Clean-tech venture capitalist Nancy Floyd spoke at the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, saying Barack Obama's energy proposals would make the U.S. economy more competitive.
The speech by Floyd, founder and managing director at Nth Power, is a sign that clean energy and the environment are high-profile issues in this year's presidential campaign. Indeed, Hilary Clinton used her speech to tout "green collar" jobs.
Nancy Floyd, managing director of clean-tech venture capital firm Nth Power.
(Credit: Martin LaMonica/CNET News)Floyd has been doing energy investing for decades and often called on policy-makers to support the domestic renewable energy business.
In her talk, she took the same tack, arguing that Spain, China, Germany and other countries are taking the lead in the green technology field because of "smart, stable, forward-looking energy policies."
She said that the Obama energy plan, which he detailed in a speech in Michigan earlier this month, has the elements to support entrepreneurship in the field and address pressing environmental problems. An excerpt:
Green technology is where the computer industry was in 1984, the year the Macintosh computer was introduced. Think about how far we've come since then. That's how far-reaching and how transformational green technology will be. Thousands of new companies. Millions of new jobs. In fact, investments in wind and solar technologies have already created 2.4 million jobs.
Obama's proposals call for giving U.S. consumers a tax credit for purchasing fuel-efficient vehicles, a renewable energy mandate for electricity utilities, and a cap-and-trade system to regulate carbon emissions.
Floyd appears to represent many of her fellow clean-tech investors political leanings this year. A poll by Earth2Tech found that a majority of clean-tech venture capitalists support Obama.
While many headlines from Sen. Barack Obama's speech on energy policy on Monday focused on tapping the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a look at the details shows a significant pledge to clean technologies.
The presumed Democratic nominee for president delivered a speech in Lansing, Mich.--an area hit from the declining auto industry--to unveil his New Energy for America plan.
Overall, it calls for investing $150 billion over 10 years to create new clean-energy jobs and to cut U.S. dependence on imported oil from the Middle East and Venezuela.
Short-term measures are geared at lowering gasoline prices by tapping the petroleum reserves. They also include a tax rebate.
The medium and long-term plan calls for policies to promote renewable energy, clean-tech jobs, and energy efficiency. Specifically, the plan's goals are:
Putting 1 million U.S.-built plug-in hybrid cars on the road by 2015 through loan guarantees for retooling automakers and a $7,000 consumer tax credit.
A mandate that 10 percent of electricity come from renewable sources by 2012 and 25 percent by 2025.
Cap and trade-based climate regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent from 1990 levels by 2050. A portion of the proceeds from auctions would go toward next-generation biofuels.
For many clean-tech entrepreneurs and investors, these are the sorts of policies they are seeking. A recent poll by Earth2Tech found that a great majority of clean-tech venture capitalists favor Obama over McCain.
His rival, presumed Republican nominee Sen. John McCain, also supports alternative energies and plug-in vehicles but political coverage of his energy policies focuses on his support for expanded oil drilling and nuclear power.
For more details on the comparison between McCain and Obama's plans, see this Bloomberg article and this CNN article.
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