A solar farm near Swan Hill in north-west Victoria. |
Rooftop solar photovoltaics continue to be the mainstay of jobs in the industry, making up just shy of half of them. Its share has dropped back from a peak of 74 per cent in direct renewable industry jobs in 2011-12 - as installations of panels break records almost on a monthly basis - as solar farms have grown even faster.
Gary Thursby, the bank's chief operating officer, said Westpac had long recognised that climate change was "one of the most significant issues set to impact the long-term prosperity of our
economy and way of life".
The tumbling price of renewable energy provided "a great opportunity" to transition away from fossil fuels in "a cost-effective way", he said.
Solar farm builder Renew Estate’s Simon Currie said solar farms are providing a boon for regional areas. “Projects like Bomen – in Wagga Wagga – are showing the way for the future, by using localised labour, and it paves the way for how the renewable workforce is used in the future,” Mr Currie said.
Solar farm jobs soared from 930 in 2016-17 to 2880 last year, topping hydro's 2020 jobs and 1890 employed in wind farm developments, the ABS said. Solar's jump made up almost half the extra jobs in the sector last year.
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| A wind farm near Ararat in western Victoria. Growth in large-scale renewables provided Victoria with a big jump in jobs. Credit: Ararat Wind Farm |
Queensland saw the next largest increase in proportional terms, rising 44 per cent, or 1550 jobs, while NSW added 950 jobs, for a 27 per cent addition last year.
According to ABS, about one in four homes deemed suitable for solar PV have them.
Queensland leads the way with 36 per cent, narrowly ahead of South Australia's 34 per cent rate.
According to the Clean Energy Council, the renewables sector employed 20,105 total jobs by the end of last year - taking into account another half year of rapid expansion in the industry.
Of those, rooftop solar jobs - which exclude some of the sales and general office staff counted by ABS - made up about a third of employment.
For large-scale wind and solar farms, some 10,851 jobs were in construction and 2987 were in operations and maintenance, the council said.
“With just 21 per cent of our electricity coming from renewables last year, the task of transforming our energy system is really just beginning," Darren Gladman, the council's Director of Smart Energy, said.
"The good news is that renewable energy and energy storage is now the cheapest, cleanest and most reliable form of electricity generation that can be built today," he said, adding the council backs a national target of at least 50 per cent renewable energy by 2030.
Links
- 'Blown away': rooftop solar PV installations surge by almost half
- The power generation method touted as the solution to carbon emissions
- Australian-designed solar panel firm looks to shake-up booming sector
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- Coal power baron says electric vehicles an inevitability
- How to get the most out of your home solar panels
- Atlassian plans 'ambitious' shift to 100pc renewable energy by 2025
- 'High degree of acceptance': Wind farm commissioner received just 8 complaints last year
- Solar battery use to grow but many wait for 'financial tipping point'
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