Issue Brief

Creating Green Jobs

Employment Created by Kiran Energy’s 20-Megawatt Solar plant in Rajasthan, India

Arunabha Ghosh
August 2014 | Energy Transitions, Sustainable Livelihoods

Suggested Citation: Council on Energy, Environment and Water and Natural Resources Defense Council. 2014. Creating Green Jobs: Employment Created by Kiran Energy’s 20-Megawatt Solar Plant in Rajasthan, India. New Delhi;New York The Council on Energy, Environment and Water and Natural Resources Defense Council.

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Overview

This issue brief, presented in collaboration with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), examines job creation in India’s solar energy market by evaluating the jobs created at the 20 MW grid-connected solar PV project developed by Kiran Energy in Jodhpur district of Rajasthan. It examines the roles of two key players - project developer and engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contractor - involved in the job creation process. Further, the issue brief elaborates upon the timeline and key activities involved in the completion of each stage of the solar project.

Despite the recent growth of India’s solar energy market, the economic and employment opportunities and benefits generated by solar technologies and projects remain largely unknown. The main purpose of the project-based employment profiles was to demonstrate the range of activities that took shape during the installation of a solar PV project.

Key Findings

The solar installation process can be divided into four phases - business development, design and pre-construction, construction, and commissioning and maintenance.
The business development phase generated a total of 0.7 full-time equivalent (FTE) activity.
The project design and pre-construction phase created a total of 3.2 FTE activity.
The construction phase created a total of 13.6 FTE jobs (time contribution multiplied by the number of people involved) for skilled employees.
The construction process also created employment opportunities of 118.4 FTE for unskilled workers who may have some vocational skills.
The Operations and Maintenance (O&M) phase established 36.9 FTE per year of unskilled employment and an additional 8 FTE per year of employment for engineers and skilled electricians for the duration of the 25-year life of the project.
The post-commissioning phase of the project created 8 FTE annual jobs for highly skilled engineers and technicians for the operating life of the project.
Jobs created annually for security guards and cleaners for the operating life of the project were 36.9 FTE.

Solar PV Project Construction Activity, Planned Vs. Actual

Key Recommendations

Factor in the job creation potential while designing and implementing clean energy policies at the state and national levels.
Strive to achieve greater transparency about the impact of solar projects on job creation. This way, the Indian industry will realise the potential for employment opportunities that solar energy offers.
Collaborate on skills development in order to ensure that progress is made toward energy and ecological security. This also helps India address its need to generate jobs for its rapidly growing workforce.

The 20 MW solar PV project generated a total of 180.8 full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs, primarily for highly skilled personnel and construction workers.