By Wal van Lierop, CEO, Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital
2011 is upon us, and beyond being reminded that I’m another year older with a few more gray hairs, I’m anticipating another strong year for cleantech ahead. But my specific opinions stemming from 10 years in cleantech investing may be different from many, so I would like to present you with my “Top 11 List” and outline how I believe the industry will evolve within the next 12 months:
- Cleantech will become more visible – Cleantech applications will get wider acceptance in many industries. The “electrification of transportation” and its infrastructure, including (fast) charging and supporting energy storage, will become more important. LED-based products will become more common on HomeDepot and Walmart shelves. Energy efficiency will become the building industry standard, and cleantech will start to make more significant inroads in traditional oil, coal and gas processes. The “mainstreaming of cleantech” will finally take off.
- Cleantech will become more invisible – As cleantech starts penetrating into mainstream industries and taking place more within the walls of large companies, it will become more difficult to measure what is actually happening within the industry on the whole. So, 2011 will be the first year where “cleantech” as a generic market slogan will start to lose some of the power it had in past years.
- Cleantech exits will arrive – Since Labor Day 2010, the IPO window has opened up again, but most exits will come from the increasing “shopping sprees” by large, mainstream industrial companies with war chests trying to make evolving start-ups accretive to their bottom line, and by the natural consolidation process any industry experiences when it starts to mature. There is an “arms race” building up to claim global cleantech leadership positions.
- The Chinese will top the “shoppers" – The “bite of the dragon” will
