EU countries top world ‘green patent’ rankings

Six countries – Japan, USA, Germany, Korea, France and the UK – are the source of almost 80% of all innovations developed worldwide in the field of clean energy technologies (CETs). This is one of the key findings of a patent-based study 'Patents and clean energy: bridging the gap between evidence and policy' on the emergence and distribution of these technologies across the globe jointly conducted by the European Patent Office (EPO), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD).

Some 400 000 patent documents identified from a pool of 60 million patents at the international level form the basis of the study which examines the effect of patents on the world-wide transfer of CETs, including solar PV, geothermal, wind, and carbon capture, to name but a few. The study also contains the first-ever survey on licensing, which provides insights into the licensing practices of technology holders in this area.

EPO: Press Release, 30.9.10: Clean energy and patents study presented http://www.epo.org/topics/news/2010/20100930.html

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