Asians, Europeans Chasing Flexible Dye Sensitized Solar Cells

September 30, 2009

Dye sensitized solar cells have been a target of the solar industry for more than a decade

Though not as efficient as other varieties of thin-film cells, they are low cost, easier to manufacture and potentially applied to flexible sheets of materials, such as plastic.

Five or six leaders will emergy by 2015, says SolarPrints Mazhar Bari

Five or six leaders will emergy by 2015, says SolarPrint's Mazhar Bari

Companies in the United States haven’t been as keen on them as several big corporate Asian giants – specifically Sony, Samsung and Toyota.

“The Asians are really advanced,” says Mazhar Bari, CEO of the Irish company SolarPrint, which also is working on a dye sensitized cell.

Bari says that by 2015 there will be five or six companies producing these cells – and the impact on the solar industry could be profound. Imagine a thin, flexible electronic reader that folds comfortably onto your lap when you sit down and which draws its power from nearby lighting.

“The end game is flexible,” Bari said this week on a visit to San Francisco. The company also hopes to use them to coat cars and in build construction.

Like its Asian rivals, SolarPrint is in pilot production now, anticipating a product in the first quarter. That product will be a stiff sheet of cells about half the size of an 8½ by 11 piece of paper. It will generate ½ a watt of power with 4 to 5 percent efficiency. Bari hopes to hit 8 percent efficiency in the next 12 months. A flexible cell is two to three years away, he adds.

But that isn’t stopping SolarPrint from calling on some of Silicon Valley’s top consumer electronics manufacturers. On Bari’s schedule for Thursday is Apple.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Intel Capital Is Most Active Third Quarter Clean Tech Investor

September 30, 2009

It is probably no surprise that the third quarter saw a modest up-tick in clean-tech venture investing. What is a surprise is who wrote the most checks.

Intel Capitals spending was only about $10 million

Intel Capital's spending was only about $10 million

Intel Capital earned that distinction by backing six companies, according to Cleantech Group and Deloitte. They were Ozmo Devices, Powervation, CPower, Grid Net, iControl Networks and Convey Computer. Intel has said its investments total only about $10 million.

Next on the most-active list was Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers with five: Amyris Biotechnologies, Applied Process Technology, iControl Networks, Solasta and Hara Environmental and Energy Management.

Both New Enterprise Associations and Braemar Energy Ventures did four each. NEA’s deals were Glacier Bay, Liquidia Technologies, RT Outsourcing Services and SolFocus. Braemar’s were General Fusion, Grid Net, Convey Computer Corporation and Solicore.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Clean Tech Investing Rebounds In Third Quarter

September 30, 2009

Clean-tech investing rebounded from earlier this year to become the largest category of venture capital investing in the third quarter, according to a study by the Cleantech Group and Deloitte.

During the three months, $1.59 billion poured into 134 startups with solar ventures capturing the largest share. The investments were sparked by billions of dollars in funding from governments around the world, which eased the concerns of private investors hesitant to go it alone.

Solyndra funding is top deal for the quarter at $198 million

Solyndra funding is top deal for the quarter at $198 million

Big deals helped lift the total. Solar company Solyndra took in $198 million and SolFocus closed on $77.6 million.  Electric-car company Tesla brought in $82.5 million while competitor Think Global of Norway banked $46 million. Serious Materials, a maker of green building materials, received $60 million.

Cleantech Group estimates green technology companies received 27 percent of venture investing for the quarter, more than biotech firms and information technology. The estimate is likely based on how the investment categories are defined. Healthcare startups as a group usually take in more than $2 billion.

Nevertheless, if the Cleantech Group numbers are accurate they suggest a noticeable up swing of interest in green technology. The quarterly total represents a 10 percent increase form the second quarter and a 42 percent decline from a year ago, before the financial crisis began.

North American companies received 67 percent of the investment money while European and Israeli startups received 29 percent. Chinese companies took in 3 percent. The amount going to solar companies was $451 million and transportation companies got $383 million.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

CMEA’s $100 Million Investment Strategy Includes New Materials For Batteries, Wind Towers And Algae Growers

September 30, 2009

CMEA Capital said at last week’s Clinton Global Initiative that it would invest an additional $100 million in alternative energy companies over the next three years.

The commitment, praised by former President Bill Clinton, brings to 50 percent the share of the venture firm’s $400 million seventh fund earmarked for alternative energy and materials investing.

Batteries can transform other industries, such as wind and solar, says Michael Melnick

Batteries can transform other industries, such as wind and solar, says Michael Melnick

“For the first time in history, environmentally-friendly methods for producing energy, like solar and wind power, are becoming inexpensive enough to make mainstream adoption a reality instead of just a pipe dream,” Managing Director Thomas Baruch said in a statement accompanying the announcement.

