The Detroit Free Press has a story about NextEnergy Corp. (Not to be confused with the Elmira, Ont.-based geothermal company of the same name), a non-profit R&D incubator that focuses exclusively on alternative fuels and other energy sources. This article offers a great overview of what NextEnergy is all about, and how Michigan set up the centre to make sure it’s on the leading edge of new automotive and alternative fuel technologies.

I wrote about NextEnergy in the Toronto Star in February, 2005, and while I don’t have a link to that story I’ll quote from a few graphs:

Perhaps it’s time we look across the border to Michigan for a wake-up call. Three years ago, the state funded the creation of a non-profit corporation called NextEnergy to “advance Michigan as a leader in alternative energy.”

In May it will open its NextEnergy Center, a 45,000-square-foot facility in downtown Detroit dedicated to research and development, product testing and demonstration, and public education of alternative fuels and energy infrastructures. A major driver is the protection of Michigan’s auto sector, which — like Ontario — risks falling behind Asian and European countries in the trend toward cleaner vehicles.

“When you look at what the Japanese are doing on their progress in hybrid technology, I’m very concerned about Michigan,” NextEnergy chief executive James Croce recently told me.

To stimulate investment and innovation in Michigan, the NextEnergy Center has been designated an “Alternative Energy Renaissance Zone,” meaning companies that operate there don’t pay property or small business taxes and no municipal income tax is charged to employees. This exemption is guaranteed for 20 years. State income taxes still hit employees, but that money is credited back to the company for re-investment in technology development.

Croce said he already has commitments that will fill two-thirds of the centre. Preliminary talks are under way with some Canadian companies considering relocating or opening offices in the zone. That means investment and jobs possibly lured away from nearby . . . that’s right, Ontario.

Unless I’m mistaken, Ontario has made little progress 13 months after my article appeared. If the province truly wants to remain the auto manufacturing capital of North America, it better get with the program quickly.

A new network of organizations have come together to promote electric vehicles as a replacement for gas-powered vehicles. The new group is called Electric Mobility Canada and its mandate is to stimulate the market for electric vehicles and offer support to government agencies that are responsible for meeting Canada’s obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. It will consists of representatives from government, academia, electric utilities, and companies that manufacture electric and hybrid vehicles and their components, such as battery systems. “It may be time to start serious planning for a future in which electric transport becomes the norm,” according to the group. Initially, Electric Mobility Canada will be managed and operated out of the Centre for Experimentation in Electric Vehicles — Quebec.

Here’s an article from the EE Times looking at some of the growth expected in the Chinese solar industry and what the economic behemoth is doing to match supply with demand. Note some of the points made about cheap labour and lower overall costs compared to, well, Europe and North America. Nothing surprising… but it makes you wonder how much of an impact the Chinese will have on driving down solar PV costs. Also of interest is that domestic polysilicon production won’t meet its domestic needs in the short-term, so the Chinese will be competing against European and N.A. solar companies in the hunt for stable polysilicon supply.

Red Herring has a Q&A with Eric Darmstaedter, chief financial officer and VP of business development at ClearFuels Techology, which has a low-cost approach to making ethanol from cellulosic material — apparently similar to Ottawa-based Iogen. ClearFuels was one of 18 companies that had a chance to present at the Cleantech Venture Forum in San Francisco. Anyway, worth the read.

BTW, if you’re looking for some notes on the cleantech forum — and it seems like it was the best one yet, considering the coverage and buzz around it — check out this post from SiliconBeat and this recap at Rob Day’s Cleantech Investing.

UPDATE: Here’s a CNET News.com article summarizing a few of the companies that presented at the forum.

Reuters reports that the Chinese government has pushed forward with plans to increase levies on higher polluting vehicles with large engines and lower levies for motorbikes and other forms of small transportation — all part of an effort to combat pollution by financially punishing those who drive unnecessarily large vehicles. They’re also promising discounts on the purchase of hybrid-electric cars and other fuel-efficient vehicles. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Where’s Canada? Are we going to let ourselves be outdone by the Chinese — The Chinese — when it comes to progressive environmental tax policy?