Alternative Energy Manufacturing
Clean/green technologies produce products or provide services which contribute to improvements in human health and the environment. This emerging sector encompasses a continuously evolving group of products, services and processes that incorporate everything from creating new sources of energy to sustainable building methods to developing non-toxic cleaning products All areas of clean/green technologies are expected to grow as consumers become more environmentally conscious and seek out alternative forms of energy to fuel homes and vehicles, energy-saving home appliances, green building materials, and eco-friendly home cleaning products.
Solar power is a rapidly growing industry. Revenue estimates for 2008 predicted the industry would surpass the $3.8 billion it achieved in 2007. The industry is also expected to triple its growth by 2012 with projected revenues of nearly $12 billion. As a result of the growth of solar power, solar parts and components manufacturers are also experiencing strong growth. In 2007, solar parts and components manufacturing grew 74 percent. Growth was the greatest in the areas of silicon manufacturing, equipment production, and expanded capacity of thin-film photovoltaic cells. Currently there are more than 3,400 solar companies in the United States. The number of “green-collar” jobs is also expected to grow. The U.S. Conference on Mayors released a report in October 2008 which predicted the “green economy” has the potential to create more than 4.2 million new jobs over the next 30 years. While all areas of green/clean technologies are expected to grow, Clarksville-Montgomery County should focus its efforts on attracting alternative energy, specifically related to wind and solar support manufacturing. Many projects that have been announcing in the last six months to a year in the U.S. have been solar or wind manufacturing related and many have located from overseas. In addition, Hemlock Semiconductor (HSC) chose Clarksville-Montgomery County in December 2008 as the location for a new $1.2 billion polycrystalline silicon (polysilicon) production facility. Polysilicon is a key raw material used to manufacture solar cells andsemiconductor devices and is used widely by companies in the solar industry.
