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36 Renewable Energy Sources in Figures
Employment in Germany’s renewable energies sector
The importance of renewable energy sources as an economic factor in Germany is continuing
to grow. This is reflected by increasing investment in installations and production capacity,
and also by an ongoing rise in employment in this sector.
According to a current BMU research project ([36], [63], [146]), initial estimates indicate that a
total of more than 367,000 jobs in Germany can be attributed to the field of renewable energies
in 2010. This is more than double the figure for 2004 (approx. 160,000 employees).
About 262,000 jobs, i.e. more than two thirds of the jobs counted in 2010, were due to the
effects of the Renewable Energy Sources Act.
The number of employees is determined on the basis of data on investments in installations
for the use of renewable energy, expenditure on their operation, estimates of foreign trade
by the relevant industry and the relevant intermediate products, e.g. the necessary supplies
of biomass, and also industrial intermediate products by other sectors. To this must be added
employment resulting from public and non-profit funds in this sector, including employees in
the public service.
The labor market in the renewable energies and related sectors is also expected to show positive
development in the future [63]. On this basis, if the German companies operating in the
field of renewable energy continue to be successful on the global markets, employment resulting
from renewable energy in Germany could rise to more than half a million employees
by 2030. In addition, macroeconomic model calculations were used to take account of
the present negative cost factors and calculate the resulting net employment remaining after
the deduction of all negative effects. This indicates that in virtually all scenarios analysed, an
ambitious expansion of renewable energy sources in Germany leads to more jobs than an energy
supply system that largely dispenses with renewable energy.
More information on this topic can be found on the BMU website
http://www.erneuerbare-energien.de/inhalt/40289.
Employment in Germany’s renewable energies sector
1,800
7,600
7,800
8,100
9,500
7,500
6,500
4,500
3,400
13,300
14,500
10,300
25,100
sources: BmU [62], [63], [38]
49,200
56,800
63,900
80,600
85,700
96,100
102,100
2010: about 367,400 jobs
2009: about 339,500 jobs
2007: about 277,300 jobs
2004: about 160,500 jobs
122,000
128,000
119,500
120,900
increase in 2010 compared to 2004: about 129 %