Every time Bill Gates invests in another company, it gets a heap of publicity to springboard it into economic life – last week it was the turn of Natel Energy, which boasted hydro turbine which is kind to fish and water plants. The $11 million investment was placed by Gates’ investment vehicle, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, and energy conglomerate Schneider Electric. But we’re afraid that it is not the answer to the question, “How come the US never invests in hydro?” any more. In fact this is about a river based small head hydro plant, that requires a vertical drop of around 5 meters, and effectively it channels a river flow into a fairly narrow water turbine. This has been designed…