New York – The renewable energy sector in the United States suffers from the onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic, which delays construction, leaves thousands of qualified workers unemployed and casts doubt on solar and wind energy projects still under study.
In California under quarantine, several local entities that issue permits for new works are closed, and some solar companies licensed the installers.
In New York and New Jersey, SunPower CEO Thomas Werner halted the installation of more than 400 residential systems, concerned about the safety of his employees.
RELATED
According to the business chambers, about 120,000 jobs would be lost in the solar sector and 35,000 in the wind sector.
“Right now, many small companies are closing,” said the president of the Association of Solar Energy Industries, Abigail Ross Hopper. “Half of the jobs are at risk.”
Industry leaders are optimistic about the future. But the global downturn delays a transition to clean energy that scientists say isn’t fast enough to stop climate change.
Some states are initiating the reopening, but industry officials fear that reduced incomes and disruptions caused by layoffs and social alienation will cause lasting damage.
The wind industry suffers from the delay in obtaining spare parts from abroad, the transfer to the works and the construction of new turbines.
“Until a month or two ago the sector was growing by leaps and bounds,” said Tom Kiernan, president of the American Wind Energy Association. “The reverse is staggering and problematic.”
