Daniel Englander

São Paulo Dispatch: Verde é Verde March 28, 2008 at 9:04 AM

Neal Dikeman and I aren’t the only ones who think General Electric is the unsung leader of greentech. This week’s issue of Exame, a leading Brazilian business magazine, featured a number of stories on A Economia Verde, including one that proclaimed GE CEO Jeff Immelt to be “o executivo mais verde do mundo.“

According to the article, Immelt’s ongoing investments and acquisitions in the sector have started paying off, so that “o green está começando a se transformar em green.” What’s interesting about GE’s approach, compared to the startups and new ventures we tend to cover at GTM, is that GE has largely gone through its greentech transition without reinventing the wheel. Instead, it has invested in efficiency gains in its product lines and acquired a number of greentech companies that fit within its traditional business model. It has taken stakes in some new companies, like A123 batteries, which are closely aligned with its existing technology focus.

After the jump, GE no Brasil and some of Neal Dikeman’s favorite GE moments.

The wind power supply chain isn’t all that exciting. But GE, one of the world’s largest turbine manufacturers, needs to source it materials from somewhere. In December 2006, GE signed a four-year, $1 billion contract with Tecsis, a São Paulo-based turbine blade manufacturer. Today Tecsis has over 12,000 blades in operation, 10,000 of which are in turbines 1 MW or larger.

But GE’s had some other good deals as well. According to Neal, GE’s smart moves started in 2002 with its acquisition of Enron Wind for $300 million. This deal created the centerpiece for GE Wind Energy (and the subsequent Tecsis deal). GE’s 2003 acquisition of Austrian gas engine maker Jenbacher helped it jump into “clean” power generation, while it’s 2004 acquisition of solar company Astropower for $20 million out of bankruptcy is considered one of the biggest steals in cleantech. In 2005, GE’s $1.1 billion acquisition of Ionics made it one of the largest water treatment companies in the world. Neal also mentioned the creation of GE’s Ecomagination brand as the centerpiece of the company’s move into greentech.

Finally, GE’s move into the EV market has solidified the company as a greentech leader. It’s over $20 million investment in A123 Systems and its $4 million investment in TH!NK will help the company bridge the gap between its industrial greentech initiatives and its consumer products division.

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