AUSTIN, Texas, July 6 (UPI)

The University of Texas' IC2 Institute released a report indicating increased investment in solar technologies could result in more than 100,000 new jobs.

Development of the solar energy industry in Texas could have a significant economic impact for consumers, the environment and workers, according to the new white paper report entitled "Opportunity on the Horizon: Photovoltaics in Texas," released by the IC2 Institute in Austin.

The report suggests that the near-term benefits of nurturing the solar energy industry in Texas will stimulate the state's economy, reduce the cost of power for consumers and minimize greenhouse gas emissions.

The paper cites a recent University of California-Berkeley study that finds the solar industry produces seven to 11 times as many jobs on a megawatt capacity basis as coal-fired power plants and has larger, positive trickle-down effects than wind energy. Estimates suggest Texas could generate 123,000 new high-wage, technology-related, advanced manufacturing and electrical services jobs by 2020 by actively moving toward solar power. It is predicted these jobs would be created across the entire state as large solar farms grow in West Texas, silicon plants develop along the Gulf Coast and manufacturing centers appear in Central Texas.

"The white paper finds the potential for economic growth in Texas through the creation of a vibrant solar power industry," said Joel Serface, director of the Clean Energy Incubator at The University of Texas at Austin and a contributor to the report.

"Worldwide, the cost of converting sunlight to electricity is rapidly decreasing. The right public policies, combined with emerging and increasingly efficient technologies in solar power, would create a solid opportunity for Texas to build an economic engine on this non-polluting resource," Serface said.