First-quarter venture capital investment soars 83 per cent year on year to $1.9bn
Clean tech venture capital deals across the world's largest markets reached record heights in the first quarter, according to research released yesterday by Deloitte and the Cleantech Group.
The analysts announced that venture investment in the clean tech sector was up 83 per cent from the recession-hit first quarter of 2008, reaching $1.9bn (£1.2bn), while the 180 venture capital deals completed during the first three months of 2010 broke the previous record set in the last quarter of 2009.
"The bounce-back in venture investment from lows in early 2009 has continued, with the first three months of 2010 representing the strongest start to a year we have ever recorded," said Sheeraz Haji, president of the Cleantech Group. " Key to the growth has been increasing interest in a broader range of clean tech themes, such as smart mobility and resource efficiency, which are now taking over from the historically dominant renewable energy sector."
The company said the surge in investment has been partly fuelled by a wide range of government incentives in the energy sector, as well as direct funding for smart grid and energy efficiency projects.
(businessGreen.com)
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