Indiana has become a hot spot for the clean and sustainable sector in recent years. Over the last months, energy efficiency, clean transportation, grid technologies and renewable energy projects have consistently been topping headlines throughout the state. Solar farms are flipping the switches to cleaner power. Companies are revving the motors on electric vehicles. Indiana businesses are shining a new light on green equipment.
And with all of that innovation comes jobs.
The clean energy workforce in Indiana and surrounding states experienced another spike for 2023, according to the ninth annual Clean Jobs Midwest report released by the national, nonpartisan business group E2 and startup investment nonprofit Evergreen Climate Innovations. Each year, the organizations collaborate to draw information from U.S. clean energy employment, which is based on employment data collected and analyzed by the BW Research Partnership for the U.S. Energy and Employment Report.
The analysis is then used to create an annual review of the growth and size of clean jobs in 12 midwestern states, breaking the information down by state and metro area.
In a press conference following the release of the report, Ian Adams, managing director at Evergreen Climate Innovations, said that as of the end of 2023, of the 3.46 million clean energy jobs in the U.S., 760,000 of them are in the Midwest. The industry in the region grew by 4% from the 2022 surge in clean energy jobs – about 28,000 more from the previous year.
“The biggest sector in the midwestern clean energy industry happened in energy efficiency, which accounts for over 500,000 jobs. That is consistent year to year,” said Adams. “The fastest growing sector is the clean vehicle space, which saw an increase of 9 percent.”
New Record Set
Clean energy and clean vehicle jobs in Indiana saw new highs in 2023, growing to almost 90,000, the report said. That is a 1.8% increase from the 88,400 jobs reported in 2022. Micaela Preskill, director of state advocacy for E2, said while the data is still out for 2024, projections gathered from clean energy business leaders in anticipated hires land at about a 6% growth expected in the industry throughout the Midwest. Another surge is expected in Indiana when the 2024 numbers are finalized, the researchers note, with a 2.6% growth projected in the Hoosier state.
Indiana follows the midwestern trend, employing more clean energy workers in the energy efficiency sector. The report notes that 51,790, or more than half, of the state’s clean energy workers are responsible for implementing greener practices in lighting, buildings, heating and cooling systems, and appliances. Another 21,703 Indiana workers are employed in the clean vehicle sector, which grew 1.7% from 2022. Growth was also reported in the renewable energy sector (12,046), with an impressive 5.7% increase in the solar power industry and a one percent increase in wind energy. The state also saw job growth in the grid and storage sectors, with 2.7% more Hoosiers working in battery storage areas and 3.6% more in smart grid modernization.
“As stakeholders in the growing stage innovation ecosystem, it’s really exciting for us to see how these innovative companies and ideas that we have supported over time have grown and are scaling and hiring folks,” said Adams. “They are reaching a new level and contributing to the midwestern economy.”
Policy Impact
Preskill said much of the job growth in the clean energy sector has been a result of the 2022 passage of the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which supports clean energy efforts with funding, tax credits, and other incentives. Analysis from E2 for the first two years of the act shows that 334 major clean energy projects have been announced in the U.S. Closer to home, Preskill said since August of 2022, 90 large-scale energy projects have been announced across the Midwest. She said the response to IRA indicates that clean energy is leading to significant employment opportunities, and the policy is working.
“Policy is important because it creates a strong market signal and provides certainty for business – whether that’s a tax credit to purchase a new electric vehicle or a strong market signal spurring a company to develop a multi-billion-dollar battery factory,” said Preskill. “Policy like the IRA is enabling an American business revolution.”
Preskill said now is the time to place a renewed focus on keeping the momentum going. She said the key areas of interest include funding workforce development programs that prioritize creating jobs in disadvantaged communities and expanding the regional transmission grid.
“When clean energy jobs grow, our economy benefits. Clean energy jobs are available to everyone and cover a wide reach of our economy – from construction to manufacturing to investment and beyond. They also cover every corner of all 12 midwestern states. We know when we invest in clean energy, we can create thousands of jobs across many occupations in every state in the country. We need to ensure that we continue to keep our eye on the ball to make the most of this opportunity.”
