GEOTHERMAL HOPEFUL

Short on Cash and Know-How, U.S. Geothermal Industry Stumbles
Jenny Mandel, July 12, 2011 (NY Times)

"…[L]ast week, stock analysts downgraded Nevada Geothermal Power [NGP]…The company's fall mirrors a larger trend in the domestic geothermal industry…dramatic drops in stock prices that reflect challenges in executing important projects…The five major, publicly traded North American geothermal companies…are valued at a fraction of what they were a year ago, with operational problems at several of them.

"Ormat Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ORA) is…down by almost 25 percent over the past year. Ram Power Corp. (TSE:RPG) is down almost 80 percent…Alterra Power Corp. (TSE:AXY)… is trading below a dollar per share, and U.S. Geothermal Inc. (AMEX:HTM)…[has fallen] by more than a third from its peak…"

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"…[M]any other geothermal boosters…[insist] there are plenty of undeveloped sites in the United States to continue to expand the industry…[O]thers say there is a shortage of really promising sites…with the best ones already taken…

"The Geothermal Energy Association says the combination of new industry players, new technologies and new demand for renewables amounts to powerful momentum for geothermal energy…The trade group counts 123 projects currently under development in the United States, a 12 percent increase over last year and a portfolio that could eventually bring more than 5,000 megawatts of new power online…"