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Investor group commits $1B to 'clean technology'

Submitted by Bill Becker on 1/Oct/2006

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Michael Burnham, E&ENews PM reporter

NEW YORK -- The Investor Network on Climate Risk -- a group of more than 50 state pension fund managers and other institutional investors -- announced today they have poured more than $1 billion of their assets into renewable energy and other "clean technology" ventures during the last 18 months.

Topping the list of INCR's investors is the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS), which invested $700 million in environmentally screened stock portfolios and private equity stakes in energy-efficient materials, solar panels and other technologies.

The California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) followed with $188 million in renewable energy investments in the United States and Europe, officials said during a morning press conference in Manhattan.

Other major investors included the New York Retirement Fund, with $30 million in investments, and the Oregon State Treasurer's Office, with $50 million invested.

"Cleantech now resides with the heavyweights in the world of innovation and investing," said Nick Parker, chairman of the Cleantech Venture Network, the forum's sponsor.

Going forward, the Ann Arbor, Mich., organization forecasts that cleantech venture capital investment opportunities for major institutional investors globally through 2009 are estimated at $17 billion, with $10 billion, alone, in North America.