Best Places to Start a Career in the Energy Industry

Working in the energy industry is one of the quickest ways to find high-paying work readily available.  Although moving for a job isn’t something that everyone is willing to do if you have the education and are passionate about it: moving for an energy career can be the right move for you!

These are the best places to start a career in the energy industry, and what they offer new arrivals!

Chicago, Illinois

Electricity first reached Chicago in 1892, and the city hasn’t been the same since.  Green energy has become Chicago’s most recent obsession, even though it’s not as windy as the nickname may imply.

Across multiple career websites, there are currently over 95,287 clean energy jobs, ranging from installing solar panels to working as an engineer.  Although there’s a large variety of work, almost all of it requires education of some sort to get into the field.

Houston, Texas

Houston has been known as the oil and gas capital of the world for decades, pulling in tons of work from production to working on oil rigs off the coast of Texas.  Although it isn’t clean energy, it’s still necessary to work that will keep the country running.  This city is known as the world’s energy capital and employs over 200,000 workers to ensure that the work is done and it’s done well.

This is a great city to move to if you want a low cost of living since houses for rent in Houston, TX, are far cheaper than most of the other options on this list.

Los Angeles, California

The first municipal power pole was installed in LA in 1916, and the city hasn’t slowed down since! Unfortunately, Los Angeles is home to over four million people and is a huge drain of electricity at all times of the day.

Fortunately for the environment, much of California is pushing towards being greener and using more clean energy.  Because of this, Los Angeles currently has over 160,000 clean energy job openings, seeking skilled professionals who can do everything from repairing energy lines to installing and inventing green energy machinery.  This city takes its power seriously. 

New York City, New York

In the late 1890s, electricity was widely available in most areas of the city.  This meant that people could easily source power whenever they needed to live their daily lives.  Unfortunately, as the population has skyrocketed: so needs power.

One megawatt of energy is enough to power a hundred homes for a day, and NYC takes up 11, 000 Megawatt-hours per day.  This has led to a power crisis and has made this city desperate to hire as many people for energy jobs as possible.  

Although the pay is bigger in the big apple: so is the cost of housing.  This is by far the most expensive place to live on this list, but if you have the skills and can prove yourself in your field, you’ll have no trouble making enough to make a living in NYC!