Will Graphene Commercialization Help Clean Tech Companies?

In a recent Forbes article on the relationship between graphene and clean technology, Tom Konrad notes that the majority of respondents to a poll he conducted believe that graphene is likely to be commercialized in under five years. However, he believes that “investors need to realize that the commercialization of graphene from graphite technology will be a very long haul if it is not a dead end, and invest accordingly.”

Konrad also states that those who responded to his poll do not seem to understand that graphene commercialization is unlikely to help existing clean tech companies because new technology only helps such companies “when they manage to commercialize the new technology before start-ups or competitors from other industries do.”

As quoted in the market news:

I think the strongest take-away from my reader poll is that cleantech investors expect too much from graphene, and expect it too soon.

Even more than the sector breakdown, the number of poll respondents who think existing cleantech stocks will be helped rather than harmed or unaffected by graphene technology should be a warning sign to prospective graphene stock market investors.  Investor enthusiasm often draws stock promoters, so a company branding itself as a ‘graphene stock’ should be a warning sign in and of itself.  Even if a company has a real way to profit from graphene technology, that technology’s popularity is likely to mean the stock will be overpriced.

Click here to read the full Forbes report.