This is maddening

Clean energy gets fewer subsidies, less investment than fossil fuels, report says:

Energy from fossil fuel gets 12 times more in subsidies worldwide than sustainable energy, says a new report from the USC Marshall School of Business.

That discrepancy, as well as other barriers including high clean-tech start-up costs and low prices for products, keep green investment from booming, according to a group of MBA students from the school.

Without clear global policies on how to regulate and incentivize green business and technology, investors aren’t making any long-term bets on the industry, which is also less lucrative than the fossil fuel market.

Probably explains the next two stories.

U.S. clean-tech investment falls 45% in fourth quarter:

Clean-tech companies raked in just $564.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2009, a 45% plunge from the previous quarter, according to research released Monday.

But the number of deals jumped 21% to 62 total, according to analysis from Ernst & Young, using data from Dow Jones VentureSource. California dominated, with 32 deals over the course of the quarter, pulling in $333.72 million.

In all of 2009, investment in the clean-tech sector hit $2.6 billion with 193 deals, a 50% plunge in dollar amount and a 16% slide in the number of deals compared to 2008.

China takes lead in clean-power investment:

China overtook the United States for the first time last year in the race to invest in wind, solar and other sources of clean energy, according to a comprehensive new report that raises questions about American competitiveness in a booming global market.

U.S. clean energy investments hit $18.6 billion last year, a report from the Pew Charitable Trusts said, a little more than half the Chinese total of $34.6 billion. Five years ago, China's investments in clean energy totaled just $2.5 billion.

The United States also slipped behind 10 other countries, including Canada and Mexico, in clean energy investments as a share of the national economy.