If Governor Charlie Crist has any doubt about the efficacy of using federal funds in the private sector to spur growth in solar jobs - he might want to look towards Massaschuttes for confirmation of actual job creation. As of today, Florida has LOST over 125 solar jobs directly related to the lack of rebate funding,and this number will grow every day until a viable rebate program is implemented. The question remains whether these 125+ jobs can afford to wait out the next six months until the existing solar rebate program closes?
The Patrick-Murray Administration's emphasis on solar power has spurred the growth of a vibrant solar industry in Massachusetts - expanding the number of solar installation contractors and subcontractors from roughly 50 in January 2008 to nearly 200 today. A recent survey of 98 solar PV manufacturers, integrators and installers revealed that these companies doubled their Massachusetts employment - from 1,086 to 2,075 - from 2007 to 2008, and expected to add another 960 employees during 2009. Eighty percent of these firms added employees in 2008, and all but 11 planned to expand their workforce this year.
Maybe Florida should take a look at the job creation numbers from a state that has fully committed to deploying renewable energy.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Saturday, January 2, 2010
FP&L Overstates Job Creation
FP&L claims that they will create 100 jobs at the Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center,however, this article in the Orlando Sentinel disabuses those job numbers by stating that there are 24 individuals working and they won't need to hire additional employees. Where are the additional 76 jobs?
Florida's Broken Solar Initiative
We have over 3700 individuals employed in the solar industry[1] in Florida who are now facing a critical downsizing due to the lack of funding for the final six months of the existing state rebate program. At 11.5% unemployment rate, we are expecting to lose approximately 425 existing green jobs over the next several months. It is clear that the existing rebate program is not sustainable for continued growth and needs to be reinvented as a production based or market based program. However, THIS is the mechanism that is in place until June 30, 2010, and given the climate of growing green jobs with the ARRA funding, it is necessary to step in and support these green jobs, not lose them, during this interim period.
In the next two weeks we will be sending Governor Crist and President Obama hard evidence that we are losing green jobs and will continue to lose green jobs until a new solar program is implemented. Each broken solar cell displays the name of an individual who has lost their job among FLASEIA's membership since June 2009 when the money ran out for this year's solar rebate program. Individuals and businesses in Florida are not willing to take a chance on installing solar now, and there is complete lack of confidence that the 2010 legislature will appropriate enough funding to cover those on the waiting list. Florida is broke. The only hope to continue the positive momentum until a new program can be implemented is to use federal funding to bridge the next six months. It is unconscionable that major grants are being awarded to the utilities and public sector while ignoring the solar entrepreneurs, the backbone of the solar industry in Florida since the 1980's.
The only green jobs that will grow during the next 6 months are in the public sector even though job creation per kW/SEP dollar is demonstratively higher in the private (non-utility) sector. While FP&L is surging ahead in cutting emissions, they are not creating a significant number of green jobs. DeSoto's 25MW plant created 400 jobs at peak, whereas $20,000,000 in additional rebate funding will create approximately 1500 jobs in the private sector. FP&L claims that the 10MW joint venture with NASA will create 100 jobs, however, the subcontractor, Hypower, claims that they have 24 workers installing 500-700 panels each day and will NOT have to hire additional employees. [2] Are these green jobs being overstated in order to attract federal dollars?
We are requesting, that Governor Crist intervenes so that an additional $20 million is injected into the existing rebate program from the $156 million SEP funding. An additional $20 million in rebate funding will be matched and leveraged into $55 million and create 1500 new green jobs. This equates to $13,333 in federal spending to create one job year, exceeding the Executive Office of the President and Council of Economic Advisors estimates of $92,000 of direct government spending to create one job-year[3] by nearly seven fold.
There are at least two programs where reallocation of funding would grow more jobs, put more dollars to work in the economy, and maximize annual energy savings, than as currently allocated; the Solar for Schools ($10 million) and the Florida Clean Energy Grant ($10 million).
The numbers and bottom line speaks for itself. Dollar for dollar the rebate program will create more jobs (1500 versus 248), will leverage more funds ($55 million versus $36.6 million), will cut more carbon emissions (48,000 tons versus 28,000 tons), will produce more MW of renewable energy (6.8 MW versus 3.8MW) than as currently allocated. We hope that you will wisely consider the financial impact of reallocating these funds immediately to protect the existing green jobs and create new ones during this interim period.
[1] From DBPR as of 12/24/2009: 404 Licensed Solar Contractors (CVC), 740 Electrical contractors (EC), 1331 (RX & CW), 2199 Plumbing Contractors (CF). To estimate industry size, 25% of CF (549) and 25% of EC (185) plus 50% support staff
[2] Orlando Sentinel, October 26, 2009. "A gang of about two-dozen workers is erecting 500 solar panels a dayat the Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center, a projected started recently by Florida Power & Light. "We'll get up to 700, 800 (panels) a day," said Mike Arroyo, a superintendent with subcontractor HyPower, Inc., who said he won't need additional labor."
[3] May 2009 report "Estimates of Job Creation from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009" from the Executive Office of the President and Council of Economic Advisors
[4]FP&L Press Release May 27, 2009. The project has brought more than 200 construction jobs to DeSoto County.
[5] Labor costs calculated based on $3.50 per watt materials estimate.
