Want to know where green tech is going? Just follow the money. The green-tech sector will be particularly attractive to investors this year, according to recent survey from the tax and advisory firm KPMG.
Even better, more money appears headed into companies that specialize in energy storage and conservation—and not as much will flow into renewable energies like solar and wind, according to an article in the Boston Globe.
Following are some excerpts from the article:
Seventy-seven percent of respondents said venture investment in green technology will increase in 2010 compared with 2009, including 15 percent who project investment to jump by more than 20 percent.
However, the survey indicated that venture capitalists may be moving away from investments in businesses that produce electricity with wind or solar power, in favor of companies that specialize in energy storage and conservation.
Ed Sullivan, an audit partner in the Boston office of KPMG, said it was also significant that the survey indicated a shift in venture investment toward storage and efficiency and slightly away from renewable sources like solar and wind.
In Sullivan’s view, companies that specialize in energy efficiency and storage present better prospects for seeing profits from venture investments, which are usually realized when companies are sold or go public.
Matt Moscardi, the manager of investor programs at Boston-based Ceres, a national network of investors, environmental organizations, and other public interest groups, said, “That’s why we’re seeing the emphasis on efficiency and storage, because those are low-hanging fruit compared to renewables like solar, wind, and biofuels, which are super-capital-intensive upfront and take a lot of time and money to get up to scale.’’
This should be music to the ears of electronics companies and anyone selling green home technologies that save energy, such as energy monitoring systems, home control systems, lighting control systems and the like. And the VC money moving into this sector is a reflection of the public’s general desire to save energy and money.
