In Brief:
In the two years since the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) became law, private companies have responded to the tax credits in it by announcing more than $128 billion in clean energy projects. These investments, including six large-scale projects named in August, will bring well over 100,000 new jobs.
Five of the six new projects will be in Southern states, which have attracted nearly half of all the projects put forward since the IRA became law in August 2022. Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee have seen the biggest commitments.
“The Inflation Reduction Act has been wildly successful in our region,” says Stephen A. Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE). Smith has served as an adviser to state and local policy bodies in several Southern states, including terms on the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Regional Energy Resource Council.
Georgia has attracted private funds that could make it a leader in electric transportation. “Brian Kemp has done a very good job of navigating what could have been a divisive issue, embracing this as a real opportunity for the state,” Smith says. A supply chain for vehicle manufacturers is coming to life in Georgia, as are opportunities for technical training. North Carolina is the biggest winner to date, with over $21 billion in commitments so far, expected to create nearly 12,000 new jobs.
No Republican voted for the IRA, but elected officials of all stripes are showing up for ribbon cuttings at new facilities. It’s early to know how much this might reflect a behind-the-scenes commitment to emission reduction, Smith says. There’s no doubt, however, that leaders in the Southeast recognize and embrace the energy transition’s potential to drive economic development and job growth, he says.
Jobs at new clean energy manufacturing and generation facilities will add momentum to a sector where jobs are growing three times as fast as U.S. employment overall. The nonprofit E2, a nonpartisan network of investors and business leaders, published an annual assessment of employment in the clean energy sector which found that clean energy jobs account for a significant chunk of new jobs in the U.S. economy. “The 149,170 new clean energy jobs created in 2023 accounted for 6.4 percent of all jobs created economywide, and nearly 60 percent of all jobs in the entire energy sector," the report says.
Nearly 3.5 million Americans now work in renewable energy. California has the most jobs by far. The South is adding them at the fastest rate, a trend that tracks with investment announcements.
The macroeconomic impact of the IRA hasn’t received the broad recognition it deserves, says Bob Keefe, E2’s executive director. The map below shows places where the growth it has set in motion will take place — and the reality that clean energy economies are taking root in new regions of the country. “The policy is working,” Keefe says.
