Blog Contributors
- Alan Bickerstaff
- Roger D. Feldman
- J. Matthew Lyons
- Bonnie Rubey McMurtry
- Siddharth "Sid" Sethy
- Mark J. Thurber
- Sean S. Wooden
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Cleantech Financing Options Addressed at NREL’s Industry Growth Forum
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s 23rd Industry Growth Forum is to be held in Denver, Colorado, on October 19-21 this year. Frequently touted as NREL’s premier event for innovative clean energy start-ups, companies come from all over the country to maximize their exposure to receptive venture capital, corporate investors, and strategic partners. This year, Andrews Kurth is proud to participate in a panel entitled “Is VC Financing in Cleantech Still Green? Funding in the Cleantech Space” which is taking place on Thursday, October 21, 2010, from 8:00 am to 9:00 am.
Clean Energy Ministerial Kick Off
The world's first meeting of the Clean Energy Ministerial recently concluded in Washington, DC. The Clean Energy Ministerial is a high-level group of energy ministers from several countries that was launched by the Major Economies Forum in 2009. Its main goal is to help countries reduce carbon dioxide emissions and tap into an emerging clean energy economy.
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Categories: Conference Updates
REFF Creates Ripples in the Clean Technology Industry
The Renewable Energy Finance Forum (REFF) held in New York this week is the annual event where industry leaders and wannabes meet and greet. It is a barometer of the industry's self confidence and prospect assessment. This is the year of the "game face." There is serious concern about industry prospects, notably sustained demand for wind. Solar's costs are declining, but sustained market interest in the absence of feed in tariffs, strong Renewable Energy Standards/RECs availability, is still problematic. The absence of US players and US banks in the project finance market drew notice. The effect on energy price points of shale gas on renewables competitiveness in particular, was noted as a major threat, as was the declining prospects of systematic carbon regulation.
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Categories: Biofuels, Biomass, Clean Technology, Conference Updates, Emerging Markets, Energy, Federal Funding, Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Wind Energy
Reporting from WINDPOWER 2010 - Community Wind
This morning at AWEA, I attended a session entitled "Financing & Policy Issues for Community Wind." The speakers were Jeff Wright of Midwest Wind Finance, Ryan Harry of BCS, Incorporated, George Baker of Island Institute, Mark Bolinger of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Edwin T. C. Ing of the Law Office of Edwin T. C. Ing. I chose this session because I was unsure what "community wind" was. I have worked on projects where landowners have formed a single entity to represent all the landowners but was curious about community wind.
Reporting from WINDPOWER 2010 - The Reverse RFP
Do you have a great project but no PPA? One potential tool in your developer’s tool bag may be the reverse RFP. The reverse RFP is what it sounds like - the developer putting out feelers for interested offtakers instead of responding to an offtaker request for interested developers. In one case discussed at AWEA in Dallas this week, a project developer in the midwest prepared a summary of its planned project and solicited offers to purchase from potential offtakers. The developer circulated the reverse RFP to the usual suspects, but also looked farther afield and was surprised by the number of offtakers outside the norm that expressed interest in the project.
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Categories: Conference Updates
Reporting from WINDPOWER 2010 - NIMBY
NIMBY (not in my backyard), long a staple in hydrocarbon projects, has begun to emerge in opposition to wind power development. Ironically, studies show that 80% of the public supports wind energy development as the most cost effective alternative energy option. Nevertheless, as one handwritten sign in an eastern community reads: "great idea, bad location." Most people aren’t green enough to support wind energy if it affects them negatively, or more importantly, if they think it will affect them negatively.
Biomass: State of the Industry
I attended the recent Department of Energy Biomass industry conference in late March. The atmosphere was very positive, and unlike other events where there is substantial uncertainty, the companies and participants were nearly uniformly optimistic about the state of the industry. A couple of companies were openly discussing filing for IPOs in late 2010 or early 2011. They seemed to be realistic goals. Many of the companies in attendance were pleased with the fact that the timeframe for DOE grants, after having slown down the industry as a whole, has been met and that money from that sector is flowing. Private market participants indicated that this would help them fund companies.
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Categories: Biofuels, Biomass, Business Market Developments, Clean Technology, Conference Updates, Domestic Issues, Emerging Markets, Federal Funding, Government Policy, New Investment Opportunities, Venture Capital Trends
