VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwire) -- 10/14/09 -- Market value increases of between 118% and 535% were achieved by 12 of the 30 largest clean energy/technology companies traded on Canada's two major stock exchanges over the first nine months of 2009, according to the Hoggan 20-10 Clean Company List released today.

The Hoggan 20-10 Clean Company List includes the 20 largest clean energy/technology companies traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and the 10 largest clean energy/technology companies traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange Venture (TSXV) market as measured by market value at close of trading September 30, 2009.

The Hoggan 20-10 Clean Company List is prepared by Hoggan & Associates Inc., a Vancouver-based communication firm that specializes in the clean energy/technology sector.

Shafiq Jamal, Hoggan & Associates Executive Vice President, said the best of these companies are successfully communicating to investors that they have practical and commercial alternatives to fossil fuels and energy waste.

"Other clean energy/technology companies that want to compete effectively for investor attention need to demonstrate that their technology innovations are leading to commercial products that generate revenue and profits," says Jamal.

"The Toronto Stock Exchange has become the global leader for clean energy/technology listings - and the Hoggan 20-10 and B.C. Clean 15 lists are scoreboards highlighting the success these companies are having at attracting investors," said Jamal.

These companies and several others on the Hoggan 20-10 Clean Company List outperformed the overall stock markets in the United States and Canada, where the overall market indices increased between 10% and 60% over the same nine-month period.(1)

The market value increase leaders in the period January 1 to September 30, 2009 are:

- Azure Dynamics Corporation, a Michigan-based manufacturer of hybrid electric vehicle powertrains, whose market value increased 535% to $96 million;

- Electrovaya Inc. of Toronto, focusing on commercializing its proprietary Lithium Ion SuperPolymer rechargeable battery technology, whose market value increased 288% to $67 million.

- Polaris Geothermal Inc. of Toronto, developer of a geothermal electricity project in Nicaragua, whose market value increased 258% to $76 million; and

- Catch The Wind Ltd., a Virginia-based developer and manufacturer of laser-based wind sensor systems for the wind power generation industry, whose market value increased 215% to $90 million.

Other notable market value gainers are:

- Western Wind Energy Corp., a Vancouver-based producer of electricity generated from 500 wind turbines in two projects in California, whose market value increased 213% to $66 million.

- Nevada Geothermal Power Inc., a Vancouver-based developer of geothermal electric power in the Western United States where its first project is scheduled begin commercial generation this month, whose market valued increased 200% to $99 million;

- Hy-Drive Technologies Ltd., a Mississauga-based developer of hydrogen gas systems for internal combustion engines, whose market value increased 179% to $31 million; and

- Zenn Motor Company, a Toronto-based developer and manufacturer of electric cars, whose market value increased 173% to $190 million.

B.C. Clean 15

Hoggan & Associates today also released the B.C. Clean 15, a list of the largest clean energy/clean technology companies based in British Columbia.

Largest market value gainers of the B.C. Clean 15 over the first nine months of 2009 were Western Wind Energy Corp. (TSXV: WND) and Nevada Geothermal Power Inc. (TSXV: NGP) described above. Other leaders are:

- Sierra Geothermal Power Corp., explorer and developer of geothermal power, whose market value increased 185% to $23 million;

- Bioteq Environmental Technologies Inc., which finances, builds, owns and operates water treatment plants; whose market value increased 138% to $61 million;

- Ballard Power Systems Inc., developer, manufacturer and seller of proton exchange membrane fuel cells, whose market value increased 121% to $243 million; and

- Westport Innovations Inc., supplier of products and technology that enable engines to operate on clean-burning fuels, whose market value increased 118% to $436 million.

The Hoggan 20-10 Clean Company and B.C. Clean 15 lists are based on market data reported by the Toronto Stock Exchange. (2) (3)

The Beginning of the Age of Cleantech

Some scholars and economists have said that investment in clean energy and clean technology signals the beginning of the Age of Cleantech, which they proclaim as the Sixth Industrial Revolution, succeeding the Age of Information and Telecommunications that began with the 1971 launch of the Intel microprocessor, known as the Fifth Industrial Revolution. (4)

John Doerr, the American Silicon Valley venture capitalist and an appointee to U.S. President Barack Obama's Economic Recovery Advisory Board, says, "Green tech is the biggest economic opportunity of the 21st Century." Doerr has a track record of capitalizing on large opportunities - he was an early-stage venture capital investor in some of the most successful technology companies in the world, including Google, Amazon.com, Compaq, Netscape, Symantec, Sun Microsystems and Intuit.

Billionaire speculator George Soros, ranked number 15 on the Forbes Magazine richest Americans list, predicts clean technology investment will be the new motor for the world economy replacing American consumer spending which powered the world economy for the past 25 years. (5)

The Hoggan 20-10 Clean Company List and B.C. Clean 15 List are not intended in any way as investment recommendations. Hoggan & Associates recommends that investors conduct their own research into the investment merits of these or other companies and/or consult qualified investment advisors.

About Hoggan & Associates Inc.

With more than 25 years in the business, Hoggan & Associates Inc. is a leading Vancouver-based public relations firm, specializing in corporate and investor communications, environmental communications, media relations and crisis communications. Clients Hoggan has worked with include A&W Food Services of Canada, Ballard Power Systems, Business Objects (now part of SAP Canada), Canadian Tire, Day4Energy Inc., Electronic Arts Canada, Ethical Funds, Glentel Inc., MacDonald Dettwiler & Associates Limited (MDA) and QLT Inc.

This news release and the complete Hoggan 20-10 Clean Company and Hoggan Clean 15 lists are available at our website at www.hoggan.com.

Footnotes:

(1) Market indices Dec. 31, 2008 to September 30, 2009:

Toronto Stock Exchange Composite Index +26.8%

TSX Venture Composite Index +60.2%

S&P 500 Index +17%

NASDAQ Composite Index +34.6

Dow Jones Industrial Average +10.6%

(2) Among the companies reviewed for inclusion on the Hoggan Clean 20-10 and B.C. Clean 15 lists, Hoggan has provided communications consulting services to the following: Ballard Power Systems Inc., Day 4 Energy Inc. and Naikun Wind Energy Group Inc.

(3) Several companies included on the TSX lists have been excluded from the Hoggan list because, according to website descriptions of the businesses, their clean energy/clean tech operations do not comprise a significant proportion of overall company operations or their stated clean energy/clean tech objectives are not significantly reflected in their operations. One company, the largest producer of container-grown forest seedlings in North America, was not included on the TSX list but has been included in the Hoggan list.

(4) The first was the Industrial Revolution centered in Britain from 1770-1830. The next three revolutions were the Age of Steam and Railways (1830-1870), the Age of Steel, Electricity, and Heavy Engineering (1875-1920), and the Age of Oil, Automobiles, and Mass Production (1910-1975). Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages (9781843763314), Carlota Perez 2002

(5) George Soros on PBS/Bill Moyers, October 12, 2008: "You see, for the last 25 years the world economy, the motor of the world economy that has been driving it was consumption by the American consumer who has been spending more than he has been saving, all right? So that motor is now switched off. You need a new motor. And we have a big problem. Global warming. It requires big investment. And that could be the motor of the world economy in the years to come."