Clean Tech Private Equity Investment Up 167%

Venture capital and private equity investments in clean energy companies saw a huge leap in 2006, increasing by 167% from US$2.7 billion to US$7.1 billion. The increase was driven by a surge in money flowing into the U.S. biofuels sector. Solar, wind and other low carbon sectors such as energy efficiency, smart distribution and carbon markets, also saw significant rises. In terms of types of investment, there were signs that the clean energy sector is maturing as VC investments flowed into series C/third round fund-raisings, which focus on proven technologies and quite advanced commercialisation. The most striking growth was in private equity inflows into asset/capacity investments, which were 301% up on the previous year. Capital-raising through OTC transactions and PIPEs, or Private Investment in Public Equity, also leapt, seeing gains of 215%. Geographically, the biofuels surge helped the Americas to a 179% rise in fundings, far outstripping the 70% increase in the European region. From a much smaller base, Asia and Oceania recorded an astonishing 383% jump in funds invested, driven by a surge in investment in China after the latest Five Year Plan called for a huge increase in investment in renewables. One side effect of this was Hong […]

Read More

Suntech to Supply 800KW BIPV System for China Airport

Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (NYSE: STP), one of the world’s leading manufacturers of photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules, has entered into an agreement to supply an 800KW Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) curtain wall to the Wuxi Airport terminal with the first phase scheduled to be completed in late October 2007. “This project demonstrates the traction that Suntech’s China-based systems integration business is achieving by upselling state-of-the-art BIPV solar solutions and helping to promote the use of alternative energy sources in China,” said Dr. Zhengrong Shi, Suntech’s Chairman and CEO. “We look forward to working with the government of Wuxi to build one of China’s most environmentally friendly airports.” These BIPV systems replace traditional building materials with energy generating solar panels. MSK Corporation, Suntech’s recently acquired subsidiary has been developing and marketing this technology in Japan and has seen substantial sales penetration there as well as increasing sales traction in key geographies outside of Japan. “This showcase project also shows that our purchase of MSK Corporation with its leading edge BIPV products is already paying off and we believe that with increased government attention to clean energy sources, the Chinese market for BIPV has fairly significant potential,” continued Dr. Shi. […]

Read More

SolarWorld Group Signs Wafer deal

Deutsche Solar AG, a subsidiary of SolarWorld AG (SWV.DE) – a polysilicon wafers manufacturer, has signed a long-term agreement to supply Canadian Solar Inc., which operates production facilities in China. The order has a value of 180 million euros; the contract comes into effect immediately and runs for twelve years. “The new contract with CSI underscores the importance of long-term external contracts for our wafer business,” says Frank Asbeck, Chairman of the Management Board of SolarWorld AG. “Our long-term strategic goal is to sell 50 per cent of the wafers made by Deutsche Solar AG to external customers. The other 50 per cent are to remain within the integrated production of our Group, ending up in complete solar power systems and kits. This additional contract brings the total of long-term orders for our international customers to about 2.5 billion euros. Our agreements are an example of the fact that the ‘green’ industry in Germany is well on the way to becoming another export heavyweight, ultimately taking its place alongside the automotive industry.”

Read More

Nexterra Completes $6.8 M Equity Financing

Nexterra Energy Corp. has completed a $6.8 million third round of equity financing. The financing was led by ARC Financial Corp. of Calgary, Canada’s largest investment management firm focused on the energy sector. This brings ARC’s total investment in Nexterra to $16.6 million. “Nexterra continues to make tremendous progress, and we are very pleased to lead this third round of financing,” said Malcolm Adams, Vice President of ARC. “This is a disciplined, well-managed company that has consistently delivered on its business plan. With successful completion of Nexterra’s first commercial system at Tolko, substantial completion of the Johnson Controls’ gasifier at the University of South Carolina, progress on new applications with Weyerhaeuser and others, Nexterra continues to be a very strong clean tech investment opportunity for ARC.” Nexterra Energy is a leading developer and supplier of advanced gasification systems that enable customers to self-generate clean, low cost heat and/or power using waste fuels “inside-the fence” at industrial and institutional facilities. Website: http://www.nexterra.ca     

Read More

AWEA Releases Annual Wind Energy Outlook

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) announced that wind capacity in the U.S. increased by 27% in 2006 and expects it to grow by an additional 26% in 2007. AWEA attributes the strong growth to increasing increasing demand for clean, domestic energy, and the increasing participation of and private and public sources of capital. The U.S. wind energy industry installed 2,454 megawatts (MW) of new generating capacity in 2006, an investment of approximately $4 billion, making it the second largest source of new power generation in the country – second only to natural gas – for the second year in a row. New wind farms boosted cumulative U.S. installed wind energy capacity by 27 percent to 11,603 MW, well above the 10,000-MW milestone reached in August 2006. One megawatt of wind power produces enough electricity to serve 250 to 300 homes on average each day. Wind energy facilities currently installed in the U.S. produce enough electricity to serve 2.9 million American homes. The industry outlook also finds: § Texas accounted for nearly a third of the new wind power installed in 2006, taking over the lead from California in cumulative installed capacity. Texas hosts the world’s single largest operating wind […]

Read More

Global Warming Committee Gets Go, DRIVE Act Introduced

Read More