March 3rd, 2011

Why should Mass cleantech companies take a vacation to Costa Rica?

BOSTON -

I sat in on a webinar recently where the U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica spoke at length about the amazing opportunities for US clean-tech companies to exploit. Given how gorgeous Costa Rica is and their ongoing strides to create an eco-tourism economy, why the hell not?! It is the perfect spot for expansion, plus a great employee perk.

Kidding/vacation fun aside, the country is attempting to make itself investment friendly and currently has a lot of backing from the US government. Costa Rica is attempting to double the per-capita income of its citizens and in order to do that, the government needs to create jobs and slash spending.

The country has no fossil fuels of its own, so there has been a large focus on renewables, particularly hydro. The government is looking to add more than 2,000 MGW of energy production over the next ten years. This provides a great opportunity for US companies involved with hydro, geothermal and wind production to tap into a market for which their services are a necessity. Solar is being entertained but is generally considered too expensive. Here to is an opportunity for a US business to experiment with new business models that defray the cost of investment in solar. Similarly, Costa Rica is a good market for those exporting equipment for clean energy projects, involved in construction and installation, and/or engineering services.

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Tagged alternative energy, clean tech, Costa Rica, Investment, Sustainable Business |

January 22nd, 2010

What’s your Opinion? Green Tech VS. Clean Tech VS. ‘EnerTech’?

BOSTON -

A couple weeks ago, I was sent this article by a friend: Metcalfe brings VC perspective to Alternative Energy. Metcalfe is an interesting guy that has a great perspective. I skimmed through it and this part really popped out at me: “Networking isn’t the only goal Metcalfe’s been using to try to change people’s thinking on energy technology. “Green” has been politicized, he says, and its anti-business stigma is an impediment. Rather than “green tech,” or “cleantech,” Metcalfe’s been beating a drum for adoption of the term, “enertech.”

I agree with Metcalfe that “Green” has been politicized and tends to divide people even though everyone agrees with the principles (i.e. no one likes to get cancer and thus dislikes the things that cause it). I’ve tended to use the term “clean Tech” in the past because I feel it frames the issue nicely (something Republicans have long been good at, and no I’m not a Democrat either) in terms of clean versus dirty. If something isn’t clean, it must be dirty and that’s bad. Easy to understand. Metcalfe’s perspective is interesting but I think it misses the point, “green” and “clean” are more than just about energy. It’s about food, building materials, toxins, yadda yadda yadda. It’s also possible that he understands this but simply feels “enerTech” will be a more useful name due to the politicization of the two other words.

But I really think this one is still up for debate and I want to hear what you think. Which terms do you use and why?

Tagged alternative energy, clean tech, enertech, green tech, metcalfe, VC |

January 18th, 2010

Video: What IS and IS NOT working in the Clean Energy Industry – Part 2 Non-Profits

BOSTON -

Last week, I posted the first part of a discussion by Chuck Levin, the Director of New Generation Energy where he discussed what is working and what’s not working in the clean energy industry. At the end of the discussion Chuck began to discuss how New Generation Energy addresses some of the places that are currently not working in the industry. In Part 2, Chuck continues to discuss what a ‘perfect world’ would like to, in terms of increasing clean energy production and efficiency and goes more in depth with how New Generation Energy approaches the situations, the role of certifications, and how their Renewable Energy Notes work. See a details description of the talking points below the video. Enjoy!

Remember VOTE for your TOP 3 favorite Boston Clean Tech Companies. Voting ends in February and the top 10 companies will be profiled each month in 2010

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Tagged alternative energy, chuck levin, Energy Efficiency, new generation energy, non-profits, Renewable Energy |