Our D1 Oils (Jatropha) Play Jumps 21%

Yesterday, despite the punishing markets, our play on the coming jatropha biofuel revolution - D1 Oils (DOOIF.PK) - jumped from $3.75 to $4.55 in a single trading session.

That's a nice 21% pop.

http://stocks.us.reuters.com/stocks/overview.asp?symbol=DOOIF


But why? Why would this happen to teeny-tiny, British D1 Oils on a day when the rest of the markets were taking a giant poop for the second straight day?

Why D1 Oils Is Looking Very "Slick"

In my humble opinion, D1 Oils shot up yesterday *not* because the entire world suddenly fell in love with jatropha, per se. (Jatropha, of course, is the biofuel-bearing weed that D1 Oils is cultivating around the world to the tune of 1 million acres over the next 5 years.)

Instead, it comes down to oil prices.

Yesterday, crude oil continued to surge... big time. It's pushing $88 a barrel, an historic high to say the least.

As Crude Oil Gets Pricey, Jatropha Makes Even MORE Sense

The higher oil gets in price, the more jatropha's apparent solution to the energy problem becomes more obvious. In other words, expensive oil means jatropha gets more econonomical to farm and produce by comparison.

Knowing this, speculators are likely to pile into D1 Oils the higher crude oil gets.

That's part of the reason we added D1 Oils to our Evergreen Portfolio in the first place:

http://greeninvestments.blogspot.com/2007/10/add-d1-oils-to-our-portfolio-at-415.html

Meanwhile, the global economic expansion continues forward, led by India and China. With all that expansion, we'll continue to see increasing demand for fuels and commodities. And with biofuels taking center stage as the leading alternative to oil and gasoline, D1 Oils stands to benefit over the long haul.

Let's hope this little pop in shares is just the beginning of a very long runup for our favorite jatropha stock... Hell, this is the ONLY true jatropha stock on the planet right now as far as I know.

If you know of another good jatropha play for green stock investors, please let us know.

Meanwhile, good trading,

James

Yingli Green Energy: The Hottest Green Energy Stock in China?

I've been researching what could be the hottest green energy play in the world right now... It's a Chinese company that trades as an ADR on a major U.S. exchange: Yingli Green Energy (NYSE: YGE).

This company's primary business is photovoltaics... the solar technology that converts sunlight directly into energy.

The stock has soared since IPO'ing about two months ago, up most than 100%.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119213581092056390.html?mod=yahoo_hs&ru=yahoo

But get this: YGE still has a single-digit PE ratio... has plenty of cash on the books... low debt... and it's still positioned right in the middle of the most important green energy movement on earth: the one just beginning to take off in China.

YGE: Ready to Clean Up the Most Polluted Country

As readers of this blog may know, China is the most polluted country on earth... It's paying for decades of double-digit economic expansion in the form of soot-covered cities... cancerous drinking water... birth defects... the list goes on.

And YGE could become an increasingly profitable recipient of the clean-up dollars that are already flooding the country courtesy of the government in Beijing.

We could be adding YGE to the portfolio soon as well.

More to come.

James

Ugly Markets... Gay Budgies... And Green Investments 1st Birthday!

What an ugly day for stock investors, green, red, blue, yellow or purple... we all felt the unsavory groping of volatility today, no?

Earnings were horrible for Citigroup, even by bank standards these days... Oil is closing at record highs, finally looking as if it might challenge the $100/barrel threshold that Jim Rogers has been talking about for some time.

(Jim Rogers, I've come to realize, is simply ALWAYS RIGHT. It's almost annoying how brilliant that guy is.)

Anyway, I just realized that our Green Investments blog here is almost 1 year old... It was born on Christmas 2006, and we're fast approaching the holidays again.

I know this because my sister in Rochester, NY, is officially preparing the most audacious party ever hosted there. I also know this because Andy Rooney was talking about how freakin' GREAT it is to shovel tons of snow on 60 Minutes this weekend.

I must say, it's been an extremely fun ride so far. The only real drawback is that my alternative-lifestyle budgies (named Chirpy and Tweety) have gotten the short end of the stick as I've spent evenings and weekends researching companies and markets for Green Investments.

