Warren Buffett Gives Solar a PR Boost: Are Solar Projects an Undervalued Asset?
News today that Warren Buffett's MidAmerican Energy Holdings, a Berkshire Hathaway company, has bought its first solar power plant. This is the first time (to my knowledge) a Buffett portfolio company has bought into a renewable energy project. And if the granddaddy of buying undervalued assets was intent on making a BIG splash in his first forray into renewables, he certainly succeeded.
The Topaz Solar Farm is the second largest solar plant in the world among those that are operational or being constructed according to the CNN Money article. This means that Buffett has not only entered the renewables investment game, but has immediately thrust the topic of "solar as an undervalued asset class" to the top of the debate docket within the financial community.
The investment is a major and needed PR boost for a solar industry suffering from Solyndra's high-profile flame out, the anti-dumping complaint filed against Chinese solar manufacturers and uncertainty about the extension of the production tax credit (PTC) and 1603 treasury grants.
This news will remind market watchers that the solar industry is continuing to grow, even with policy uncertainty looming and the high-profile flameouts of a few outlier companies with poor business fundamentals. Bottom line: improvements in technology, project finance and project development could make solar projects one of the best emerging asset classes over the next 5-10 years. Just ask Warren.
Tags: 1603+grants, 1603+treasury+grants, production+tax+credit, ptc, renewable+energy, solar, solar+investments, solar+pr, solyndra, warren+buffett
By Jason Morris on December 7, 2011 3:28 PM
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Clean Power Finance's SPI 2011 Mobile App
We wanted to call out some of the innovative marketing and PR activities solar clients are pursuing during Solar Power International 2011 (SPI) next week, and since the iPhone 4S just came out and everyone now seems to be permanently glued to their smartphones and mobile devices, we thought the first mobile app for SPI would be an interesting topic.
If you’ve ever been to SPI, you—along with the more than 24,000 solar professionals who are slated to attend this year’s event—know that it’s the place to be if you want to learn about the latest solar industry trends from enterprising and innovative companies working to build a competitive market around clean energy. Yet, as captivating as this four-day conference can be, navigating an enormous conference center with more than 1,000 exhibitors can be a difficult task, particularly when you’re searching for a specific company and only have ten minutes to find its booth. Clean Power Finance, a solar financing company that recently announced its $75 million Google Fund, is partnering with SPI to help all those sun-lovers in attendance locate key events, seminars and more through a brand-new SPI Mobile App.
This mobile app, the first of its kind to be used at SPI, is designed to guide attendees to maps, news and other pertinent information as it develops onsite at the conference. Everything you need to stay on schedule and connected is on this app, which is available at the iTunes app store (search “Solar Power International” to download it for free).
The SPI Mobile App includes the following:
• Navigating the event with an interactive floor map that uses GPS;
• Managing your schedule in real time;
• Searching exhibitor listings and products by keyword, and download company information;
• Viewing the schedule of conference sessions and special events;
• Receiving real-time show alerts and RSS news feeds;
• Interacting through social media;
• Accessing show documents;
• And much more!
SPI Mobile is available for iPhone/iPod Touch and Android, or as a web-based application for all other smartphones including BlackBerry. So take advantage of mobile technology while exploring the future of solar energy technology; make sure you stay up-to-date on SPI activities, hit up all the speaking sessions you want to hear, and don’t get lost in the crowd. Enjoy the show!
Tags: Clean Power Finance, Clean Power Finances' SPI 2011 Mobile App, CPF, Solar Power International 2011, SPI, SPI Mobile App
By Corey Lewandowski on October 20, 2011 2:04 PM
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Act Two: Schwartz MSL
I want to share some really exciting news about Schwartz Communications. After 20 years of independence, we’ve become part of MSLGROUP---one of the world’s largest public relations and engagement agencies.
It takes something special to change two decades of independence. And we’ve found it in an amazing organization with talented employees, terrific clients, and a shared passion for storytelling in all its mediums. Our unique and shared strengths mesh very well.
As Schwartz MSL, we’ll continue our focus on “innovation companies of all sizes” and the technologies, treatments and services that transform business, save lives and conserve our natural resources. But as part of an outstanding industry leader, we now have a new assortment of engagement and marketing services, and a network of thousands of additional experts in more than 80 MSLGROUP offices worldwide.
We’ve moved to a truly global stage, and Schwartz MSL will continue to lead the way in delivering the reach, influence and creative service offerings our clients need to create new markets or transform existing ones. We hope you’ll enjoy our next act, which you can follow here in our blogs and on Twitter at @schwartzmsl.
By Bryan Scanlon on September 15, 2011 2:00 AM
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Cleantech PR: Military Appetite for Renewable Energy to Grow more than 10X According to Pike Research
With the 2010 midterm elections resulting in a GOP majority in the House, a lot of pundits predicted that federal government support of renewable energy would dry up. But now it looks as though support for renewables will come from what is widely regarded as the most conservative of all government institutions: the US military.
According to a new report from Pike Research, military deployments of renewable energy will increase more than 10x over the next two decades. According to a release outlining the report, “military agencies’ spending on renewable energy technologies will continue to rise rapidly over the next two decades, growing from $1.8 billion per year in 2010 to $26.8 billion by 2030. The majority of this spending will be for Mobility applications including portable soldier power as well as land, air, and sea vehicles. Energy for Facilities operations will represent a significant portion of the market, as well.”
