Can Raser Technologies Reap the Rewards of Discovering Huge Geothermal Site in US?
Submitted by EnergyTechStocks.com
The year hasn’t been kind to Raser Technologies Inc., a geothermal development company that trades on NYSE Arca. At the beginning of the year, Raser’s stock was trading above $15 a share; now it wallows below $4 a share.
Raser is an emerging energy technology company having what appears to be good long-term prospects stuck in that stage of development in which it needs to spend a lot more money than it makes – bad timing considering the credit crisis that grips the overall economy.
Still, there is reason to believe Raser’s 2009 will be a lot better than its 2008. Geothermal remains the only renewable power source for generating electricity 24-7. In 2008 the company discovered what it described as one of the largest geothermal resource discoveries in the U.S. in the past 25 years. The company’s technology partner is none other than United Technologies Corp., whose UTC Power unit has a new low temperature technology that should enhance production and reduce cost at Raser’s big geothermal site in Utah.
Perhaps most important of all, despite the credit crisis, Raser apparently didn’t have trouble raising additional cash for its development work through a recent $20 million private placement.
What bodes well for Raser in 2009 is that the company expects its first commercial geothermal power plant to come online early in the year, generating about 10 megawatts of clean power. In essence, the company will begin moving from a development stage concern to a commercial operation. What also bodes well for Raser is that it should be a beneficiary of the new Obama administration’s goal to green the economy.
Having said all that, in 2009 the overall economy will still be in a deep freeze, so while Raser looks like maybe it should do well in 2009, whether it actually does is anybody’s guess.
