Cleantech Companies Poised to Capitalize on Real Estate Opportunities and Tax Incentives for Expansion and Relocation Projects
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| Lou Vidaillet |
The cleantech industry is moving at rapid speed. With the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) signed into law in February 2009, the cleantech sector is poised for continued growth as venture capitalists flock to what they hope will result in big returns.
Venture capitalists have already poured $8.7 billion into energy-related startups in the United States since 2006. Looking abroad, clean technology venture investments in North America, Europe, China and India totaled a record $8.4 billion in 2008.
As an emerging industry, cleantech companies are well-positioned in the current marketplace to capitalize on premium office or industrial space available at a discount while also maximizing tax incentives related to their expansion efforts.
For example, ARRA has injected roughly $60 billion into green initiatives and created $20 billion in beneficial tax incentives for cleantech companies. In May 2009, the Department of Energy allocated $786.5 million in Recovery Act funding for new and existing projects in biorefineries, sustainability research, infrastructure-compatible biofuels and ethanol research. The government has additionally granted $2.3 billion in tax credits to manufacturers of equipment needed for cleantech which will continue to bolster support for this emerging sector.
Fueled in part by this influx of capital and incentives, many cleantech companies are maturing quickly and working to relocate to new regions from which to stage their expanding operations. In July (2009), the biofuels joint-venture between BP and Verenium Corporation announced it will move its corporate headquarters from Cambridge, Mass. to Highlands County, FL. In August, Swedish-based Swebo Bioenergy revealed it will expand into the United States with a new office in Annapolis, MD that will serve as its U.S. base of operations. Meanwhile, other cleantech companies, such as Denmark-based Vestas Wind Systems, are steadily expanding their U.S. operations. Vestas is in the process of launching three new offices in Colorado, adding to its existing presence in Portland, Houston, Chicago and Boston.
At the same time, there are also a growing number of relocation destinations to consider based on new tax incentives for real estate transactions, whether it’s a company in Silicon Valley looking to relocate or expand their operations in Colorado or an international company interested in establishing a presence in the United States.
The following five U.S. cities offer an array of attractive destinations for cleantech companies looking to relocate:
