Amazon powers CSRA jobs with its Georgia solar projects

WARRENTON, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Amazon is releasing new economic data on how its solar farms in Georgia – including one in Warren County – have helped communities and the economy.

Amazon said its commitment to buy electricity produced by utility-scale renewable energy projects in Georgia generated an estimated $116 million in economic investment from 2014 through 2022. In that period, the effort also contributed $53 million to the state’s gross domestic product, the company said.

Amazon’s projects also ed an estimated 435 full-time equivalent jobs in Georgia in 2022, the company said.

One of those jobs was filled by Cameron Swinson, 21, at Amazon’s Bulldog Solar project in Warren County.

He helped install the site’s solar s and has launched a new career as a solar technician after graduating from the PowerUp Program.

Swinson ed PowerUp after working as an embalmer at his aunt’s funeral home.

“I previously had no knowledge of solar, and now I plan to move up in the field and seek a higher position,” he said. “It’s wonderful.”

The program helps workers gain green job skills and receive ongoing technical training for careers in renewable energy.

It is led by Blue Ridge Power, a strategic construction partner of Pine Gate Renewables, the utility-scale solar developer and owner of the Bulldog project.

Aside from the solar site in Warren County, Amazon is on track to launch a second one in Burke County. The first in Burke County was announced in 2021.

Amazon says it has invested more than $10 billion in Georgia since 2010, including infrastructure and compensation to its employees.

The company’s local operations currently include 17 fulfillment and sortation centers – including one of each in Appling – as well as 10 delivery stations, one grocery hub and 12 Whole Foods Markets. The state also has been the filming site for several Amazon original series, including “The Underground Railroad.”

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