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LEGAL REPORT: ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT favourably to all of them, and that's the TSX. It's got all the credibility and quality of the Nasdaq and our rules are as good as the American rules, but the enforcement and compliance costs are half," he says. As an example, he says his firm is close to finalizing the listing of a South Korean company in the ultracapacitor technol- ogy business and is starting on its second South Korean company in the LED area. Jason Saltzman, a partner at Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP, has been work- ing closely with the TSX in both the U.S. and Israel — visiting Israel eight times in the last three and a half years trying to promote listings of Israeli companies on the TSX and working on deals with clean tech companies to take them public on the exchange. At the same time, Canadian companies that are part of the TSX clean tech index are certainly going to be exam- ined by foreign companies that are look- ing at the sector and deciding if they want to list on the exchange, he says. "This has been a great opportunity for many Canadian companies and certainly many of the companies on the TSX are benefiting from this increasing focus on clean tech," says Richard Corley, a partner at Blake Cassels & Graydon LLP. He says his firm is involved in setting up Canadian subsidiaries for foreign companies coming to Canada to participate in this market, and also in setting up new companies for Canadians and financing arrangements for existing firms. This is principally in the solar and geothermal spaces as a result of the Ontario Power Authority's feed-in tar- iff program, which encourages develop- ment of renewable energy projects. However, raising capital in this sector — an essential component to Canadian clean tech firms moving forward to a competitive position globally — remains challenging. The issues that a typical clean tech company faces generally stem from the fact that they are at an earlier stage, explains Saltzman. While they might have commercialized technology, their revenue model hasn't really picked up year over year compared to technology companies that are selling products to consumers. Indeed, while the first tasks for clean tech firms often involve making sure their technology works and gaining acceptance of their product, Sutin says these all pale in comparison to the challenges of raising capital. The reason, he says, is that clean tech is considered a high-risk area, an issue which had been addressed historically through a variety of venture capital-type structures, but that sector is contracting. According to Canada's Venture Capital & Private Equity Association, activity in Canada's venture capital market continued to fall in the first quarter of 2010, with $276 million invested across the country, tied with Q1 2009 for the lowest level of first-quarter deal activity since 1996. However, clean tech did drive much of the activity, taking a 27-per-cent share of total venture capital activity in the quarter. "That is a huge, huge problem for this sec- tor because just as we need it, as this sector is starting to grow and come into its own, the capital's drying up," says Sutin. For lawyers working with these com- panies, these challenges mean spending The Law of Climate Change in Canada An essential text for those developing expertise in climate change law This is the first and only resource to provide an in-depth description and analysis of the complex and ever expanding array of domestic and international laws and initiatives addressing climate change in Canada. Containing comprehensive coverage of provincial and federal legislation and policy developments from across Canada, The Law of Climate Change in Canada also describes in detail some of the many emerging climate change law sub-disciplines, including: ORDER your copy today Looseleaf & binder • $320 Releases invoiced separately (2/yr) P/C 0268030000 • ISSN 1920-695X • • • carbon finance litigation real property Stay on top of the latest legal developments and manage emerging issues • tax • securities law and disclosure For a 30-day, no-risk evaluation call: 1.800.565.6967 CL0910 Canada Law Book, a Thomson Reuters business. Prices subject to change without notice, to applicable taxes and shipping & handling. 44 SEPTEMBER 2010 www. C ANADIAN Law ye rmag.com Editor: f With contributions f rom across Canada and the U.S. Dennis E. Mahony ro m a team o f leading lawyers and academics