Friday, August 24, 2007

Rough summer for alternative-energy stocks-Canada

Most stocks in the Canadian alternative-energy sector have taken a beating in recent months.

Smaller players - including VRB Power Systems Inc., Plutonic Power Corp., Arise Technologies Corp., Hydrogenics Corp. and Polaris Geothermal Inc. - have seen their stock price chopped, some by as much as 50 per cent, since early summer.

Bigger, more established firms such as Canadian Hydro Developers Inc., Boralex Inc., and Carmanah Technologies Corp., have also taken a haircut of 10 per cent or more.

Dan McClure, who co-manages Investors Group funds that hold several renewable energy stocks, notes that many of these companies are still up substantially since the start of the year, even if they have fallen from levels reached earlier this summer....MORE from the Globe and Mail