REPORT: Colorado Home to 67K Clean Energy Jobs as Industry Outpaces Overall Economy

• Colorado ranks 7th for renewable generation jobs

• Clean energy jobs grew 5.2% in 2023, 2X faster than overall CO economy

• 81% of all new energy jobs in 2023 were in clean energy 

Denver – Clean energy and clean vehicle companies added more than 3,000 jobs in Colorado, bringing the total number of clean energy workers in the state to almost more than 67,000 according to the eighth annual Clean Jobs Colorado analysis released today by the national, nonpartisan business group E2 and partners the Energy Efficiency Business Coalition (EEBC) and the Colorado Solar and Storage Association (COSSA).

Boosted by nearly $500 million in private investments to build new large-scale clean energy projects across Colorado since the passage of the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), clean energy jobs in the state grew 5.2 percent last year – more than two times faster than economy-wide jobs in Colorado, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). Clean energy sectors accounted for more than 81 percent of all new energy industry jobs added in Colorado in 2023.

Nationally, Colorado now ranks seventh among all 50 states and the District of Columbia for total jobs in renewable generation and 18th for overall clean energy jobs. Energy efficiency remains the top overall clean energy employer with nearly 38,000 workers, followed by renewable energy (18,700 jobs) and clean vehicles (5,100 jobs). The majority of the state’s clean energy workers are employed in construction and professional services.

Home to more nearly 40,000 of the state’s clean energy workers, the Denver metro area ranked 20th among all U.S. metro areas for most clean energy jobs. The metro areas of Colorado Springs (5,700 jobs), Boulder (5,100 jobs), and Fort Collins (3,900 jobs) ranked 96th, 103rd, and 120th respectively. About ten percent of the state’s clean energy workers (6,600 jobs) are in rural or nonmetropolitan areas. 

Susan Nedell, Mountain West advocate for E2 said:

“The historic policies and incentives created by the IRA are powering an American economic revolution in Colorado’s energy industry, and workers and businesses in every part of our state are benefiting. This report clearly shows clean energy continues to be an important economic driver for the state, outpacing traditional energy sectors, and demonstrating the need for continued leadership at the state level to attract even more jobs and investments to Colorado as the sector grows across the country.”

Mike Kruger CEO of COSSA said:

““The numbers show, Colorado continues to be a leader in rapidly expanding workforce opportunities in renewable generation, infrastructure and energy storage technology, which speeds us on our way towards 100 percent carbon-free energy production. The state needs to continue this progress by adopting additional ambitious policies in all sectors to reduce pollution, while at the same time helping to create thousands of new job opportunities.”

Patricia Rothwell, Executive Director at EEBC said:

“These numbers highlight the significant role clean energy plays in Colorado. Our skilled workforce, policy leadership, and thriving ecosystem of energy efficiency and clean energy companies and suppliers make Colorado a prime location for continued investment and deployment of clean energy technologies. As the clean energy economy continues to boom across the country, Colorado and its leadership will be key to that continued growth.”

Nationally, U.S. clean energy jobs outpaced overall economy wide job growth by 200 percent, adding almost 150,000 jobs for a total of 3.46 million.

For a copy of the Clean Jobs Colorado 2024 report to dive deeper into the data including subsector data such as solar and electric vehicle jobs and explore jobs down to the state, county, and metro levels, visit here. Interactive maps of clean energy jobs data, including for every U.S. state and county, are available at cleanjobsamerica.e2.org/

Methodology

This analysis of U.S. clean energy employment is based on employment data collected and analyzed by the BW Research Partnership for the 2024 U.S. Energy and Employment Report (USEER). The USEER analyzes data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) to track employment across many energy production, transmission and distribution subsectors.

In addition, the 2024 USEER relies on a unique supplemental survey of 42,000 business representatives across the United States. Created and conducted by BW Research, the methodology has been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). This survey is used to identify energy-related employment within key subsectors of the broader industries as classified by the BLS and to assign them into their component energy and energy efficiency sectors.

Past Clean Jobs Colorado Reports:

• Clean Jobs Colorado 2023
• Clean Jobs Colorado 2022
• Clean Jobs Colorado 2021
• Clean Jobs Colorado 2020
• Clean Jobs Colorado 2019
• Clean Jobs Colorado 2018
• Clean Jobs Colorado 2017

Other Resources

• E2: Clean Economy Works: An Economic Impact Analysis of Major Clean Energy Projects Announced Through Two Years of the Inflation Reduction Act (Oct. 2024)
  • In the IRA’s first two years, E2 tracked 334 major clean energy projects encompassing nearly $126 billion in private sector development. This analysis modeled the full economic impacts of these projects if they were completed, including indirect, direct, and induced jobs, tax revenue, GDP growth, and labor income.
• E2: 2024 Clean Jobs America – Interactive Map + Tables (Aug. 2024)
  • E2’s 9^th annual national clean energy jobs analysis, including data on every clean energy sector down to state, county, and metro levels.
• E2: Clean Economy Works: Ongoing tracker and interactive map of the 350+ projects announced by companies since the IRA was passed in August 2022. Updated monthly.

To connect with clean energy business leaders who in Colorado, please contact E2 communications director Michael Timberlake at mtimberlake@e2.org.

###

Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2) is a national, nonpartisan group of business leaders, investors, and professionals from every sector of the economy who advocate for smart policies that are good for the economy and good for the environment. Our members have founded or funded more than 2,500 companies, created more than 600,000 jobs, and managed more than $100 billion in venture and private equity capital. For more information, see www.e2.org or follow us on Twitter at @e2org.

Established in 2022 as the 501(c)(3) nonprofit sister organization of the Colorado Solar and Storage Association, the COSSA Institute is dedicated to sharing our story with the public, growing the talent pool, and equipping communities and their leaders with the knowledge and skills necessary to increase solar energy generation and energy storage deployment to achieve a 100% clean energy reality by the next decade.

Energy Efficiency Business Coalition (EEBC)  is a statewide trade association representing the supply chain of businesses providing energy efficiency, beneficial electrification, and clean energy products and services in Colorado. EEBC facilitates industry collaboration to expand the energy marketplace and create opportunities to grow our members’ businesses. EEBC advocates for energy efficiency and clean energy policies and programs that create sustainable jobs and a workforce for long-term economic vitality and growth.