Watts Happening In Energy
It’s all about Energy
No matter where you look, you’ll see someone talking about energy. Usually, it’s someone within the industry, however, this past week the industry got a ‘soft boost that will hopefully open some Windows, from none other than Bill Gates. “It’s crazy how little we’re funding energy,” said Gates at the ARPA-E energy conference in Washington DC. Gates advocated for more government funding and investments in energy research.
It’s not all fun… ding and games
A critical point in the ongoing debate over energy is whether or not the government should be involved in venture funding. As you can read in my previous posts and hear on just about any news program or debate, the opinions are mixed. Rob Day sums up the argument fairly well in his article on Greentech Media.
Shining Stars… well Shining Sun
The solar industry took another blow this week as Abound Solar, Fisker Solar and SoloPower (all recipients of the DOE loan guarantee) hit setbacks. However, on a brighter note, GE Energy Financial Services* announced this week that they have doubled their investment commitments in the past year to $1.4 billion, with the completion of their latest $100 million solar investment in a 127-megawatt project that will be built in Arizona. Check out some of EFS’s solar investment highlights in this video.
On the conference front:
- ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit, Washington DC (2/27-2/29), more info
- World Water Tech Investment, London (2/28-2/29), more info
- Infocast 2012 Solar Power Finance & Investment Summit, San Diego, CA (2/27-3/1), more info
That’s Watts Happening in Energy this week… plug in next week for even more illumination. 
* GE Energy Financial Services is a client of CJP Communications.