Report: 2Q clean-energy investment improves

New global investment in renewable-energy projects showed a glimmer of improvement in the second quarter although the pace remained glacial as investors await stimulus program details, analysts said Friday.

Preliminary data showed second-quarter investment was at least one-third more than the dismal first quarter of $13.3 billion, New Energy Finance, an industry research firm, reported.

"Investment in clean energy companies via the public markets has rallied sharply," New Energy Chief Executive Officer Michael Liebreich said in a statement. "The good news is that it does look as though the worst is past."

Much of the delay is due to the wait for details on how governments worldwide will disburse stimulus money for clean energy, which New Energy estimated at $184.9 billion for major countries.

The U.S. government, for example, will allocate billions for energy efficient measures and development of energy alternatives to oil.

"The phones started ringing when Congress and the administration passed that but the deal flow hasn't begun because the rule-writing process is not completed yet," said Roby Roberts, a U.S.-based senior vice president for Vestas Wind Systems, the world's largest wind turbine manufacturer. "We're waiting for that. There is a lot of pent-up demand."

He said plans remain on track for three manufacturing plants in Colorado although the company temporarily shelved plans for a new headquarters building in Portland, Ore., because of the recession.

Renewable energy remains a small fraction of all power used but wind and solar are among the fastest growing in the U.S., which last year became the world leader in wind-generated power capacity.

Liebreich estimated the bulk of the stimulus money globally will pour into the market next year and in 2011. By then, the sector may be recovering on its own, he speculated.

Second-quarter specifics were not available as a few weeks remained and Liebreich did not return an e-mail request for comment.

The firm did note more than $2 billion was invested this quarter through secondary issues by such companies as Denmark-based Vestas, and solar companies SunPower Corp., Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. and Evergreen Solar Inc.

The London-based firm predicted new investment between $95 billion and $115 billion for the full year, a drop of up to 39 percent from the 2008 record total of $155 billion.

From January to March, new global investment in clean-energy projects totaled $13.3 billion, down 53 percent from the $28.3 billion invested in the year-ago quarter, New Energy said.

In a telephone interview, Ernst & Young clean-technology analyst Joseph Muscat said he believes the industry is on track to show improvement later this year. The second quarter, he said, is hard to measure at this point.

In the meantime, he said, companies are working to improve technologies across the industry, such as cellulosic biofuels and ways to reduce the cost of electricity.