This is a public relations and public affairs win for solar, wind and biofuels, as the industries try to continue to win the support of some democrats and social conservatives whose fates are not directly tied to coal, natural gas or oil production in their states or districts. Given the remoteness of many military installations, distributed generation makes a lot of sense.
This should come as no surprise, given recent buzz around military test driving renewable energy systems on bases and the most recent Quadrennial Report which identify climate change as a direct threat to national security.
On the heels of Total's acquisition of SunPower, this is another piece of great news and validation for the industry.
Tags: cleantech+pr, military+solar, renewable+energy+pr, solar+pr
By Jason Morris on June 17, 2011 1:43 PM
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Enviance & Earth Day Bring Together Green Thought Leaders for Blogathon
I remember in fifth grade having to write an essay on "what the Statue of Liberty means to me" and being impressed by the number of different points of view expressed by my classmates for what seemed to me to be a one-angle topic (freedom). Well today, we will see what Earth Day means to people around the world and I think the number of different interpretations would be mind boggling.
We get to see a small sample of this disparity between how people view Earth Day and the different issues they view as important on Enviance's blog page. The company is today hosting an Earth Day blogathon featuring 24 different posts in 24 hours from thought leaders across different business disciplines. IDC, Ovum, The451, TriplePundit and a number of others will offer up posts discussing some of the issues they see as core to environmental stakeholders (i.e. all of us) on this 41st Earth Day.
Yours truly contributed a post about how Earth Day has finally transcended the (and I say this affectionately) "Tree Hugger" audience it has traditionally been associated with. Instead, it brings together a growing coalition of surprising stakeholders, activists and proponents, all of whom see sustainability as core to the environment, our economy, our security and our future. Who are those stakeholders? How has Earth Day finally moved to mainstream relevance? By learning a simple PR lesson. Click on over to find out more...
Happy Earth Day!
Tags: earth+day; enviance;
By Jason Morris on April 22, 2011 10:52 AM
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Cleantech PR: California 33% RPS Music to Renewable Project Developers' Ears
“They’ve moved the cliff out one year,” was the paraphrased response given by one executive of a Schwartz solar client when asked about the US Treasury grant program that got extended late last year. The program, allowing solar and wind project owners to get an uncapped 30 percent of a project’s value in the form of an up-front grant, is one of the beneficial federal programs that has helped preserve investment in renewable energy.
Another Schwartz client once said that the biggest lynchpin to stimulating massive amounts of solar and wind development was some sort of long-term, cohesive policy that gave project developers, financiers and owners certainty through a project’s entire lifecycle. The issue? If a wind farm takes years to design, permit and install, then a 12 month policy doesn’t do much for reassuring the bankers on project cost and IRR.
So while an RPS target almost a decade off isn’t the “killer app” in renewable energy policy, it does send a message to market stakeholders that a state, country or region could be a healthy market for years to come. That brings us to a bill expected to pass the California Assembly this week that will set an aggressive 33 percent renewable portfolio standard, requiring utilities to get one-third of their energy from renewable sources by 2020.
California taking the lead on policy is nothing new—the California RAM FiT program is just one example of policy that had cleantech companies excited. But it is critically important that it continue to lead the country toward a more sustainable future, as federal policy becomes neutered by a Republican-controlled House intent on curtailing the efforts of EPA and California to regulate greenhouse gases and giving polluters a free license to emit whatever they would like with no controls.
You’ll hear a lot about an “energy tax” which is how renewable energy and environmental opponents will cast AB 32 and other California policy over the next 3-6 months. But make no bones about it, any policy that spans the life of energy projects will have a positive impact on energy security, environmental health and job creation in California and nationwide.
Tags: ab+32, cleantech+pr, epa, ram+fit, renewable+portfolio+standard, renewables+pr, rps, solar+pr, wind+pr
By Jason Morris on March 15, 2011 11:43 AM
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The tug-of-war over clean energy spending
In recent weeks, clean energy and green technology has become a high-profile arena for the tug-of-war between Republicans’ desire for spending cuts and the president’s desire for innovation and research. The presidential budget released Monday only brings this issue into even sharper focus, as it provides the first concrete mechanism for each side to begin enacting its platform.
President Obama’s $3.7 trillion budget calls for $8 billion in clean energy spending across all federal agencies, more than the $6.6 billion Congress approved for clean energy programs in 2010. The budget calls for $148 billion overall for research and development, $46 billion of which would be paid for by reducing subsidies to the oil and gas industries. The president’s proposed allotment of $27.2 billion for the Department of Energy (DOE) represents an overall decrease of 12.7% from the Department’s 2011 funding level. Similarly, the president’s budget proposes $8.8 billion in funding for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which constitutes a. 11.2% decrease from its 2011 funding level.
The Republican counterpoint to this budget is the House GOP’s Continuing Resolution (CR), which will be debated on the floor this week. The government-funding bill is expected to cut $3 billion from EPA, an amount which represents approximately one third of EPA’s available discretionary spending. The bill is also expected to cut approximately $1.5 billion from DOE, and $107 million in climate change-related programs.
However, the president’s proposed budget does call for increases to certain programs within EPA and DOE, notwithstanding the overall reductions in funding levels. The budget provides for increased spending for DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), for example, as well as for an increase (to above-historic-levels) for EPA programs to help states comply with pollution regulations.
Which agencies and programs receive cuts or increases to their budgets, and in what amounts, will be determined over the next four months as both parties work to determine and finalize federal funding for fiscal year 2012.
Tags: cleantech, government relations, public+affairs
By Dave Lipson on February 16, 2011 2:23 PM
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