News

• Munich Re offers PV cover

  01 June 2009

  Insurance broker Marsh and reinsurer Munich Re are insuring California solar module maker Signet Solar's products against deterioration in performance, through what they claim is a first-of-its-kind policy.

• US climate bill fight heads to committees, Senate

  01 June 2009

  The US House of Representatives is likely to vote in favour of a greenhouse gas (GHG) cap-and-trade bill in the coming weeks, following a vote by a key committee last month. Attention is now turning to the Senate, amid speculation that compromises forged to win over Democrats in the House may lead to increased support among senators.

• Obama unveils plan to improve US fuel economy voluntary market volumes

  01 June 2009

  Car companies with significant numbers of hybrids and electric cars, as well as parts manufacturers that can help create more fuel-efficient vehicles, are set to gain from US President Barack Obama's new fuel efficiency policy, analysts and investors said.

• Climate negotiators enter final furlong

  01 June 2009

  Government officials have begun substantive negotiations on a successor agreement to the Kyoto Protocol – due to be agreed in Copenhagen in December – following the publication of three draft negotiating texts last month.

• Clean-Tech VC Plummets - Ernst & Young

  01 June 2009

  US venture capital (VC) investment in clean technology firms dropped 63% in the first quarter of 2009 compared to the same period last year, according to Ernst & Young.

• CCX leads doubling of voluntary market volumes

  01 June 2009

  Voluntary carbon markets doubled in size and value in 2008, consistent with the trend in 2007 and in line with earlier predictions, according to a recent report. But that pattern is unlikely to be repeated this year, with volumes in the first three months of 2009 down 50% on the quarterly average last year, according to the report authors.

• Natixis rethinks carbon fund

  01 June 2009

  Paris-based Natixis Environnement & Infrastructures is considering recalibrating its European Kyoto Fund – which will invest in carbon assets generated both pre- and post-2012 – to offer a tranche that repays investors with carbon credits, rather than cash as was originally structured.

• New fund manager aiming for €200m enviro fund-of-funds

  28 May 2009

  A recently launched fund manager claiming "depth and breadth" in experience is understood to be hoping to raise €200 million ($279 million) into a low-carbon technology private equity fund of funds.

• Standard to aid companies on climate reporting

  28 May 2009

  Corporations wanting to report data relevant to climate change now have a standard procedure to follow, with the launch of a draft framework by the Climate Disclosure Standards Board (CDSB) this week.

• IEA confirms renewables recession woes

  28 May 2009

  Investments in renewable energy are expected to drop 38% in 2009 thanks in part to the financial crisis, according to a report from the International Energy Agency (IEA) for the G8 energy ministers' meeting in Rome this week.