In its 2015 Renewable Energy and Jobs Annual Report, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) estimated there were 7.7 million direct and indirect jobs in the renewable energy sector in 2014.
FACT SHEET
Clean Energy Jobs Around the World
Renewable Energy
The following data is from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). In its 2015 Renewable Energy and Jobs Annual Report, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) estimated there were 7.7 million direct and indirect jobs in the renewable energy sector in 2014. The nine sectors of renewable energy covered by the report were biomass, liquid biofuels, biogas, geothermal, small hydropower, solar photovoltaic (PV), concentrated solar power (CSP), solar heating/cooling, and wind power. The report revealed that China leads global employment in renewable energy with roughly 3.4 million direct and indirect jobs, followed by Brazil, the United States, India, and Germany.
Across the globe, solar PV has the highest employment in the renewable energy sector, with roughly 2.5 million jobs. Liquid biofuels trails closely behind with 1.8 million jobs, followed by wind power at approximately one million jobs.
The following is a breakdown of green jobs in the countries with the largest amounts of renewable energy employment.
China: In addition to being the largest provider of total renewable energy jobs worldwide, China also leads in eight of the nine different renewable energy sectors. Some of China’s biggest renewable energy employment sectors in 2014 were solar PV with 1.6 million direct and indirect jobs, solar heating/cooling with 600,000 jobs, and wind power with 502,400 jobs.
Brazil: According to IRENA, Brazil has the second greatest number of renewable energy jobs worldwide, with a total of 934,000 jobs. Brazil tops the charts globally for jobs in liquid biofuels with a total of 845,000. IRENA also notes that the nation has 41,000 jobs in solar heating/cooling, 36,000 jobs in wind, and 12,000 jobs in small hydropower.
India: India has the fourth largest number of renewable energy jobs globally, employing 437,000 people directly and indirectly in the sector. IRENA calculates that India employs the most people in solar PV, with a total of 125,000 jobs, followed by biogas (85,000 jobs), solar heating/cooling (75,000 jobs), and biomass (58,000 jobs).
Germany: IRENA finds Germany has the most renewable energy jobs in the European Union, as well as the fifth largest number in the world, with a total of 371,000 jobs. Germany is widely known for its use of wind power, a sector that employs 138,000 people. Germany also has 56,000 jobs in solar PV and 52,000 jobs in biomass.
IRENA reports that Indonesia, Japan, France, Bangladesh and Colombia make up the rest of the top ten countries with the highest number of green jobs
Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency jobs are particularly difficult to measure on the global stage, as definitions vary greatly, and many workers in the building industry are not part of the formal economy. The latest information for global energy efficient data comes from a 2008 green jobs report published by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), in which the organization determined there were a total of four million direct jobs in energy efficiency in the United States and a selection of European countries. In a 2013 report, SustainLabour estimated 25,900 jobs are created for every one billion euros ($1,135 billion) invested in energy efficient buildings, and that there were 232,050 jobs currently in the European Union insulation industry.