Cleantech sector flourishes on Canadian exchanges

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Cleantech and renewable power companies are finding fertile ground in Canada, with year-to-date equity financing deals on TMX Group exchanges surpassing C$1 billion ($952 million) and more than doubling such financings in all of 2008.

The number of financing deals on the Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange has also soared, jumping 70 percent to 73 deals versus 43 at the same point in 2008.

There are 123 cleantech listings on the two exchanges, which TMX Group said makes them home to the highest number of such companies in the world. There were 102 such listings at this time last year.

Cleantech is a catch-all term that encompasses technology companies and businesses that include clean energy, environmental, and sustainable products and services.

"Our exchanges are number one in the world for mining and energy, and we are being viewed as the ideal financing markets for companies developing sustainable technologies and renewable power projects," said Toronto Stock Exchange senior vice-president Ungad Chadda.

The exchange statistics include the October listing of geothermal energy developer Ram Power Corp , TMX Group said.

(Reporting by Susan Taylor; editing by Rob Wilson)