1. Introduction

As energy-dependent industries bump up ever more frequently on the frontiers of existing technology, the search for new, ground-breaking, game-changing discoveries has become as much an effort to create value, gain market share, and build competitive advantages as it is a policy objective to sustain economic growth and development, maintain societal welfare, increase national competitiveness, and promote international stature. This is taking place against the backdrop of ever increasing environmental risk and increasing efforts to mitigate it. The focus here is on clean energy technology (CET), in particular, on renewable energy (RE) and portable, mobile, and stationary battery and energy supply and storage technologies (B|ESST) and how effectively countries with large and technologically advanced economies are building and coaxing the markets needed to effectively mitigate environmental risk.