Start-up funds get energized

Start-up companies developing the next killer solar application or water purification system are gaining the attention of Wall Street much as the computer whizzes did a decade ago.

With the price of oil near $70 per barrel, natural-gas prices soaring and the nation’s oil refiners struggling to churn out enough fuel, venture capitalists are pouring $1.5 billion into dozens of clean energy and other green projects in 2005, a 25 percent hike over 2004.

The numbers are expected to go higher as traditional energy sources wane.

Nationally, large corporations such as General Electric and venture capital firms are making bets that green energy will be a moneymaker for years to come.

In Arizona, the trend has played out with venture firms such as Solstice Capital funding solar and fuel-cell start-ups while major utilities like Arizona Public Service Co. and Salt River Project ramp up green investments.

"What really started it was a shift from other industries," said Keith Raab, co-founder of Cleantech Venture Network, an Ann Arbor, Mich.-based group that promotes investment in clean technologies and environmentally friendly projects.

Ken Alltucker
The Arizona Republic

Full Story: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/1009cleanenergy.html