President Obama's $2 billion booster shot for solar is surely good news for the green energy sector. But it may not be enough to counter the drag of a global economic stall that many see coming. Because when other energy prices fall, solar investment tends to dry up.
Global clean-tech venture investments rose 43% to $2 billion in the second quarter. Solar and biofuel startups garnered the biggest funding, while the IPO market for clean-tech was much hotter in China than the U.S.
A group of investor-owned utilities have come out to oppose legislation that would require them increase the amount of solar electricity it sells by 2025.
Want to go solar, but can't afford the purchase and installation? A California power company is funding $100 million of solar electric systems for 3,500 homeowners in Colorado, Massachusetts, California, Arizona and New Jersey.
A large solar power array built by SolFocus at a community college in California not only supplies electricity for the school, it also serves as a teaching and job-training tool.
BrightSource Energy has raised $150 million, which will help with its plans to build solar power plants in California. The company wants to use mirrors to generate electricity from the sun's heat and has already signed deals with utilities.
Silicon Valley startup Pythagoras Solar wants to put power plants in your office windows, skylights and building facade. It's launched a new type of solar glass, which uses a plastic prism to boost electricity generation and reduce costs.
Venture capital investments in cleantech companies grew 83% in the first quarter to $1.9 billion worldwide. Despite the jump from the year-ago quarter, total investment still falls short of a full recovery. But the question everyone's asking is, when will IPOs take off?
Despite the world's economic woes, the global clean-energy market grew in 2009, becoming a $139.1 billion industry and the largest venture-capital category. Even so, solar revenues fell because of plunging prices.
Applied Materials swung a first-quarter profit on strong sales of its semiconductor manufacturing equipment and improving customer demand. It also raised its full-year revenue target to reflect higher demand in its chip, LCD display and crystalline silicon solar businesses.
Applied Materials expects a brighter earnings picture in 2010 as chip-makers retool and demand for solar panels grows. The company is big on solar, where it says "the opportunities over the next 20 years are really phenomenal."
Known for its energy-guzzling data centers, Google is always looking to green its image. The latest move? The search giant has formed a new entity called Google Energy that could allow it to use more alternative energy when pulling in the power it needs.
The emphasis in alternative energy used to be on new ways to generate power. Now, it's on finding better ways to conserve it and make the power grid more efficient. The so-called smart grid is key to that goal, and fortunes will be spent -- and made -- on making it a reality.
