7th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum - Coming up April 8, 2015

The Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, an organization I co-founded with Kevin Brown of Hobbes & Towne, is hosting its 7th annual energy technology forum, once again in partnership this year with the law firm of Pepper Hamilton. More details to come, but I wanted readers to have this head's up.

The Academy of Natural Sciences  1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19103  Wednesday, April 8, 2015 | 3:30 - 7:30 PM (ET) Fostering investment and opportunity in energy technology… The future of energy technology is now. Join us for thought-provoking sessions from experts and thought leaders on trends in venture and corporate investment in energy technologies, and a showcase of leading-edge Mid-Atlantic energy companies that offers a glimpse of what’s to come at the 7th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum, hosted by Pepper Hamilton LLP’s Energy and Emerging Company Groups, in partnership with the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic. This much-anticipated event is known for fostering in-depth discussions about the future of the energy industry, the impact of technology on industry growth, and the investment climate, so mark your calendar and plan to be part of the conversation.

Agenda3:30 – 4:00 PM | Registration 4:00 – 6:00 PM | Program6:00 – 7:30 PM | Reception Ticket Pricing$50 Early Bird (on or before March 10) $65 (on or before April 7) $75 (at the door)   Call for Energy Technology Company Showcase We are currently accepting applications for companies who wish to participate in the Energy Technology Company Showcase. Click here to download the application. Forward completed applications by February 27th to Jennifer Kuban at kubanj@pepperlaw.com. Become a Sponsor We are currently seeking sponsors to participate in this forum. Click here to download the sponsorship form and please contact Jennifer Kuban at kubanj@pepperlaw.com for more information.

Gold Sponsors

Ideas on Energy: Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum Looks to the Industry’s Future

(Note: This is reposted from my friends at Pepper Hamiliton LLP, co-hosts of the Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum with the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, of which I am co-founder.)

The future of the energy industry; the technologies with the potential to impact energy exploration, delivery and efficiency; and the energy industry investment climate were on the agenda at the 6^th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum.

Pepper’s Energy and Emerging Company Groups hosted the April 3, 2014 event in Philadelphia, along with the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University (which served as the event venue) and the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic. Nearly 300 energy industry professionals were in attendance.

The Forum kicked off with an investor panel moderated by Pepper partner Thomas P. Dwyer that discussed the current strategic and financial climate and what to expect in the energy sector in 2014. The featured panelists were George Coyle, manager, investments technology ventures, ConocoPhillips Company; Bill Kingsley, managing director of EnerTech Capital; Michael Smith, vice president, head of Constellation Technology Ventures at Exelon; and Annie Theriault, vice president of the Northwater Intellectual Property Fund.

Dwyer asked the panelists how the long-term viability of energy technology is perceived in the marketplace, to which Coyle responded, “Energy technology has always been there and will continue to be. While we saw a drop in cleantech investment, we’re still invested in a number of cleantech companies, including the first commercial carbon capture plant in Texas.”

“Oil and gas are booming, and those industries continue to drive the need for technologies that help them to be more efficient and sustainable. It’s difficult to supply energy and it takes energy to do that, so there’s no shortage of need for technology that streamlines those processes,” Coyle said.

Smith said that as an electric power provider, his company is seeing a paradigm shift in how businesses and individuals make and use power, which will likely change the way energy and related services are provided going forward. “Disruption in our industry is coming from the outside. People are making devices to make buildings smarter, and those innovations are coming from technology people, not energy people,” Smith said.
Dwyer then posed a thought-provoking question to the panelists: Will there be a Google or Apple of the energy space, or is the industry too regulated for that to happen?

Kingsley said, “It won’t happen in the next two or three years. The utility system in the United States is brilliant in the way it was set up in the 1920s and 30s. But, that investment model is now creaky. Everyone is looking at doing something with natural gas – there wasn’t much going on in that space 15 years ago. Utilities can’t plan effectively in that environment.”

“That’s right from my perspective,” Smith said. “Customers increasingly determine their fate, and we’re seeing an erosion of the energy paradigm that’s been around for 100 years.”

