Alternative Energy Device Adoption Now Driven By Corporate Buyers According To Industry Experts; Consumer Applications Lag: Balance Sheet Sustainability Key To Stock Picks

• On 8:45 am EDT, Friday September 25, 2009

67 WALL STREET, New York - September 25, 2009 - The Wall Street Transcript has just published its Alternative Energy/Clean Energy/Power Generation/Utilities Report offering a timely review of the sector to serious investors and industry executives. This 83 page feature contains expert industry commentary through in-depth interviews with public company CEOs, Equity Analysts and Money Managers. The full issue is available by calling (212) 952-7433 or via The Wall Street Transcript Online.

Topics covered: Long Term Perspective on Alternative Energy Industry -- Leading Indicators for Alternative Energy Components Companies -- Mergers and Acquisitions in the Alternative Energy Industry -- Break Even Business Fundamentals for Carbon Free Energy Providers -- Development of Carbon Free Energy Production Infrastructure -- NAT GAS Act -- New Players in the Alternative Energy Industry -- Solar Power Cell Manufacturers Market Strategy -- Demand Response for Raw Materials for Solar Cell Production -- Alternative Energy Investment Opportunities -- Multiple Stock Winners in Carbon Free Production Industry -- Government Funding of Alternative Energy Power Providers -- Chinese Solar Energy Companies -- Alternative Energy Hedge Fund Investors -- Commodity Cycles -- Determinants of Market Valuations in the Alternative Energy Production Industry -- Carbon Emissions Statistics -- Energy Efficiency Statistics -- Innovations in Solar and Wind Power Generation -- Business Economics for Methane Based Power Generation -- Electric Vehicles Projections and Statistics-- Cap and Trade Projections and Statistics -- Development of Battery Technology -- Regulatory Environment Developments for Solar, Wind, and Alternative Energy -- Hybrid Vehicles Development and Sales Projections

Companies include: Tanfield (TAN.L); Smith Electric Vehicles U.S.; Valence (VLNC); Spire (SPIR); Newport (NEWP); MYR Group (MYRG); Primoris (PRIM); Tetra Tech (TTEK); EnerNOC (ENOC); Comverge (COMV); EnergyConnect (ECNG.OB); Calgon Carbon (CCC); and Ener1 (HEV); Westport Innovations (WPRT); Clean Energy Fuels (CLNE); Fuel Systems Solutions (FSYS); FuelCell Energy (FCEL); FEI Company (FEIC); Veeco (VECO); ATT (ATT); Landi Renzo (LR.MI); Teleflex (TFX); Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A); Wal-Mart (WMT); Pepsico (PEP); FuelMaker; Chevrolet; GM; Honda (HMC); Itron (ITRI); Siemens (SI); American Superconductor (AMSC); GE (GE); and ABB (ABB);

In the following brief excerpt from just one of the 22 interviews in the 83 page report, industry experts discuss the outlook for the sector and for investors.

Edward A. Einboden is a Senior Research Analyst with Wm Smith Special Opportunities Research Company, an affiliate of Wm Smith & Co. He has been with the firm since 2007 and covers alternative energy, retail and manufacturing. Mr. Einboden previously worked as a Research Associate at RBC Capital Markets and as a Research Assistant at OppenheimerFunds. He has a B.S. degree in finance from the Monfort College of Business, University of Northern Colorado, and is a member of the CFA Society of Colorado.

Robert Young is a Research Analyst with Wm Smith Special Opportunities Research Company, an affiliate of Wm Smith & Co. He has been with the firm since 2007 and covers alternative energy, consulting, infrastructure, paper products and metals. Mr. Young was previously a Consultant for FTI Consulting, where he worked on bankruptcy litigation, M&A and performance improvement engagements. Mr. Young has a bachelor's degree in finance with a minor in accounting and an MBA from the University of Denver.

TWST: What level of near- and long-term growth do both of you see in the alternative transportation sector?

Mr. Einboden: Near term, I think the industry is getting a handle on what are the opportunities and what the technology has in store for it. I think on the consumer side, we are dealing with Detroit and a lot of automakers that need to re-look at the industry itself. I think they are doing a good job of trying to address those issues, trying to see the larger picture of what they can do, and re-think ways to manufacture and achieve the opportunities that they have. In the near term, dealing with the financial ramifications of that previous industry structure grew challenging and, therefore, it's been difficult for consumers to have the confidence in order to adopt and difficult for companies to address that situation. Longer term, I think the inevitable progression that we will see relates to the impact on the environment and increasing efficiencies that we are seeing. Whether it is batteries, engines or the drivetrains, there is a lot of innovation going on. It's been a very long time and we need to address what constitutes innovation in this industry versus merely body types or fuel mileage, and that is something that we're addressing now. So I think near term, those are the challenges. More near term from the investor side, I think people should be looking at the commercial market. One of the companies that we follow, Tanfield along with Smith Electric Vehicles U.S., who is the joint venture here in the United States, I think makes a lot of sense because it deals with a consumer or a customer that has deeper pockets. These companies - a lot of times management embraces new technology and seeks better ways to do things. They also understand logistically how to implement certain changes into their delivery systems, into their cost structure, into their routes and things. So from a financial side, there have been a lot of incentives put into place; they have the ability to purchase products and there is a big push for this, including the U.K., which by the way I think is an under-observed market out there. Looking from that side of spectrum, the end of July's announcement between Smith Electric and companies like Coca-Cola, Staples and Pacific Gas & Electric, Frito-Lay, AT&T and Kansas City Southern, which was made in Washington, D.C., and was a positive. I think those are the type of announcements people should be looking at and saying that these are the type of customers that will be buying in the near term, whereas on the consumer side we're still needing to adopt and obtain a level of comfort on the level of adoption that we will see. Longer term, I think they're both very viable solutions. People are putting maybe a little bit more emphasis on the consumer market, which happens to be a couple of years out and not looking at the very important commercial market, which makes a lot of sense from a logistical, financial and overall use standpoint. I think that that's something that people should look at.

TWST: What homework should investors do before investing in alternative energy?

Mr. Young: It's really important to assess the management team as well as the company's sustainability from a balance sheet perspective. A lot of these companies are relatively small compared to where they'll likely be over the long term, and so I think that it's important that investors really get a gauge for the management team's experience and equity ownership level. I think that the management as well as the company's balance sheet are probably the one-two punch in terms of what investors really need to look at and focus on going forward, especially during a difficult top-line environment.

Mr. Einboden: I think on the capacity side as well, it's important to understand from the perspective of bandwidth. Companies that Rob covers, Primoris, and MYRG and Tetra Tech, they've been doing business for many, many years, and they have the bandwidth to put people to work, to be able to take the reins and run with them because they've been doing this for many years. I think companies that have the ability to meet demand, and we're talking about when the incentive money comes in from the government. Companies are talking about increasing capacity and the ability to do that, which I think is important. We know the demand will inevitably come, and it may not be here right now. So as companies struggle on the revenue side of things, they're kind of treading water until the chicken-and-egg scenario resolves itself. I think when that demand does come, capacity and ability to ramp production is going to be important because the last thing people want to do is not be able to satisfy the amount of interest or unfortunately hinder the industry from adoption if they can't provide supply. So I think that's an important thing to look at as well.

The Wall Street Transcript is a unique service for investors and industry researchers - providing fresh commentary and insight through verbatim interviews with CEOs and research analysts. This 83 page special issue is available by calling (212) 952-7433 or via The Wall Street Transcript Online .

The Wall Street Transcript does not endorse the views of any interviewees nor does it make stock recommendations.

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