Posts tagged wind energy

Field Report: Conference in Manhattan

I just returned from the Rodman and Renshaw Investment Conference in New York City.  I got to chat with former General Wesley Clark, a strong advocate of clean tech.

These military guys are pretty smart.  They see first-hand the incredible toll that protection of oil supplies takes on the US military.  Not only is economic security compromised by the debt generated by intensive military operations in the Middle East, but there’s also the incredible energy intensity of running a war.

The military wants ways to reduce energy consumption during combat operations because of the cost and danger of getting fuel to the battle field.  Depending on how it is calculated, fuel can cost between $10 and $25 per gallon when delivered into combat.  Lives are lost in the delivery process, along with the opportunity costs of troops focused on ferrying fuel instead of fighting.

The national debt is the single biggest threat to national security, according to Adm. Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.  Tax payers will be paying around $600 billion in interest on the national debt by 2012, the Chairman told students and local leaders in Detroit.

Some of the clean tech management with whom I visited at the conference were from these companies:

Ecotality (ECTY):  The leader in smart electric charger installations (filling stations) for the new wave of electric vehicles.

China Wind Systems (CWS):  Creating lower cost wind turbine components in China

International Fuel Technology (IFUE):  Rolling out a fuel additive for diesel-powered trains that reduces energy consumption 3%.

China Green Material Technologies (CAGM):  Producing corn starch based cups, utensils and even food packaging that work better than plastic, while cheaper and compostable.

China Intelligent Lighting (CIL):  Manufacturing and distributing energy efficient LED lighting products primarily in China.

Dais Analytic  (DLYT):  Creating proprietary heat exchange and water filtration products through the use of it’s patented membrane.

Wind Farm in Texas Made in China?

A 600 megawatt wind farm (about 300 turbines) slated to be commissioned next year will be built primarily with Chinese components.  This is not surprising. 

The fact that US companies make poor competitors in the wind space is a result of uneven and poorly executed US energy policy formulated during the Bush/Cheney “oil guys” years.  

The US has some of the best wind resource in the world, and potentially some of the best demand for wind energy.   In contrast, America is losing miserably in turbine manufacturing volumes.  Out of the top ten global wind turbine manufacturers, only one is based in the US, and that is General Electric.

Fortunately, investors can put their money behind Chinese companies that are winning business such as this new wind farm in Texas: A-Power (APWR) is supplying the components, and you can buy their stock right here on the NASDAQ exchange.

It is ironic that China has largely pushed out most foreign wind competitors in their domestic market, because they see the future globally with wind and want to foster a strong local industry.  On top of this, China is investing $34.5 billion in low carbon technologies this year, while the US is coming in around half of that at $18.6 billion.

As the US continues to focus on wars in the Middle East to protect its oil supplies, China is winning the battle to lead the next generation of renewable energy technologies.

Which country should you be investing in?