The additional 470 GW of wind capacity forecasted through 2025 could create more than 3.3 million direct jobs in a dynamic supply chain around the world.
The world’s leading wind energy countries are home to hundreds of thousands of direct jobs in the wind industry. As of 2020, there were approximately 550,000 wind energy workers in China, 260,00 in Brazil, 115,000 in the US and 63,000 in India, according to a global survey by GWEC Market Intelligence. The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) is the international trade association for the wind power industry.
Green recovery actions which accelerate the deployment for wind power projects can unlock jobs in the transport, installation and commissioning segments.
Deploying 6 TW of wind power by 2050 would mitigate 6.3 gigatonnes of CO2 emissions annually and generate huge cost savings in healthcare, infrastructure, social welfare, and system resilience.
Offshore wind in particular offers a a response to labour market disruptions from the energy transition such as dislocation of jobs for offshore oil and gas and marine engineering workers.
Investment in renewable energy creates more jobs than equivalent investment in fossil fuels. As policymakers consider best “value for money” in their economic stimulus packages, they should recognise the socioeconomic benefits and value creation stemming from the expansion of the global wind industry.
Wind power will continue to deliver record growth of new installations over the next five years, and make crucial contributions to economic recovery around the world. A new analysis by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) shows that wind can power 3.3 million jobs over the next five years in a dynamic supply chain across the world, many of which will be locally based and will require a variety of skills across the full value chain of the sector.
With 751 GW of wind power capacity already installed, the wind industry has generated nearly 1.2 million jobs globally to date according to the International Renewable Energy Agency. The world’s leading wind energy countries are home to hundreds of thousands of direct jobs in the wind industry. As of 2020, there were approximately 550,000 wind energy workers in China, 260,00 in Brazil, 115,000 in the US and 63,000 in India, according to a global survey by GWEC Market Intelligence.
This new analysis highlights the net economic benefits of the energy transition and wind power’s potential for job creation globally, as well as wind power’s role to power a just transition as the world still recovers from the impacts of COVID-19: Download the analysis