In some areas, like energy, the opportunity to transform knowledge advances in commercial products and services is enhanced due to the large amount of investments made every year. Expenditures in energy are approximately 6% of the GDP for OECD countries (Baron, 1996). Unfortunately, even technologies which provide costs reductions for the energy provider are not easily transferred due do barriers which are present in all stages of the transference process - assessment, agreement, implementation, evaluation and adjustment, and replication, (see Chapter 1, and Figure 1.3).

Examples of barriers and opportunities for the transfer of environmentally sound technologies (ESTs), and the participation of different actors in the process are presented in this section. Discussion will be centred on issues and opportunities for promotion of technology transfer within the country. Most of the discussion shows that developing countries are less prepared to absorb energy technologies due the presence of barriers, some of which are intrinsic to the development process (shortage of information and finance), and others which can be more easily removed through political and administrative decisions.

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