Alternatives for Energy: Smarting Up

“I love lists.  Always have. When I was 14, I wrote down every dirty word I knew on file cards and placed them in alphabetical order.  I have a thing about collections, and a list is a collection with purchase.”       ― Adam Savage, cohost of MythBusters and Unchained Reaction

The annual update of Crystal Equity Research’s Energy Alternatives indices has been completed.  Merger, bankruptcies and just plain old ‘tossing in the towel’ actions took a number of companies out of our broadly defined sector of energy alternatives.  Undeterred by start-up risks, entrepreneurs and inventors have been busy bringing new technologies and solutions to the market.  The Energy Alternatives indices encompass over 750 public and private companies, all of which present interesting investment opportunities for the shrewd investor.

Perhaps not as entertaining as Adam Savage’s dirty word list, our lists or indices have plenty of ‘purchase.’  The Mothers of Invention is divided into wide ranging groups of companies that are bringing daring, ‘out of the box’ thinking to energy production and the way humans uses the resources around us.  This group has seen the most change, in part because many of the ideas were long shots in the first place and prone to failure.  We have also expanded our view of what types of technologies should be included.

The Mothers of Invention

The Storage Group has experienced considerable change.  Lithium Werks B.V. acquired Valence Technologies in early 2018.  Those looking for ZBB Energy will now find it listed as EnSync Energy Systems and with the stock symbol ESNC.  Unfortunately, there was no white knight for Axion Power International that was trying to perfect a hybrid battery using lead acid technologies.  Axion filed for bankruptcy in early 2018.

Storage of renewable energy from intermittent sources such as solar and wind is so important that few are deterred by the failures of others.  New additions to the Storage Group included Arotech Corporation (ARTX:  Nasdaq) with its iron flow battery chemistry, Red Flow (RFX:  ASX) and its zinc bromide flow battery, and privately held UniEnergy Technologies with its vanadium redox battery design.  We also added several privately-held developers of silicon anode technologies, including Enevate Corporation, Group14 Technologies, Nexeon, and Nanograf Technologies.  A new wild card in the storage group is Energy Vault SA, which is developing a mechanical energy storage solution using large drums and concrete.

In the Smart Grid Group, Gridco Systems gave up trying to commercialize its digital grid controls products.  Despite considerable success with field tests at major utilities around the country, there were just not enough orders to keep its venture capital supporters happy.  However, demand response appears to be in strong demand, giving EnerNOC plenty of opportunity to expand around the world.  EnerNOC is owned by Enel Group.

Creating efficiency in energy use is vital in reducing the harmful effects of combusting fossil fuels for power.  Carillion Plc made an attempt at smart, energy efficient buildings, but had to declare bankruptcy after the U.K. government declined to help out the financially beleaguered company.  The plasma lighting developer Luxim Corporation was deleted from the Efficiency Group after being acquired by LUMA America and becoming more brand manager than technology developer.

Nucor Corporation (NUE:  NYSE) has found its way into the Efficiency Group following the acquisition of Metal Recycling Services and the steel recycler’s pledge to promote green metal building materials.  Fenix Outdoor International (FOI-B:  STO) is also bringing efficiency to the very large market for textiles by tapping recycled materials for its outdoor garments and equipment.  Recycling of a different sort is under development and commercialization by privately-held Heatmine, which is capturing and reusing thermal energy from computers.

A new group for Water Conservation was created and now includes OriginClear (OCLN: OTC/BB), the survivor of algae developer Origin Oil.  Ambient Water (AWGI:  OTC/BB) is also in this group with its ambitious plan to extract water from humidity in the air for use in those locations where potable water is scarce.  Wastewater processor Fluence Corporation (FLC:  SCX) has also been included in this group.

The Materials Group has been expanded by the addition of companies developing metals resources for batteries.  Because of the dramatic expansion of electric vehicles and renewable power generation, lithium ion battery production is driving demand for lithium, graphite and cobalt among other metals.  Companies that were once limited to simply mining a mineral concentrate have begun integrating forward into battery-grade materials production.  These companies are bringing value to alternative energy and in doing so offering investment options to investors with a focus on energy.

Visit the Crystal Equity Research website to view the updated Mothers of Invention Index. 

Neither the author of the Small Cap Strategist web log, Crystal Equity Research nor its affiliates have a beneficial interest in the companies mentioned herein.