Arizona is pushing for a bevy of solar companies to produce a new industry base in the state. The only drag may be where to find the workers.
Despite Chinese manufacturer Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. announcing it will build a facility in Goodyear and numerous commercial and utility projects coming online in the area, the Valley has just one nationally certified school training solar installers. It has nothing yet in terms of manufacturing the panels.
With a worker pool brimming with unemployed electricians, plumbers, engineers, construction contractors and more, some believe there is room to meet the solar industry’s ambitious plans here. Still, it will take time.
“There’s interest across the board,” said Donna Marie Bertault, CEO of eRenewable Resource Group, the only licensed solar trade school in the state. “I see roofers and electricians, but I also see architects and engineers who need training, and home inspectors who have no idea how to evaluate a solar system.”
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