Environmental Leader

Illustrating the potential growth in energy efficiency, the sector posted the most growth in mergers and acquisition activity in 2009, according to the 2009 Greentech M&A Round-Up from Peachtree Green Advisors.

Rising from $164 million in deals to $1.258 billion in 2009, the U.S. energy efficiency sector grew a whopping 664 percent.

That tops the 421 percent growth in deals in the U.S. biofuel sector (from $255 million in 2008 to $1.327 billion in 2009).

By dollar value, the wind power industry overtook solar as the top sector.

There were $3.056 billion in wind energy deals in 2009, up 51 percent from $2.016 billion in 2008.

That compares to $1.855 billion in solar merger and acquisition activity in 2009, down 46 percent from $3.461 billion in 2008.

Overall, deals in green industries fell 4 percent, from $9.9 billion in 2008 to $9.5 billion in 2009.

As one example of the kinds of economic activity related to energy efficiency. The United States Postal Service (USPS) is sinking $29 million into facilities on the East Coast to make them more energy efficient as part of the federal agency’s goal to reduce energy use 30 percent by 2015.