Coyle added, “We’re seeing a reversal of roles. Instead of creating more devices to take power off the grid, we’re seeing new ways of putting power back on the grid.”

Dwyer asked the panelists about trends in exits in the energy space, and Theriault said that exits involving IP in the software space are doing well. “On the M&A side and public company exits, energy is still a tricky market and will continue to be challenging,” she said.

Kingsley said, “We had people who walked away from the cleantech sector who are now coming back, so it’s a cyclical market. I like it – there are fewer investors, so the deal prices are better.”

The discussion closed with the panelists’ thoughts on opportunities and challenges for energy technology in the Mid-Atlantic region. Coyle said that while there are many very good energy technology professionals in the region, the challenge is getting the best and brightest minds to care about energy and see it as a career path, as it is seen in Houston and other parts of the country where the energy sector is more dominant. He also said that perspective may change now that Pennsylvania is one of the largest energy production states, thanks to the Marcellus Shale.

“There is no dearth of activity in this region, and I am not at all concerned about the viability of energy technology in the Mid-Atlantic,” Smith said.

A company showcase followed the panel discussion, and featured five innovative companies, which each presented a snapshot of their company’s energy-focused technologies. Kevin Brown of Hobbes & Towne introduced the presenting companies:

• Applied Communication Sciences has developed an innovative grid technology product that is getting traction in the marketplace. For example, the company’s utility pole sensors are deployed in the Sacramento Utility District to better monitor its network.
• Essess is a mobile thermal imaging technology company that can map a building’s energy loss – identifying leaks in a building envelope undetectable by the human eye – and provide remediation services.
• Infinite Invention LLC provides the ConnectDER, an electric power meter that mounts between a standard utility meter and the meter case to provide a quick, safe, inexpensive way to connect solar homes to the grid.
• Preferred Technology, LLC provides environmentally friendly resin-coated sand products to the fracking industry; coated sand prevents wells from clogging during the fracking process.
• Solar Grid Storage LLC “makes solar better with batteries,” providing a containerized storage solution that changes solar power into grid power by adding batteries to solar photovoltaic installations.

Scott Anderson of Ernst & Young’s Global Cleantech Center then introduced keynote speaker Bob Inglis, a former congressman from South Carolina and executive director of the Energy and Enterprise Initiative (E&EI) at George Mason University, to close out the program.

Inglis founded the E&EI in 2012 on the conservative principles of free enterprise and economic growth, limited government, liberty, accountability and reasonable risk avoidance to solve the country’s energy and climate challenges.

“At E&EI, we believe that free enterprise can fix climate change,” Inglis said. “Our proposal involves cutting income taxes and replacing it with a carbon tax – in effect, reducing taxes on income, which you want more of, and taxing something you want less of.”

The event program is available online at http://www.pepperlaw.com/pdfs/Energy_Tech_Forum_Program_Book_2014.pdf.

Coming Up: 6th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Tech Investment Forum

Six years. We've been running these cleantech and energy tech investment forums for six years. And by "we" I mean my co-founder of the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, Kevin Brown of Hobbs & Towne, and me, along with our pal Tom Dwyer, who was part of the original team putting this show together.

Now Tom is at Pepper Hamilton, which joins us as co-sponsor this year, but we'll be at the same venue, as the past few years, the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia. Or as my kids used to call it, the "dinosaur museum."

This year, we've got another stellar line up, with keynote speaker Bob Inglis, former U.S. Representative for South Carolina's 4th Congressional District, who lost his seat to a tea-party challenger because of his outspoken free-market acknowledgment of climate change and support for green energy solutions. 

Bob went on the found the Energy and Enterprise Initiative at George Mason University, an independent think-tank devoted to promoting free enterprise solutions to climate and energy issues. In other words, he's one of the good guys and you won't want to miss what he has to say.

