Startup Life
Technology. Startups. Venture Capital. My Life.
Cleantech
Cleantech Jobs on the Rise
Sep 30th
I am not surprised to read (Newsweek via MSNBC) that job opportunities are on the rise in the cleantech “green-revolution” sector. Notable niche areas mentioned include solar energy, biofuels. The article describes an upcoming trend:
Based on the flow of venture capital, K. R. Sridhar, CEO of the fuel-cell
start-up Bloom Energy, believes the clean-tech sector could produce 50,000 new
jobs by 2010. Peter Beadle, president of Greenjobs.com, cites estimates that the
solar sector alone could employ 2 million people by 2020.”
Interestingly, these jobs are geographically dispursed (across the US), unlike clusters of high-tech startups found in Silicon Valley during the tech boom.
From a finance perspective, analysts at Lux Research state that venture-capital investments in the clean-tech sector jumped from $623 million to $1.5 billion (2005 to 2006), led by solar power and biofuel.
Cleantech Spending
Apr 30th
Amidst a flurry of chatter about cleantech and investment from VCs, there is some interesting results coming from a recent report from Lux Research. As the graph at right shows, there is about a 50/50 split between government and corporate funding of cleantech investment, with only a minor contribution from venture capitalists. At least we are seeing an increasing trend …
Below we see the cleantech investment by segment in total, and from VC funding. In the past three years we can see quite clearly that VCs have been investing in energy and sustainability which matches overall spending patterns.
What will 2007 bring? Leave your opinion …
Harvesting Bioenergy from Switchgrass
Apr 23rd
Recently, scientists have made progress on finding the key genetic elements responsible for controlling lignin production in swtichgrass though monitoring of mRNA transcripts. This discovery brings switchgrass one step closer to being used as a source of bioethanol. See full story at Scientists Turn Genetic Keys To Unlock Bioenergy In Switchgrass.
Cleantech: Biodiesel, Solar and Wind
Apr 10th
Some news today highlights Biodiesel, solar and wind technologies in the era of cleantech and renewable energy.
The first article discusses a study that was just completed in Ontario, Canada that analyzed the use of biodiesel as an alternative fuel source for agricultural use. This study, which was co-sponsored by the NRC, Environment Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association, UPI Energy, and the University of Guelph, is hoped to accelerate the adoption of biodiesel use in on-farm applications across Canada. More at Evaluating Biodiesel Fuel For Tractors In Canada.
Solar power seems to still be behind in the race for the most cheap, and efficient technologies despite being around for a number of years. There are a few problems that need sorting out (listen here scientists, and business-types), “the development of complimentary technologies, in particular low-cost storage of electricity, is critical,” says Erin Baker, who is a scientist at the University of Massachusetts that led a USDoE study in the area. Baker’s other finding notes that government dollars won’t bring this technology to fruition along, and that private investment is needed in the manufacturing sector specifically; tax breaks, and public-private collaborations will also help to push this technology forward. The article “Cheap, Efficient Solar Power: What’s Needed Now To Get There?“ gives a great analysis that discusses the order of investment to develop solar tech:
- Focus first on getting power from the new inorganic materials that show promise but are far from viable for large scale production
- Then focus on purely organic cells with organic semiconductors; these hold the promise of low costs but still haven’t achieved high levels of efficiency and face serious stability problems
- Last, investigate third-generation cells, which use entirely different technology but may ultimately yield much more power
Wind turbines are another fast-moving technology with much promise. So much so that Mitsubishi Ups Investment in Wind Turbines threefold to increase its wind turbine capacity to 1,200 megawatts / year by March 2009. As Paul Kedrosky points out, that is about two-thirds of what the city of Atlanta requires on a typical summer day.
cleantech, 
biodiesel, 
solar, 
wind, 
energy, 
renewable, 
fuel, 
tax, 
technology, 
turbines