Funding becoming harder to get for green startups

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Saving the planet is looking a lot less profitable than it was a few months ago, and investors once enamored with finding the next high-flying alternative energy startup are retrenching.

Venture capitalists poured a record number of dollars into alternative energy companies as oil prices peaked at $147 in the third quarter, but some say that investment has trailed off substantially as crude prices declined and the global economy has slipped toward recession.

Not only are venture firms demanding lower valuations for what they call “cleantech” companies, they are also shying away from those with riskier technologies and startups whose business plans will require large amounts of capital.

Reuters