We'll also have an investor panel, featuring

• George Coyle, Manager, Investments Technology Ventures, ConocoPhillips Company
• Michael Smith, Vice President, Head of Constellation Technology Ventures at Exelon
• Annie Theriault, Vice President, Northwater Capital
• Tucker Twitmyer, Managing Director, EnerTech Capital

And, of course, our ever-popular company showcase and cocktails with the dinosaurs.

When: April 3rd, 2014, from 4:00 - 7:30 

Where: Academy of Natural Science, Philadelphia, PA 

Be there or be square. Here's how to register for the event: REGISTER

Know Your Audience (and Its Bite Size), Say Corporate VCs to Cleantech Entrepreneurs

Grant Allen of ABB TechnologyVentures

"Get your stuff together before you meet with us," said Grant Allen of ABB Technology Ventures to an audience of entrepreneurs, investors, and corporate leaders gathered at the offices of Pepper Hamilton in Philadelphia last Thursday. "Do your homework. We're quite clear on our web site what we do. And make sure you have a crisp, compelling script, and a strong, committed management team."

This sentiment was echoed by Michael Smith, head of Constellation Technology Ventures at Exelon. "You need to know your audience," Smith said. "Talk to us like an energy company. We're looking for ways to keep Exelon relevant."

The event, "Energy Giants: Looking for Innovative Investments," was jointly sponsored by Pepper Hamilton and the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, and featured Sumit Sarkar of NRG Ventures, in addition to Smith and Allen, on a panel that I moderated.

Michael Smith of Constellation
Technology Ventures

"Large companies aren't good at innovation," Allen offered, "our goal is to be a thorn in the side of internal R&D."

Sarkar suggested that the venture arms of corporations can sometimes be nimbler in response and are constantly scanning for technologies that offer improvements.

Each outlined what they look for in a company and how much they want to invest, their “bite size.”

There was, of course, some discussion about capital "light" companies or technologies, but given the range of their investment thresholds -- from $3M-$250M -- they understand the need for some capital outlay.

While traditional Venture Capital (VC) has been pulling out of the sector, corporate VC (CVC) has picked up some of the slack.

In 2012 for example, according to a recent study, of the total $6.46B investment in the sector, $2.7B came from corporates, up from $2.55B in 2010 and $1.7B in 2006. Q2 of 2013 saw CVC rise to 14% of total venture investment in the sector vs. only 8% in Q1. And 107 CVCs made an investment in the sector in the 1st half of 2013, versus 148 in all of 2012.

Sumit Sarkar of NRG Ventures

Corporate VCs are a little less risk averse than traditional VCs, in part because such companies are full of engineers who can scrutinize a technology's before an investment is made, but there seemed to be consensus that if the technology enables an existing technology perform better, it is going to be worth a look.

All three investors agreed that networking and investment pitch events can serve as a feeder for companies, but having an executive sponsor is best. 

The entrepreneurs in the room, representing everything from energy storage to software that helps increase the efficiency of long-haul truck drivers, seemed to nod in understanding or agreement.

At the cleantech CEO Retreat that I help manage for EY’s Global Cleantech Center this fall, a recurring meme developed around elephants dancing with mice. As small companies (the mice) began to dance with corporates (the elephants) either as strategic partners, customers, or investors.

Some of the concerns for the mice, obviously, were around how not to get crushed while dancing with elephants. But from the elephant side, how can mice get noticed and have something relevant to share?

Hopefully, the panelists at last Thursday’s event helped alleviate some of the stress between species on the dance floor.

(Disclosure: the author is co-founder of the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic.)

Energy Giants: Looking for Innovative Investments

Join me as I moderate this panel on corporate investors looking for innovative technologies that fit their corporate strategies. Hope to see you there.   

Energy Giants: Looking for Innovative Investments

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Large and forward-looking corporations want to be on the ground floor of the next wave of energy innovation. Corporate investors are looking for innovative technologies that fit within their corporate strategies. In addition to financial assistance, these corporate investors are also assisting to commercialize technologies within the large and changing energy markets. Learn about this and more by attending this informative and lively dialogue in which industry experts will address these and other key questions. Sponsored by Pepper Hamilton LLP's Energy Group and Emerging Company Group and the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, this session examines the recent resurgence in corporate venture activity in the energy space - particularly among Fortune 500 companies - and the many new players involved in the industry. Join us to learn more about this complex and important topic.

