But didn't I hear Branson would keep the money "in the family" of Branson businesses?
a sum he estimated at $3 billion over the next 10 years — would be invested in developing energy sources
The money, Sir Richard said, would be invested in a host of alternative energy enterprises, including existing businesses within his Virgin Group, which consists of about 200 different companies connected in some way to Sir Richard’s sprawling corporate empire.
But it was not clear how much money will ultimately go to the effort, because the businesses involved cannot necessarily count on generating as much in profits as Sir Richard has set as his goal.
Sir Richard said his companies were already engaged in developing an aviation fuel not derived from oil, along with better processes for making bio-fuels from grasses and other crops. Conventional bio-fuels now require a great deal of fossil fuel to manufacture.
Sir Richard said the prime goal was not making money, but financing research on ways to provide energy in a world of growing populations and economies without overheating the planet.
“Some will be profitable, some will not be profitable,” he said at a news conference. “But the only way global warming is going to be beaten is to invest in new fuels that can actually replace fossil fuels.”
Sir Richard usually owns a big chunk of most of these new companies. The complicated and often private books of the companies, some of which are registered offshore, are difficult for most outsiders to penetrate.
His list of promotional stunts is long. He has dressed as a bride, a stewardess, a can of soda and a pirate. He has posed nearly nude in Times Square (to promote Virgin Mobile’s lack of hidden fees), and flown to press conferences via jet pack or dangling from wires off helicopters. Plans to sail around the world in a balloon were scrapped after several tries.