Renewables lead peers in sustained employment generation

A wind power farm in Zhangjiakou, North China's Hebei province, Jan 19, 2015.[Photo/Xinhua]

When it comes to renewable energy, China leads the world in terms of employment with more than 3.4 million jobs out of a global total of 7.7 million, according to a report by the Abu Dhabi-based International Renewable Energy Agency.

Employment in the sector rose 18 percent over the past year, the organization said.

The report, called Renewable Energy and Jobs - Annual Review 2015, also provided the first global estimate of the number of jobs supported by large-scale hydropower facilities. The report said the sector has created 1.5 million direct jobs worldwide, of which China accounts for 46 percent.

China also leads global employment in solar photovoltaic, wind, solar heating and cooling, biomass and biogas.

"Renewable energy continues to assert itself as a major global employer, generating strong economic and social benefits worldwide, most notably in China," said IRENA Director-General Adnan Amin.

"The increase is being driven, in part, by declining renewable energy technology costs, which creates more jobs in installation, operations and maintenance. We expect this trend to continue as the renewable energy business continues to strengthen," he said.

Amin said that with investment in renewable energy rising, employment in the sector will keep climbing.

"IRENA's research estimates that doubling the share of renewable energy inthe global energy mix by 2030 would result in more than 16 million jobs worldwide," he said.

China has made great achievements in cutting the costs of solar and wind power in recent years, which has raised the efficiency of renewable energy utilization.

"The development of the country's renewable energy industry will help increase jobs, which will lead to innovation and reform in the sector," said Kaare Sandholt, chief expert in the China National Renewable Energy Center. He said that employment is one of the key tasks facing energy alliances and climate change organizations.

According to the IRENA report, jobs in the renewable energy sector has been increasing steadily in Asia. Five of the 10 countries with the most renewable energy jobs are in the region: China, India, Indonesia, Japan and Bangladesh.

The European Union and the United States now represent 25 percent of global renewable energy jobs, compared with 31 percent in 2012. The 10 countries with the largest renewable energy employment figures are China, Brazil, the US, India, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, France, Bangladesh and Colombia.