The San Francisco firm is no stranger to green technology. It invested in 14 alternative energy companies over the past seven years, including battery maker A123 Systems, which launched a successful IPO this month.

Principal Michael Melnick says he and his partners continue to find much to like about investing in new energy technologies. Along with seed-stage startups, CMEA plans to put its money to work in both mid- and late-stage ventures.

At the top of the list are new battery architectures and materials, companies building solar cells and startups developing new materials to make components for wind energy tower. Melnick also says he has an eye open for startups using bio-materials or algae to make high-value chemicals, not simply biofuels.

CMEA doesn’t seem interested in following the herd with its battery strategy. The strategy is not centered on advanced batteries for electric cars, but energy storage devices for solar and wind plants, where energy generation falls off after dark and when the wind doesn’t blow.

The firm announced a new $100 million commitment at the Clinton Global Initiiative

The firm announced a new $100 million commitment at the Clinton Global Initiiative

“We love things like batteries,” he says. “They can transform other industries, for example, wind and solar.” That includes lithium-ion batteries that improve upon those used today. But perhaps more importantly it seeks companies working with electrolytes to replace lithium and other new battery materials.

Melnick says there continues to be huge potential in solar, as well as wind, where new materials are being developed to enhance components in wind towers

In the bio-materials space, Melnick reasons that the first wave of profitable products may be higher priced chemicals and not lower priced fuels. He says he is wary about startups making biofuels, but excited about renewable chemicals.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Finland Shows Off Web 2.0 Startups

September 29, 2009

Finland produces lots of innovative startups, and not only in mobile!

Here I am in Helsinki, Finland invited by Finnfacts - an independent media service agency financed by Finnish companies – that brings foreign journalists and now bloggers, to meet with local firms.

For this first ever “blog tour” focused on social media and Web 2.0, I’m accompanied by the “creme de la creme” of International bloggers from ChipChick, HenrietteWeber, ReadWriteWeb, StartupMeme, TechCrunch and The NextWeb.

In the next few days, we’ll be meeting lots of Finnish startups including ArticStartup, Floobs, RuntoShop and Muxlim.

At the MindTrek conference – the leading Nordic digital media and business conference focused on social media and Web 2.0 – held in the city of Tampere, I’ll catch up with Everyplay, Dazzboard, MultiTouch, Oppifi, Virtual Air Guitar Company and Zokem.

In Tampere, Finnfacts also set us up with Xiha, Google, Nokia (yes, it’s a Finnish company!), StartWreck Studios, Gemilo and Ironstar Helsinki. And that rounds up a busy week here in the artic circle!

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Posted by TechPulse 360

Algae Biofuel Still About A Decade Away From Competing With Gasoline

September 29, 2009

Biofuel from algae has several key advantages over ethanol typically made from corn or another feedstock. Growing it doesn’t require the use of agricultural land or consume as much water as a field of corn or sugar cane.

But more importantly, it has the potential to return 3 times the energy needed to produce it. Compare that with ethanol’s return of 1.3 times. (Gasoline made from petroleum is a net consumer of energy, returning only eight-tenths of the energy needed to extract and refine it.)

The marine agriculture necessary to grow algae in commercial volumes is still evolving

The marine agriculture necessary to grow algae in commercial volumes is still evolving

These benefits are behind the renewal of interest in algae that has taken place over the past five years. But the hopes of bringing algae biofuel to the market soon may have to wait.

Another three to five years will be needed to master the marine agricultural techniques required to grow algae in the volumes and concentrations necessary to make harvesting biofuel feasible. And it will be seven to 10 years before the fuel is plentiful enough to be a serious substitute for gasoline.

These are the predictions of John Travers, chief executive of AER Limited, an Irish maker of an enzyme technology used to convert raw algae into sugar, protein and oil.

Travers says the main hurdle is in learning the nuances of algae cultivation. Algae require the right amount of sunlight, nutrients and growing conditions. If the organisms grow too quickly, they use up all their food.

“People have been growing corn for a long period of time,” he says. “Marine agricultural knowledge is still evolving.”

Also evolving is the science necessary for converting algae to fuel. During a large-scale August test in a 100-liter container, AER’s enzymes were able to convert algae into sugar, protein and oil with some concentrations from 50 to 80 percent.

“We are ready to go to market next year,” says Travers. Let’s hope some of the growers come along at an equally fast pace.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Wavebob Targets Commercial Wave Energy Buoy For 2013

September 29, 2009

Wave power remains one of the unproved holy grails of alternative energy industry.

