Predicting the next 12 months is both unavoidable and irresistible at this time of year, so here are my best guesses for what’s in store for the Smart Grid in 2010:1) We’ll Mark Significant “Phase Two” Milestones: The first phase of the smart grid was about defining it — and it took nearly a decade [...]

  Converting a gas-powered vehicle to run on natural gas can add upwards of $10,000 dollars to the cost of a vehicle — depending on tank size, production volume and other factors. “It’s not exactly cheap,” BAF Technologies President John Bacon told us today. So why are companies like AT&T — which just tapped BAF for [...]

  A lot happened in the world of greentech in the last 12 months – the U.S. government started doling out stimulus funds, the smart grid became a mainstream moniker, the Copenhagen climate summit passed with a whimper, and the first half of the year was overshadowed by that whole economy crashing thing. One thing’s certain: The [...]

  Not only world leaders, United Nations delegates and environmentalists were disappointed in the weak accord reached in the 11th hour of the Copenhagen climate talks — the markets for carbon allowances didn’t like the deal either. Bloomberg is reporting that on the first day of trading since the accord announcement, European and UN carbon prices [...]

  Wildlife vs. Energy in the Mojave: Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) says she plans to introduce legislation today to establish two national monuments on roughly 1 million acres of Mojave Desert outback…Its centerpiece, Mojave Trails National Monument, would prohibit development on 941,000 acres of federal land and former railroad company property along a 105-mile stretch of [...]

  Will 2010 be the year for greentech IPOs? When lithium ion battery maker A123Systems successfully debuted on the Nasdaq back in September, there was much speculation that the move would ready the market for a following of greentech IPOs. The notion seemed over-enthusiastic then, but three months later solar power startup Solyndra has registered for [...]

  A new generation of plug-in vehicles designed for mainstream U.S. consumers is slated to roll out over the next five years — giving car buyers more electric options than ever before. But while automakers are racing to develop models that could eventually see mass market adoption, car companies’ inaugural electric efforts are widely expected to [...]

  One of the most interesting parts about a startup registering for an IPO is that the company has to file an S-1 form, which is made publicly available on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s web site. If the startup is particularly stealthy, then an S-1 can be the first time a lot of information about [...]

  Had enough of the Copenhagen climate negotiations? Well, the convention officially ended this weekend, with resounding disappointment over the weak and vague Accord that wasn’t even fully supported by all of the delegates. Positive notes from the convention are that clearly the world is watching these issues closely, and this summit was the first time [...]

  The controversy and debate will rage on this weekend about how real and sufficient the agreement is that the White House and President Obama announced on the closing of the conference. The Accord hadn’t been voted on by the delegates by the time Obama made the announcement and this morning the UNFCCC says that the [...]

  Zipcar has bought a minority stake in car sharing startup Avancar, with an option to increase its ownership share in the Barcelona, Spain-based company during the next year, according to a release from Zipcar on Friday. This represents the first concrete step Zipcar has revealed toward its goal of expanding beyond the U.S. and Canada [...]

  Whoa! The next big cleantech IPO following A123System’s recent public offering, has just been announced. Thin film solar company Solyndra has filed a registration statement for an IPO that could raise up to $300 million. According to the SEC filing, the company generated revenues of $58.8 million for the nine months ended October 3, 2009, rising [...]

  Here’s what everyone’s been waiting for: the Copenhagen climate deal. It still hasn’t been voted on by the delegates and it’s about as weak as could be coming out of a negotiation process that’s been filled with controversy, stalemates and political posturing. But the White House and President Obama have just announced that a Copenhagen [...]

  Signs keep mounting that the solar industry is on the upswing, the latest coming in the form of solar project developer Tioga Energy’s announcement that it’s raised $20 million in a second round of venture funding. The San Mateo, Calif.-based startup, which builds, owns and operates solar installations and then sells the power under long-term [...]