Clean tech: a $17 billion VC opportunity (and the chance to save the world)

A press release from the Cleantech Venture Network has started to place some estimates for the VC opportunity for clean tech over the next few years. From the release:

...the Cleantech Venture Network® forecasts that cleantech venture capital investment opportunities for major institutional investors globally through 2009 are estimated at $17 billion, with $10 billion in North America, $5 billion in Europe and $2 billion for the rest of the world.

Although, all these kinds of forecasts must be taken with a pinch of salt, Cleantech Venture Network has previously shown that in Q3 2006 alone $933 million was invested in clean tech – so the figures don't appear too far fetched. The current release goes on to claim that this investment could deliver 500,000 new jobs and $85 billion in related economic growth.

As the Stern report in the UK has shown, purely on a pragmatic, economic level the costs of inactivity are far more serious than those of getting to grips with the problem. I guess ultimately it will be these hard dollar factors that will determine whether the will and commitment can be mustered by industry. While this may be sad for those of a more altruistic bent, this one is surely a case of whatever gets the result.

Source: Triple Pundit