5:30 - 6:00 p.m. Networking and Registration

6:00 - 7:00 p.m. Program

7:00 - 7:30 p.m. Networking

Pepper Hamilton LLP

3000 Two Logan Square

Eighteenth and Arch Streets

Philadelphia, PA  19103

Welcome & IntroductionThomas P. Dwyer, Partner, Pepper Hamilton LLP

Moderator
Scott E. Anderson, Global Marketing Director, Cleantech, Ernst & Young LLP
Co-Founder, Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic

Speakers

Grant Allen, Senior Vice President, ABB Technology Ventures
Sumit Sarkar, Director, NRG Ventures
Michael Smith, Vice President, Head of Constellation Technology Ventures at Exelon

Contact Kristen Clark at clarkk@pepperlaw.com or 412.454.5049 with questions.

CLICK HERE to register for this event.

(Full disclosure: I am co-founder of the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic.)

Focus on Teams, Customers, and Going to Market, Investors Tell Mid-Atlantic Energy Forum

Dr. Cheryl Martin Addressing
Mid-Atlantic Energy Tech Forum

"We focus on teamwork," Cheryl Martin, Deputy Director of ARPA-E (Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy) in her keynote address to the Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum last night. "There has to be a strong team and if we need to bring in a CEO to take the company to market, we will."

Dr. Martin, in her second year with the research and commercialization agency, spoke to a crowd of around 200 energy enthusiasts, investors, and entrepreneurs at Philadelphia's Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.

"We look for high-potential, high-impact energy technologies that are solving real problems, and the dedicated teams that can bring them to market," Martin noted. "We just celebrated our fourth anniversary. We've got more to do."

Marking its own 5th year, the Mid-Atlantic Energy Tech Forum (formerly Cleantech Investment Forum) is a partnership between the law firm of Blank Rome and the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, which I co-founded in 2008 with Kevin Brown of the search firm Hobbes & Towne.

The Forum has grown into the premier showcase for the region's most promising companies in energy technology, cleantech, and resource efficiency.

Last night's presenting companies ranged from software as a service offerings such as Propel IT, which uses data and incentives to reduce fuel consumption in trucking fleets, to Rentricity's plug-in microturbine that captures energy generated by pressure reducing valves in the nation's water distribution system.

The CEO presenters included serial entrepreneurs and a former banker who each explained their solutions in 7-minutes pitches. All highlighted their management teams as well as their revenue structures and some spoke of the importance of customers.

Electric cars and dinosaurs were featured outside the Forum.

The focus on customers was raised earlier in the evening by the investor panel, which I moderated.

"In my years engaging with cleantech companies, most firms don't make delivering a superior customer experience the top priority like Apple does," Diana Propper de Callejon of Expansion Capital Partners noted.

As for opportunities in the sector, panelists Andrew Garman of New Venture Partners and Purnesh Seegopaul of Pangaea Ventures, each suggested the funding ecosystem for research and development has expanded and that sustainable solutions are needed in everything from buildings to fossil fuel use require advanced materials.

There has also been a boon in corporate venture capital, which has helped fill the investor syndicate pool as other VCs have left the water.

Success breeds success, however, as in most investing.

"We look for patterns of successful companies and want to replicate those patterns in other disruptive industries," said Seegopaul.

As one attendee told me during the cocktail reception after the program, his key takeaway was that business model innovations that can scale, focus on the customer, and disrupt their industry will win in the current market -- as long as they have a strong team and financial rigor.

Good lessons for any business, but especially in the current cleantech and energy environment.


(DISCLOSURE: The author is co-founder of the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, one of the hosts of the event describe herein.)

