Faster patent processing fuels growth of green tech

Programs to fast-track green patent applications accelerate the diffusion of green technologies, a new study finds.

Since 2009, a number of countries - including Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States - have put in place these programs with the aim of accelerating the development and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies. Most recently, China and Brazil have also adopted such measures.

The study - published by the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development in Geneva - is the first empirical analysis of green patent fast-tracking procedures, which allow applications to be examined and granted at a faster pace than regular patent applications.

“There is a clear demand for fast-track programs, particularly from small start-up companies in the green technology sector,” said study author Antoine Dechezleprêtre of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics.

A granted patent may help these companies raise private capital and start generating revenue from licences. Data from the study shows that green fast-tracking programs can reduce the time from application to the grant of a patent by 42-75%.

Climate change-related technologies - particularly renewable energy technologies - represent the vast majority of patents in the fast-tracking programs, the study finds. The main technologies requesting accelerated examination are wind power in the US and carbon capture and storage in Australia and Canada.

Another important finding is that fast-track patents are of significantly higher commercial value and thus may be the subject of greater interest from potential business partners than other green patents. Because fast-tracked patents are published sooner, the programs accelerate the diffusion of clean technological knowledge, as evidenced by the number of times fast-track patents are cited by subsequent inventors.

The study is available at http://ictsd.org/i/publications/154732/?view=details.