Indeed, my man-budgies are, in their subtle way, threatening to pack up their tiny, parakeet-sized leather vests, their little Rob Halford records, captain's hats and chain wallets and finally break south for Key West...

My wife thinks I'm having an affair, but I try to tell her it's only with Al Gore, so no need to be jealous.

Anyway...

Sometime on or around Christmas Day we will reflect back on our year of investing... and tally up the numbers to see how we really are doing in our ongoing quest to beat the S&P 500 with nothing but true green investments.

It's been a wild one, filled with a horrendous market pullback this summer... a 10% drop in the Chinese equity markets hitting in ONE DAY... and of course a volatile rally that we're still in the middle of as I write.

I appreciate you being along for the ride. Please join us for the rest of the journey, spread the word and get our readership up so we can all be famous and rich together.

"Dirty Green" Update

The more I research the "Dirtiest Green Stock in America" the more convinced I become that we'll likely end up adding it to the portfolio on Thursday. More to come on this, but tune back in to confirm this recommendation.

It could be one of the safest, smartest and most lucrative income-paying stocks in the world right now... and we'll unviel it here in just three more days.

Best,

James

This Thursday, Oct. 18, I Reveal... "The Dirtiest Green Company in America"

Right now I'm researching a company that could do very well for the Evergreen Portfolio over the next couple years.

The company's numbers look very promising, but I still need to confirm the price trend and fundamentals to make sure everything's moving in the right direction before officially adding the stock to our list.

Meanwhile, here are a few hints:

• This is a Fortune 200 company.
• It's America's largest recycler.
• It provides enough waste-based energy to replace more than 10 billion barrels of oil every year.
• It recycled enough paper last year to save 41 million trees.
• It pays a nice dividend, which could bolster our growth portfolio with some stability and income.
• It just announced the most aggressive green agenda in its long history, which will dramatically increase its sustainability program over the next 13 years.
• It could be the "dirtiest" green company in America.

The more I research about this company, the more I like it. But I cannot take credit for identifying it as a potential addition to the portfolio.

Thanks to My Wife... for What Promises to Be a Great Pick

That honor goes to my wife, an avid reader and fan of this blog (erm, she kinda has no choice).

Owing to the fact that I have a full-time job... a 4-year-old son... and two high-maintenance parakeets... I don't plan on revealing the stock in this space until Thursday morning, Oct. 18.

My point with this blog is to seriously research every investment before telling you about it, so you can be somewhat assured that it's not just me shooting from the hip and trying to sound cool.

So... a bit more research is required. Till then, more hints... more updates... more news... more fun.

Good day,

James

Please Give Me Your Ideas for Our New Global Green 1000 Index!

So, you may know that I've been working on collecting the biggest raw list of sustainable stocks on the internet...

While I'm not sure we're there yet, the list you'll find at the bottom of this blog space (My Big List of Green Stocks) already contains more than 400 companies... and every one of them has been vetted by a major financial concern as a green or sustainable company.

My goal is to put together the 1,000 top sustainable companies on the planet to create a truly global, green index that we can track... I think we'll call it the Global Green 1000 Index.

My Big List Is a Start... Can You Help Me Finish?

My Big List is a very rough beginning, because many of the companies on the list will have to come off.

I will screen out old-thought oil producers such as Schlumberger... and probably knock out the booze producers as well.

Not that I have any problem with drinking, per se... Just because booze can and does destroy a lot of lives, and part of the inspiration I had in that big old redwood forest last year told me to avoid these kinds of companies.

Same will probably go for tobacco companies.

A Confession: I Have Beer in My Fridge... And Cigars in My Humidor!

This is a funny question, however, because we have beer in our refrigerator right now, and I have a humidor containing some long, sweet-smelling products that are definitely derived from sot weed (the Partagas Sabrosso 1845's are pretty good by the way, and not expensive).

The question is: How GREEN am I going to be when it comes to my investments? Will we look at green criteria first, and stick only with companies that provide wind, solar and biomass energy... or natural food companies that don't transport their products via internal-combustion-fueled vehicles?

I rather think not.

