Friday, March 20, 2009

Efficiency: The Stimulus Plan’s Big Winner

From Environmental Capital:
Analysts and the clean-tech sector itself are just coming to grips with the implications of the recently-passed stimulus package for clean energy.

The short summary? Over the next two years, energy efficiency will hog the limelight, HSBC says in a new report, “represent[ing] by far the most compelling investment opportunity,” while low-carbon energy production takes a distant second.

The stimulus package’s embrace of energy efficiency shows up in the scale of the money being handed out—efficiency takes about 60% of the stimulus package’s $37 billion earmarked for greenery. What’s more, the bulk of that, about 82%, will be doled out in the next two years, HSBC figures, making it more attractive in the middle of the downturn....MORE