Wavebob hopes a 5 million Euro grant will help it toward at 2011 Portuguese trial

Wavebob hopes a 5 million Euro grant will help it toward at 2011 Portuguese trial

The potential is huge. Countries such as Ireland and Australia, and the state of Hawaii have rollers with kilowatts of power per wave meter, a measurement of stored energy.

But making electricity-producing buoys tough enough to withstand the crashing force of storm-triggered walls of water has proven an engineering challenge. Some argue it will be a decade before any substantial commercial progress is made.

Andrew Parish, chief executive of Ireland’s Wavebob, believes the timeline is much sooner. His Maynooth company continues to fine tune its hydraulic wave buoy now being tested in Ireland’s Galway Bay and has its sights set on a second Portuguese trial in the third quarter of 2011.

He claims the Wavebob technology will be appropriate for commercial deployment two years later, in 2013.

“It will be right,” said Parish in an interview at the Irish Consulate in San Francisco on Monday. “We’ve learned our lessons.”

The Portuguese trial will be an important test for several reasons. Perhaps most importantly, it will be the company’s first deployment in open ocean. It also will be connected to the electric grid. Parish is confident the company will receive a 5 million Euro grant from the EU for the project.

When the walls of water come crashing down, the device shuts off for protection, he adds.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Canadian Hydro Targets Largest Offshore Wind Farm In The World

September 28, 2009

Canadian Hydro Developers said it intends to build the world’s largest offshore wind farm in the Great Lakes with the project beginning operation in 2014.

The company on Monday said it secured rights to an offshore site for the farm with 4,400 MW of wind capacity. The site is located between 3 to 19 miles off the coast of Ontario. No financial terms were released.

Great Lakes site has 4,400 MW of wind capacity

Great Lakes site has 4,400 MW of wind capacity

The deal, struck with Park City, Utah, based wind farm developer Wasatch Wind, gives Canadian Hydro the opportunity to increase its energy generation by six fold. The firm currently operates plants with a capacity of 694 MW.

When completed, the Great Lakes project is expected to supply enough energy to power 2 million homes. The company said its plant will require industry subsidies, specially an Ontario feed-in tariff with a 20-year contract price of $190 per MWh.

The first 400 to 500 MW of generation is anticipated to come online at the end of 2014.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Scotland Adding To Its Wind Farm Lead

September 28, 2009

Scotland has some of the world’s most ambitious plans to benefit from the power of the wind – and a big jump on the world in harvesting it.

Shetland project meeting local opposition, though

Shetland project meeting local opposition, though

In May, the nation switched on its then largest onshore wind farm – the 322 MW Whitelee plant south of Glasgow. Owned by ScottishPower Renewable, part of the Spanish energy giant Iberdrola SA., the farm has permission to expand to 600 MW.

Now ScottishPower is set to add to its portfolio. Construction began on the 120 MW Arecleoch farm near Barrhill in South Ayrshire. Sixty turbines are planned over a 14-square-mile site.

An equally large project from Viking Energy is under consideration for the islands of Shetland. It would boast 150 turbines standing 475 feet high and a 600 MW generating capacity. (Shetlanders have come out against the proposal.)

Both projects are among the roughly 45 wind projects either pending or which have won approval since 2007.

Scottish officials say they are well on their way to getting 50 percent of the nation’s electricity from renewable sources by 2020. Scotland has about a quarter of Europe’s wind potential and existing farms achieve world record efficiencies.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Rooftop Projects Driving Solar Demand Not Utility Farms

September 25, 2009

Financing problems continue to plague utility-size solar projects leaving the consumer and commercial rooftop markets as the major fuel for panel sales.

This latest assessment of FBR Capital Markets analyst Mehdi Hosseini leaves open the question of whether the market strength can be sustained during the fourth quarter and into early next year.

Less than $2 billion is available worldwide for solar farm financing

Less than $2 billion is available worldwide for solar farm financing

Already signs are appearing that the present price stability is eroding. First-quarter contracts between suppliers and distributors point to module prices of $1.65, or 20 percent below where they are today, says Hosseini in a Friday research note.

Around the world, the money available to finance large ground-mounted solar farms is tiny – less than $2 billion – and project plans are taking 12 months to complete.

Instead, the market is being driven by rooftop installations, largely in Germany and the United States. The German market should remain solid into November, Hosseini writes.

After that it is anyone’s guess. And it is not unrealistic to assume a slowdown will come during the cold winter months as buyers await the economic warming of spring.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

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