We Should Put Gains First... Then Screen for Green

Instead, I believe we should seek maximum gains first from a company, and then screen it for our green criteria... criteria which, I must admit, are still being formulated in my mind.

So how green will our portfolio be? And how green will our Global Green 1000 Index be?

More will be revealed...

However, I think it's safe to say that we want to look at profitability first... then weed out the truly dark operations in the booze, oil and tobacco industries. I am not making any final pronouncements here.

So How Green Is YOUR Portfolio? And Your Lifestyle?

But what do YOU think? I would love to hear from YOU on this question: What should the criteria be for our Global Green 1000 Index? Heck, we're inventing the thing, so we can make it whatever we want.

I don't often hear from readers of this blog, but it would be nice to start...

Is Coke Really a Green Company?

I encourage you to send in your ideas, your personal thoughts about green investing... and if you think there are any companies that should NEVER be considered... If so, let me know what you think.

Meanwhile, check out My Big List of Green Stocks, which I've cleaned up and edited this morning. You'll see there that many companies might not be your typical green plays, but should we consider them anyway?

Can companies such as Coca-Cola, Nike or Schlumberger really be considered acceptable as sustainable investments? What do you think?

Good day,

James

Our Bunge Play Is Up 46.23%... Lock In Profits Using a Trailing Stop

Bunge has steadily climbed since we added it to the portfolio a few months ago...

So far, we're sitting on 46.23% in potential gains here, as the stock has jumped about $32.82 per share.

I'm inclined to lock in some of those gains by placing a 25% Trailing Stop under this position... meaning we'll sell if it closes 25% below the previous closing high since recommended.

I do this not because I'm worried about a major downturn in BG based on anything reasonable or fundamental... but simply as insurance against a market I still consider to be unstable.

Action to take: Place a 25% Trailing Stop below our Bunge (BG) position, at $77.86.

D1 Oils: The Only Pure Jatropha Stock in the World?

Not long ago, we added a little British biofuels company called D1 Oils to the Evergreen Portfolio here at Green Investments. We decided to do so after looking at the company's fundamentals... and careful consideration of its new 50/50 joint venture with British Petroleum.

Under this partnership agreement, the two companies will plant 172,000 hectares (about 425,000 acres) of jatropha curcas (the oil-bearing plant) in parts of India, southern Africa and Southeast Asia... and up to 1 million hectares over the next 5 years.

http://www.bp.com/genericarticle.do?categoryId=2012968&contentId=7034453

http://www.bp.com/sectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9019010&contentId=7034405

So why are we bullish on D1 Oils and jatropha in general?

Let me count the ways...

1) It is the ONLY pure play on jatropha right now... and appears miles ahead of all competitors when it comes to planting programs, partnerships and aggressive growth planning... Whenever you see a major publication covering jatropha, you almost always see one company mentioned: D1 Oils. The New York Times piece is one example:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/09/world/africa/09biofuel.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

2) Jatropha plants, like any other species, vary from strain to strain in terms of hardiness and productivity... and D1 Oils not only is a producer... It's a seed bank and runs an entire program designed to identify and refine the best jatropha seed stocks in the world... (In this way, D1 Oils is similar to Bunge, another Evergreen Portfolio pick.)

3) Jatropha can grow where foodcrops cannot... in arid, poorly irrigated soils... Already massive planting projects are underway in places like China, India, Africa and Southeast Asia... Poor African farmers have long used Jatropha bushes as natural fences for their animals...

Jatropha oil can be extracted right from the fruits that grow from these bushes (the fruits are about the size of a golf ball)... And it can then be added to diesel and burned almost directly, without excessive processing.

This has led to stories of poor farmers growing small patches of jatropha, trying to make money with "liquid gold." But since the infrastructure and markets are not yet robust enough to absorb their harvest, they've had trouble making money.

Jatropha: A Major Biofuel Revolution in the Making?

Another problem is the inconsistent quality of the crops. But this is a little-understood facet of the jatropha story... and D1 Oils' seed-development program makes this company perfectly positioned, right in the center of what could be a major biofuel revolution in the making.

I anticipate this being a long-term holding, so let's be patient and I think we'll see this one bear major fruit down the road.

Good day,

James