Union workers will benefit from the $5 billion electrical transmissionline that will carry wind-powered electricity from New Mexico and across Arizona to California.
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) announced this week the signing of a labor agreement to build the 580-mile SunZia Clean Energy Transmission and Wind Infrastructure project line. Total estimated cost of the project is $1.3 billion and it is called the largest renewable energy project in North America history.
Construction of the line, which will employ more than 500 IBEW members, will connect the SunZia Clean Energy Transmission and Wind Infrastructure project and its more than 3,500 MW of renewable wind power to communities throughout the Southwest. Developer Pattern Energy estimates the $5 billion project will power more than 3 million homes annually when complete, all while creating more than 2,000 construction jobs.
“The men and women of the IBEW are proud to partner with Pattern Energy and Quanta Services, Inc. on this historic energy infrastructure project. SunZia won’t just slash carbon emissions, but create good, middle class jobs throughout the region, and this transmission PLA guarantees that,” said IBEW International President Kenneth W. Cooper. “More good-paying, union jobs will create an economic ripple effect throughout Arizona and New Mexico, pouring money back into local communities.
“The IBEW leads the way in recruiting and training the highly skilled workforce needed to build out a clean energy infrastructure and a resilient and modern grid,” Cooper said. “As the best trained, most experienced electrical workers in North America, the IBEW is ready to play a leading role in America’s renewable energy future by getting to work making SunZia a reality.”
Source: press release