WHAT U.S. NEW ENERGY NEEDS

Acceleration of U.S. Energy Sector Requires Reform at Every Stage of the Innovation Pipeline, According to Kauffman Report; Recent Summits Underscore Roles of Government Policy, Small Business and Public-Private Partnerships to Increase and Sustain Clean Energy Innovation
November 16, 2010 (MarketWire)

"To become a global competitor in the burgeoning clean energy industry, the United States must reform policies and practices all along the innovation pipeline, from research and development to deployment and adoption…according to a report from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation…

"…A Clean Energy Roadmap: Forging the Path Ahead is based on outcomes of three clean energy summits, which the Kauffman Foundation co-convened earlier this year to explore how industry participants might better collaborate to propel economic development and job creation by boosting energy-sector entrepreneurship and innovation."

U.S. investment has fallen off in the last 5 years. (click to enlarge)

"…[Attendees at the three summits included White House representatives; federal, state and local officials; clean-energy entrepreneurs; representatives from academia; private-sector and nonprofit leaders; and other innovators]…The report also encompasses results of an intensive review of more than 20 scientific articles and interviews with 15 of the United States' top clean energy entrepreneurs…

"The report identifies five major policy strategies to accelerate the scaling of U.S. clean energy businesses…[1] Foster interstate cooperation…[and] consistent state-to-state policies that will stimulate the deployment of energy technologies…[2] Reduce market uncertainty by establishing consistent energy policies that remove regulatory ambiguity and establish clear implications for utility companies…"

The U.S. is not investing proportionally to its size and need. (click to enlarge)

"…[3] Democratize access to the power grid. Utilities, which increasingly will be at the forefront of the renewable energy arena, should eliminate operational requirements that hinder entrepreneurs' ability to scale renewable energy solutions, and should establish standardized, easy-to-use connection procedures…[4] Encourage cross-sector collaboration, building upon regional energy innovation clusters that propel business creation and growth…

"…[5] Support human capital development at universities by rewarding innovation that has commercial impact and measuring research value by the number of new products and processes developed, rather than by the number of papers published or patents obtained…"