News

• Financing questions for UK's gargantuan offshore wind plan

  14 January 2010

  A potential 32GW of offshore wind capacity could be developed in the UK after the government granted rights to nine coastal zones – but questions remain over how these projects will be financed.

• US government awards $2.3bn for clean energy manufacturing

  14 January 2010

  US federal agencies have awarded $2.3 billion in tax credits for clean energy manufacturing projects in a move designed to spur a major push in renewable energy development.

• Beetle Capital plans fixed income 'natural capital' product

  14 January 2010

  A new asset manager established by a founder of Climate Change Capital is planning a fixed income fund as its first sustainable investment product pursuing a "natural capital" theme.

• Renewables targets, 'Green Bank' likely if cap and trade fails

  14 January 2010

  If climate legislation stalls in the US Congress this year, lawmakers will likely move forward with an energy bill that includes a federal renewable portfolio standard (RPS) and a 'Green Bank' to help finance renewable energy projects, according to law firm Van Ness Feldman's 2010 outlook.

• Proposed ISO criteria get cool response from bioenergy sector

  14 January 2010

  European bioenergy organisations have expressed concerns about plans by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for a new standard to address sustainability issues linked to bioenergy.

• Climate change worsening natural catastrophe rate – Munich Re

  07 January 2010

  Losses from natural catastrophes were dramatically lower in 2009 than the previous year, owing mainly to a benign North American hurricane season, according to Munich Re.

• Invest in wind stocks, avoid solar, says Jefferies

  07 January 2010

  Investors should avoid the solar sector in the early part of this year, according to equity analysts at investment bank Jefferies International, but wind energy companies may be a good bet as orders are expected to surge.

• Almost half of asset managers ignoring climate – Ceres

  07 January 2010

  An alarmingly high number of asset managers are ignoring the risks posed by climate change in thir investment decision-making, according to a reportt by Ceres.

• Copenhagen likely to slow low-carbon investment – investors

  07 January 2010

  The disappointing outcome of the Copenhagen talks last month is likely to discourage some investors from committing to low-carbon investments, leading investors have conceded – despite likely progress on national and regional efforts to promote alternative energy technologies.

• Clean-tech investors favoured energy efficiency in 2009

  07 January 2010

  Clean technology investors ploughed money into the energy efficiency, transportation and power storage sectors in 2009, at the expense of more traditional renewable energy technologies such as solar and wind, according to end-of-year reports from two analysis firms.