The expansion of Albuquerque solar company Affordable Solar Installation Inc. may create more jobs than previously thought.
An ordinance filed with the city last week says the company plans to hire a minimum of 90 people over the next decade as part of a previously announced growth plan, which includes $7.5 million in industrial revenue bonds. The expansion was announced in April before city council approved the IRB last month. Affordable Solar will hire an additional 70 people by the end of January 2026 and "potentially another 20" throughout the next five years, according to the ordinance.
When the project was initially announced, the state said it would create 70 jobs.
The company also disclosed that it has a "patent pending design that streamlines and simplifies the installation of batteries used for energy storage," according to the ordinance The company provides large-scale solar and energy storage installations across several states.
The ordinance is set to go before city council, which will decide whether to approve the disbursal of a total of $625,000 in Local Economic Development Act incentives from the for the project, $500,000 of which has been pledged by the state. The rest of the LEDA money would be provided by the city. The money is to be used finance the redevelopment, renovation and rehabilitation of a 3.5-acre site and a 29,000-square-foot office building at 3900 Singer Blvd. NE.
The new facility will house component fabrication operations as well as Affordable Solar's corporate headquarters. The fabrication, assembly and equipment integration operations that would be brought to the facility are currently performed "out of the state, less efficiently and at a higher cost," according to the ordinance. Affordable Solar plans to start construction by early June, and the project is estimated to be completed by year's end, the ordinance says.
Moving forward, the company anticipates a "fairly robust transition to renewable energy" driven by federal policy, CEO Ryan Centerwall previously said in a statement. Array Technologies, another Albuquerque-based solar manufacturer, previously expressed a similar sentiment after President Joe Biden, who has several stated policy objectives that could increase the need for renewable energy sources, was elected.
The new jobs are set to pay between $37,400 and $70,000 per year. In addition to the IRB and LEDA funding, Affordable Solar was awarded $882,555 in Job Training Incentive Program funds from New Mexico Economic Development to help with training new workers, Business First reported.
Its unclear how the past year impacted Affordable Solar, but pre-pandemic, the company was the top solar and renewable energy company in the state by revenue, according to Business First research. In 2019, the company reported $141 million in revenue. At the time, more than 90% of its customers were commercial, while the rest were residential.
A representative for Affordable Solar was unable to be reached for comment.
