A leading Silicon Valley venture capitalist firm that cut its teeth on early investments in such winners as Sun Microsystems, Netscape and Google told California news media Monday it plans to invest $100 million of a new $600 million investment pool in green energy technologies. Menlo Park, CA-based Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers is looking to invest in technologies that provide cleaner energy, transportation, air and water.

“This field of green technology could be the largest economic opportunity of the 21st century,” said veteran Silicon Valley capitalist John Doerr, with Kleiner Perkins, as quoted in an Associated Press business report out of San Francisco. “There’s never been a better time than now to start or accelerate a green-tech venture.”

North American venture capitalists invested more than $1.6 billion in clean-tech companies last year, a 35% increase from 2004, according to the AP Newswire report quoting Cleantech Venture Network. Last month, San Francisco-based consulting firm Clean Edge reported that investment in solar, wind and biofuels alone last year jumped to $917 million from $716 million the previous year.

The venture capitalists believe that as prices for oil and gas continue to stay high, global markets for various clean energy fuels from biofuels to hydrogen fuel cells and solar and wind will continue to rise. They say the investments worldwide hit $40 billion last year and could top $167 billion by 2015.

Proponents of increased green energy plays like Doerr acknowledge that in the past renewable energy returns fell short, largely, they say, because the technologies weren’t advanced enough and the market demand was weak. They realize that the alternative energy sector needs to fight hard for a share of the often tightly regulated market that oil, coal and natural gas have dominated historically, the AP report cited.

Doerr and others from Silicon Valley have lined up in support of global climate change efforts, such as the one being pushed hard in California, and in efforts to increase energy innovation. Before announcing its latest push, Kleiner Perkins said it invested more than $50 million in seven green technology ventures. Now, it plans to double that effort.

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