The US clean energy sector had a banner employment year in 2023, adding 142,000 jobs, which accounted for more than half of new energy sector jobs overall.
Federal policies and investments in driving job growth have made a powerful impact – clean energy employment is growing at a rate more than double that of the broader energy sector and the overall US economy.
According to the 2024 US Energy and Employment Report (USEER) released today by the US Department of Energy (DOE), the energy workforce expanded by over 250,000 jobs in 2023, with 56% of those in clean energy.
The 2024 USEER is based on “a record number of” responses from 42,000 businesses nationwide.
For the first time, unionization in clean energy jobs hit a new milestone, with rates surpassing those in the broader energy sector. Clean energy sectors like zero-emission vehicles, renewable energy, and energy infrastructure saw significant growth.
“[A]s the report shows, union labor makes a difference; employers report that working with unions has made it easier for them to find the skilled workers they need and hire a diverse workforce,” said AFL-CIO president, Liz Shuler.
5 key findings
Clean energy leads job growth. Clean energy jobs grew by 4.2% in 2023, more than twice the rate of overall US economic growth at 2%. This growth was evident across all 50 states and the District of Columbia, with Idaho, Texas, and New Mexico in the lead.
Solar and wind jobs surge. Solar and wind energy sectors posted strong gains, with job growth of 5.3% and 4.5%, respectively. The DOE projects that the Inflation Reduction Act will double electricity generation from clean sources by 2030, with solar and wind at the forefront.
Construction booms. The energy construction sector added nearly 90,000 jobs in 2023, growing at 4.5%, nearly double the growth rate of the broader construction industry. This includes jobs in renewable energy projects, grid upgrades, and the construction of new clean energy factories.
Union labor on the rise. For the first time ever, unionization rates in clean energy, at 12.4%, surpassed the average rate in the energy sector of 11%, driven by rapid growth in unionized construction and utility industries.
Motor vehicle sector shifts to clean energy. Motor vehicle jobs are growing, and the fastest growth is in zero-emission vehicles. US-wide jobs in the motor vehicle sector grew, with clean vehicle employment increasing 11.4%, adding nearly 25,000 jobs.
Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm said, “Our policies are working. We are now starting to see the job impacts of investments made through the infrastructure and inflation reduction laws – first in construction and as America builds more of these factories, we’ll see hundreds of thousands more.”
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Fueled by incentives from the Illinois EPA and the state’s largest utility company, new EV registrations nearly quadrupled the 12% first-quarter increase in EV registrations nationally – and there are no signs the state is slowing down.
Despite the dramatic slowdown of Tesla’s US deliveries, sales of electric vehicles overall have perked up in recent months, with Illinois’ EV adoption rate well above the Q1 uptick nationally. Crain’s Chicago Business reports that the number of new EVs registered across the state totaled 9,821 January through March, compared with “just” 6,535 EVs registered in the state during the same period in 2024.
At the same time, the state’s largest utility, ComEd, launched a $90 million EV incentive program featuring a new Point of Purchase initiative to deliver instant discounts to qualifying business and public sector customers who make the switch to electric vehicles. That program has driven a surge in Class 3-6 medium duty commercial EVs, which are eligible fro $20-30,000 in utility rebates on top of federal tax credits and other incentives (Class 1-2 EVs are eligible for up to $7,500).
The electric construction equipment experts at XCMG just released a new, 25 ton electric crawler excavator ahead of bauma 2025 – and they have their eye on the global urban construction, mine operations, and logistical material handling markets.
Powered by a high-capacity 400 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery capable of delivering up to 8 hours of continuous operation, the XE215EV electric excavator promises uninterrupted operation at a lower cost of ownership and with even less downtime than its diesel counterparts.
XCMG showed off its latest electric equipment at the December 2024 bauma China, including an updated version of its of its 85-ton autonomous electric mining truck that features a fully cab-less design – meaning there isn’t even a place for an operator to sit, let alone operate. And that’s too bad, because what operator wouldn’t want to experience an electric truck putting down 1070 hp more than 16,000 lb-ft of torque!?
Easy in, easy out
XCMG battery swap crane; via Etrucks New Zealand.
The best part? All of the company’s heavy equipment assets – from excavators to terminal tractors to dump trucks and wheel loaders – all use the same 400 kWh BYD battery packs, Milwaukee tool style. That means an equipment fleet can utilize x number of vehicles with a fraction of the total battery capacity and material needs of other asset brands. That’s not just a smart use of limited materials, it’s a smarter use of energy.
As “extreme” weather events become more commonplace, the demand for reliable and portable energy continues to rise. In response to that growing demand for dependable off-grid power, Volvo has developed the new PU500 Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) designed to take electrical power when it’s needed most.
Designed to be deployable in a number of environments at a moment’s notice, the Volvo Energy PU500 BESS is equipped with approximately 500 kWh of usable battery capacity (up to 540 kWh total). More than enough juice, in other words, to power a remote construction site, disaster response effort, or even a music festival – anything that needs access to reliable electricity beyond a grid connection.
That’s great, but what sets the PU500 apart from other battery storage solutions is its integrated 240 kW DC fast charger.
“With an integrated CCS2 charger, the PU500 is designed to work with all brands of electric equipment, trucks, and passenger cars,” says Niklas Thulin, Head of BESS Product Offer at Volvo Energy. “This ensures that no matter what type of electric vehicle or machinery you rely on, the PU500 can provide the power you need, making it a truly flexible solution for any grid constrained site or location.”
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The integrated charger in the PU500 has the impressive ability to charge a heavy equipment asset (be that an electric semi truck or something like a wheel loader) in under two hours. Its on-board capacity allows to fully recharge up to 3 electric HD trucks or 20 electric cars per day, making it an incredibly versatile disaster response asset.