[6] Job Creation Assumptions:9x10K systems for schools will provide 2 jobs per installation = 18 jobs46x 60K systems will provide 5 jobs per installation = 230 jobs1000x5K residential will provide 1.5 jobs per installations = 1500 jobs
[7] Matching funds in rebate program = 1,000 5K x $35,000 = $35,000,000Matching funds for FL Clean Energy is based on installing 46x60K commercial PV systems @ $6.00//watt x 46 install= $16,560,000
[8]Carbon savings over 10 yr. periods expressed from US EPA eGRID2007/Version 1.1 State files for Florida (year 2005 data) released Jan 2009
[9] Leveraged funds for FL Clean Energy based on assumption of 60% matching grant.
[10]10 Yr. Energy savings expressed in dollar amount based on FP&L's commercial and residential rates.Commercial rates = .11 per kWh, 6% inflation rate.Residential rates based on pre-taxed value of dollar (40%), includes 17% utility taxes and assumes 6% yearlyInflation rate (state average 2000-2007 per PSC) = .18 per kWh
In the next two weeks we will be sending Governor Crist and President Obama hard evidence that we are losing green jobs and will continue to lose green jobs until a new solar program is implemented. Each broken solar cell displays the name of an individual who has lost their job among FLASEIA's membership since June 2009 when the money ran out for this year's solar rebate program. Individuals and businesses in Florida are not willing to take a chance on installing solar now, and there is complete lack of confidence that the 2010 legislature will appropriate enough funding to cover those on the waiting list. Florida is broke. The only hope to continue the positive momentum until a new program can be implemented is to use federal funding to bridge the next six months. It is unconscionable that major grants are being awarded to the utilities and public sector while ignoring the solar entrepreneurs, the backbone of the solar industry in Florida since the 1980's.
The only green jobs that will grow during the next 6 months are in the public sector even though job creation per kW/SEP dollar is demonstratively higher in the private (non-utility) sector. While FP&L is surging ahead in cutting emissions, they are not creating a significant number of green jobs. DeSoto's 25MW plant created 400 jobs at peak, whereas $20,000,000 in additional rebate funding will create approximately 1500 jobs in the private sector. FP&L claims that the 10MW joint venture with NASA will create 100 jobs, however, the subcontractor, Hypower, claims that they have 24 workers installing 500-700 panels each day and will NOT have to hire additional employees. [2] Are these green jobs being overstated in order to attract federal dollars?
We are requesting, that Governor Crist intervenes so that an additional $20 million is injected into the existing rebate program from the $156 million SEP funding. An additional $20 million in rebate funding will be matched and leveraged into $55 million and create 1500 new green jobs. This equates to $13,333 in federal spending to create one job year, exceeding the Executive Office of the President and Council of Economic Advisors estimates of $92,000 of direct government spending to create one job-year[3] by nearly seven fold.
There are at least two programs where reallocation of funding would grow more jobs, put more dollars to work in the economy, and maximize annual energy savings, than as currently allocated; the Solar for Schools ($10 million) and the Florida Clean Energy Grant ($10 million).
The numbers and bottom line speaks for itself. Dollar for dollar the rebate program will create more jobs (1500 versus 248), will leverage more funds ($55 million versus $36.6 million), will cut more carbon emissions (48,000 tons versus 28,000 tons), will produce more MW of renewable energy (6.8 MW versus 3.8MW) than as currently allocated. We hope that you will wisely consider the financial impact of reallocating these funds immediately to protect the existing green jobs and create new ones during this interim period.
[1] From DBPR as of 12/24/2009: 404 Licensed Solar Contractors (CVC), 740 Electrical contractors (EC), 1331 (RX & CW), 2199 Plumbing Contractors (CF). To estimate industry size, 25% of CF (549) and 25% of EC (185) plus 50% support staff
[2] Orlando Sentinel, October 26, 2009. "A gang of about two-dozen workers is erecting 500 solar panels a dayat the Space Coast Next Generation Solar Energy Center, a projected started recently by Florida Power & Light. "We'll get up to 700, 800 (panels) a day," said Mike Arroyo, a superintendent with subcontractor HyPower, Inc., who said he won't need additional labor."
[3] May 2009 report "Estimates of Job Creation from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009" from the Executive Office of the President and Council of Economic Advisors
[4]FP&L Press Release May 27, 2009. The project has brought more than 200 construction jobs to DeSoto County.
[5] Labor costs calculated based on $3.50 per watt materials estimate.
[6] Job Creation Assumptions:9x10K systems for schools will provide 2 jobs per installation = 18 jobs46x 60K systems will provide 5 jobs per installation = 230 jobs1000x5K residential will provide 1.5 jobs per installations = 1500 jobs
[7] Matching funds in rebate program = 1,000 5K x $35,000 = $35,000,000Matching funds for FL Clean Energy is based on installing 46x60K commercial PV systems @ $6.00//watt x 46 install= $16,560,000
[8]Carbon savings over 10 yr. periods expressed from US EPA eGRID2007/Version 1.1 State files for Florida (year 2005 data) released Jan 2009
[9] Leveraged funds for FL Clean Energy based on assumption of 60% matching grant.
[10]10 Yr. Energy savings expressed in dollar amount based on FP&L's commercial and residential rates.Commercial rates = .11 per kWh, 6% inflation rate.Residential rates based on pre-taxed value of dollar (40%), includes 17% utility taxes and assumes 6% yearlyInflation rate (state average 2000-2007 per PSC) = .18 per kWh
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