Law firms must develop their entrepreneurial spirit & adapt to prosper, says Steven McNab
The cleantech sector is one with enormous growth potential over the coming decades. With constraints on energy, water and other resources, the technology innovations across this diverse sector are exactly what needs to be encouraged to help us move toward a more sustainable future.
Investors certainly recognise the potential. During 2010, while financial conditions for most sectors were slowing or shrinking, the renewable energy sector, just one aspect of the cleantech pantheon, saw new investment rise by 30% to an unprecedented US$24bn globally. In the UK, security of supply, stability of energy costs, the imminent energy gap as old coal and nuclear plant fall offline, and carbon constraints are changing behaviour.
This, of course, throws up numerous opportunities for legal firms. Simmons & Simmons has a track record in the energy and environmental sector, and we wanted to build on this, supporting cleantech businesses across the spectrum. This was one of the main drivers for launching the Cleantech Curve in February 2011, an innovative product which gives cleantech companies
