Meet 8 Contenders (4 Public, 4 Private Firms) 3rd Two: Ormat Technologies & LS9

By admin | July 30, 2008

In search of that one investment that will make you filthy rich? EnergyTechStocks doesn’t have a crystal ball. But it spends a lot of time studying how the biggest industry in the world - energy - is undergoing profound changes that will make this planet very different within 5 to 10 years. We hold that hundreds of companies may make money for investors and that a handful - some public, some still private - have the look of a contender for the title “The Next Google.” We’ve picked out eight (an arbitrary number), continuing with:

Ormat Technologies Inc., a Nevada-based firm that trades on the New York Stock Exchange, and LS9 Inc., a private company based in California.

Ormat has two businesses, either one of which could give this company the title “The Next Google.” The two are geothermal power production and power plant heat recovery.

Geothermal power utilizes the Earth’s own heat to generate electricity cleanly. Until technology for storing wind and solar electric power improves, geothermal power is the only 24-7 source of clean power. Recent technological advancements that make it possible to utilize geothermal power without water being present make Ormat a potential geothermal powerhouse. At the same time, Ormat can improve the operating efficiency of a power plant with technology that captures and re-uses heat that would otherwise become wasted energy. (For more see Investor Alert (Part 2 of 2) – Stocks To Think About Buying Right Now: Ormat And Geodynamics and Energy Analyst Dan Scotto: Geothermal Energy ‘Grossly Overlooked’ - Part 1 of 2)

LS9 is a biotechnology firm. Its scientists are genetically engineering microorganisms - bugs - capable of eating organic waste (such as wood chips) and excreting crude oil. Think of the excrement as renewable petroleum and think of LS9’s bugs as Mother Nature’s oil refinery. The concept is outrageous - substituting bugs barely visible under a microscope for giant oil drilling rigs and platforms. The concept also is a long way from commercial viability; the company hopes to have a demonstration plant by 2010 and a commercial-scale facility by 2011. (For more see Green Tech Expert Mike Millikin: The Potential Of These Bugs Is Mind-Blowing - Part 2 of 2 )

But the fact is LS9 has the potential to end America’s foreign oil addiction in a way that is environmentally-friendly. Even when millions of electric vehicles are being sold each year by the world’s major automakers, for another 20 years at least hundreds of millions of vehicles will still run on gasoline. Whether that gasoline will have to come from the world’s increasingly scarce supply of oil, or from bugs that poop petroleum, may make all the difference to the health of the global economy.

Coming tomorrow, August 1, Contenders 7 and 8 - A car company currently out of favor and a “smart” power technology developer

1st Two: Energy Recovery & Konarka

2nd Two: Composite Tech. & A123