Energy

More than 8.1 million people worked in the U.S. energy sector in 2022—up from 7.8 million workers in 2021, according to the United States Energy & Employment Report from the U.S. Department of Energy. The number of clean energy jobs grew by 3.9 percent from 2021 to 2022, outpacing overall U.S. employment growth. About 12.7 million people worked worldwide in the renewable energy sector in 2021, an increase of 700,000 people from the previous year,” according to the United Nations. “Global energy investment is picking up, and the rise in clean energy investment since 2021 is leading the way, outpacing the increase in fossil fuel investment by almost three-to-one, according to World Energy Investment 2023 from the International Energy Agency. “However,” the report goes on to state, “progress has been uneven. Investment in expanding and modernizing grids is lagging behind in many countries. A rising share of solar and wind needs to be accompanied by spending on technologies that provide greater flexibility to power systems. Supply chain and skills bottlenecks could constrain growth. And, above all, the geographical imbalances in investment need addressing.”