A detailed review of 12 U.S. based synthetic biology, biofuel & biochemical companies that are developing third and fourth generation biofuels, bioindustrial & household chemical, and food additive products; using synthetic biology to produce engineered microorganisms and specialty enzymatic products. Each company is examined in turn, looking at its financials and the uniqueness and strength of its processes and technology as well as at any important partnerships or alliances that have been formed.
Solar power continues along its firmly established downward cost curve and edges ever closer to achieving the historic milestone of grid parity. Today it just got a huge boost that will help it scale out in this country and will go a long way towards tipping the long term balance in favor of solar. In fact as the industry achieves scale it is cutting per unit costs down. This post outlines the announcement of a large DOE initiative to promote rooftop direct grid connected solar power in the US.
Greenstart, a startup accelerator exclusively designed for cleantech companies, is seeking applications for the company’s inaugural three-month accelerator session, which begins on September 12. Submissions will be accepted until July 3
In this post Rien discusses the paradox that pervades so much of the high tech and cleantech world; the world that is supposed ot bring us a green and clean future free from the polluting industries of the “old” industrial paradigm. AND yet, so much of cleantech (and high-tech) depends in often critical ways on rare earths. Rare earth mining and refining is a very dirty business that has lead to some pretty horrible pollution, mainly in the Chinese regions in which it is mostly sourced from. This post focuses on a major new refining operation that Australian mining giant Lynas is trying to open in the country of Malaysia; an operation that is being opposed both by Malaysian activists and by some Australian Green Party activists as well. It forces us all to ponder this paradox and ask ourselves just how green is the green economy?
The greentech top talent shortage is real. Green industries’ high growth and fast innovation, makes for fierce competition among experienced green professionals. High tech-experienced talent is filling some of the demand; the ease of transition depends on the role and industry.
This post examines the central role of energy in our lives by posing the hypothetical question the impact that free and unlimited energy would likely have on our world. Of course, as the author points out energy is neither free nor is it unlimited and prices for fossil fuels are destined to rise as emerging economies energy appetites make themselves felt on the market. From a venture capital perspective, it is this type of disruption that makes cleantech a compelling area for investment.
This post answers the recently much hyped focus on wind’s variability problem, quantifying it in clear cost terms that put it in perspective. The post helps clarify the differences between energy, capacity and the ancillary services surrounding ensuring capacity and goes on to answer some of the other related problems that have been alleged for wind energy as its penetration level increases.
Three-quarters of large international corporates plan to increase or significantly increase cleantech budgets over the next few years to incorporating clean technologies into existing products to improve environmental performance; entering cleantech segments that are adjacent to existing business units/operations; or create entirely new cleantech-driven product and service offerings, and ultimately new industries.
In this post, Dallas writes about bio natural gas a potentially disruptive renewable energy technology that may be poised to expand out of the niche markets it has so far been constrained in. After describing what bio natural gas is and is not, the post delves into some of the specifics for why this sector may be ready to take off, and why it has a big upside potential. The study, which this post summarizes suggests that bio natural gas may emerge as the lowest cost renewable power in the future, once available at scale.
