Cleantech a Strong and Growing Sector

Cleantech has become one of the fastest-growing sectors in the North American venture capital market, according to an Ernst and Young report recently released, which stated that capital invested in the sector grew by 18% in 2008 to $571.6 million compared with $483.9 million in the same quarter a year ago (based on data from Dow Jones VentureOne). The Report also provides valuable information on bridging the cleantech financing gap and other industry insights.

The report defines clean technology as encompassing a range of products and services that optimize the use of natural resources or reduce the negative environmental impact, while creating value by lowering costs or improving performance. Examples include alternative fuels, water treatment processes related to conservation, fuel cells, solar, and energy efficient products.

Another great resource, The Cleantech Report™ produced by Lux Research states that the air, water and waste industry segments are relatively untapped and now present significant investment opportunities.

To celebrate clean technology in Canada, OCRI (Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation) holds a Canada’s Top 10 Competition each year in the Cleantech sector, in addition to Life Sciences and Technology.

Some of the winners from 2007/2008 were:

• ECOfluid Systems Inc. (Vancouver, British Columbia), www.ecofluid.com
• EcoVu Analytics Inc. (Ottawa, Ontario), www.ecovu.com
• GreenCore Composites Inc. (Toronto, Ontario), www.greencorenfc.com

For information on criteria, or to apply for next years competition visit the website. The deadline for this year is Aug. 31 2008.

Flintbox is focusing Cleantech for the rest of the month of May, so please let us know if you are a company or researcher working in this area – we would like to profile you! Contact support@flintbox.com for more information.