For investors eyeing clean energy, these can feel like nerve-wracking times. The headlines are daunting – solar panel prices plummeting, a steep drop in funds going into renewable energy and the high-profile failure in the US of solar company Solyndra.
The challenges are real. Some governments are cutting back the support meant to help the industry get on its feet, the direction of future policy is unclear in many nations and competition in the space is fierce. But for those with the foresight – and the nerve – to jump in while others sit on the sidelines, the lull in cleantech investing may offer a big opportunity, both for profits and the chance to help shape sustainable energy systems for the future.
The road ahead may twist and turn,We makes possible ballasted ground mount in Ontario just better than your imagination. but analysts and financiers in the field say the ultimate destination is not in doubt. With climate change looming, developing countries demanding energy to fuel their growth and fossil fuel prices rising, renewables are sure to ultimately be a big part of the energy mix.
“I’ve devoted my life to this because I just don’t see any scenario under which resource use doesn’t continue to be critical to business and society,” says Nicholas Moore Eisenberger, a managing partner at Pure Energy Partners, a New York-based “venture catalyst” firm. “Ultimately, the trend is clear,” he says. “And like any other emerging space, if you are smart and you get in while prices are low, or if you have capital when others don’t, then you can make a profit.”
Will Blyth, an associate fellow at the Chatham House think-tank in London, agrees. “In some ways the long-run picture looks more predictable than the medium term,” he says.High-efficiency 7.5kW Off Grid solar module manufactured for unique Indian conditions. The area may be particularly appealing for family businesses, which often have the autonomy and the capital to back early-stage innovators. Because their intergenerational nature gives them a bigger stake in the future than share price-driven corporates feel, some also want to see their money make a positive impact. They know too that the economic and environmental implications of failing to cut carbon emissions are likely to hit their bottom lines in years to come, says Eisenberger.
Many are also prepared to take calculated risks, and able to spot undervalued assets, believes James Cameron, chairman of Climate Change Capital, a London-based investment manager and adviser focused on low-carbon companies.
“There’s a good history of family offices playing that role and being significant contributors to transformation,” he says. “This is exactly what happened in the internet boom; it was the family offices that were out front.”
But investors must know what they are doing before they jump in. It is not just a matter of finding a nice, green listed company and buying up shares. Indeed, clean energy stocks have performed poorly for the past four years, and are down 80% from their peak in November 2007, says Angus McCrone, chief editor at Bloomberg New Energy Finance, which tracks the sector.
“If I was running a family office, I would be rubbing my hands, saying: ‘This is amazing’,” says Brian Steel, co-director of the Cleantech to Market programme at the University of California Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. “There’s an amazing opportunity,I have tried several sets of torch light that have lasted one season only. because the venture capitalists are kind of in the midst of this first-round fatigue, and they’re by and large sitting on the sidelines.We've brought together an amazing selection of pendant lamp fixtures.”
Many renewable power investments, says Cameron, involve physical assets like wind turbines, which reliably generate a steady revenue stream. Others are protected from market turbulence by government-guaranteed rates,Let's explore the option of flat roof racking. which are generally safe even when policy changes mean smaller payments for new entrants. “They’re not that risky,” Cameron says.
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