Cheryl Martin of ARPA-E to Deliver Keynote at 5th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Tech Forum

The 5th Annual Energy Technology Investment Forum is shaping up really well since I first posted about it a couple of weeks ago. As April 17th approaches, we've been working hard to build-out our program.

We just confirmed Dr. Cheryl Martin from ARPA-E as our keynote and have put together a top-notch Investor Panel, which I'll be moderating. 

Presenting company applications are due this Friday, March 8th, and already we have a stellar group of submissions -- making it harder to choose. 

Early Bird registration is good until March 15th. Register here today! 

Here are the latest details:

Blank Rome's Venture Group, the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, and the Academy of Natural Sciences are pleased to host the 5th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum which will feature a panel of experts and thought leaders discussing energy technology venture and corporate investing, as well as showcase of leading Mid-Atlantic energy technology companies. The program will include:

•	Keynote Speaker: Dr. Cheryl Martin, Deputy Director, Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E). Dr. Martin is responsible for the oversight of ARPA-E and leads ARPA-E's Technology-to-Market program, which helps breakthrough energy technologies succeed in the marketplace.
	Prior to joining ARPA-E, Dr. Martin was an Executive in Residence with Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, a venture capital firm based in Menlo Park, California and spent 20 years with Rohm and Haas Company in various research and marketing roles before becoming the General Manager for the Paint and Coatings Materials business in Europe, Middle East and Africa.
•	Energy Technology Investment Panel, including: Andrew R. Garman, Managing Partner, New Venture Partners LLC Diana Propper de Callejon, General Partner, Expansion Capital Partners, LLC Purnesh Seegopaul, Ph.D., General Partner, Pangaea VenturesModerated by Scott E. Anderson, Cofounder, Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic
•	Introduction to the EEB Hub by Laurie Actman, Deputy Director, EEB Hub
•	Cleantech Company Showcase (companies to be announced) introduced by Thomas P. Dwyer, co-chair of Blank Rome's Venture Group

Energy Technology Forum Call for Companies:
We are currently accepting applications for companies who wish to participate in the Energy Technology Forum Company Showcase. Click here to download the application. Forward completed applications by March 8 to Nikki Benner at Benner@BlankRome.com.

Want to be a sponsor of the Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum? We are currently seeking providers of capital, technology entrepreneurs, and policy makers to participate in this forum as sponsors. Please contact Nikki Benner at Benner@BlankRome.com for more information.

(Disclosure: The author is co-founder and a board member of the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, which is co-host for this event.)

5th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Investment Forum - April 17, 2013

Are you an investor looking for opportunities to invest in the energy technology revolution? Are you an entrepreneur with a killer app or energy platform that's looking for funding? Are you a service provider wanting to learn about the latest trends in energy tech investing from venture to corporate and seed to late-stage? 

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you won't want to miss our 5th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Investment Forum (formerly known as the Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Investment Forum). This is the premiere energy technology investment forum in the region and always sells out fast. So register today! 

Wednesday, April 17, 2013 
3:30-4:00 p.m. Registration and Networking 
4:00-6:00 p.m. Program 
6:00-7:30 p.m. Cocktail Reception 

The Academy of Natural Sciences 
1900 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy 
Philadelphia PA 19103 

Ticket Pricing: 
$50 Early Bird (on or before 3/8) 
$65 (on or before 4/16) 
$75 (at the door) 
Ticket prices include all processing fees. 

Click here to register. 

Hosted by Blank Rome's Venture Group, along with my Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, and the Academy of Natural Sciences, the 5th Annual Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum will feature a panel of experts and thought leaders discussing energy technology venture and corporate investing (moderated by yours truly), as well as a showcase of leading Mid-Atlantic energy technology companies. Topics and presenters to be announced. 

Energy Technology Companies: We are currently accepting applications for companies who wish to participate in the Energy Technology Forum Company Showcase. Click here to download the PDF application. Forward completed applications by March 1 to Nikki Benner at Benner@BlankRome.com. 

Want to sponsor the Mid-Atlantic Energy Technology Forum? We are currently seeking providers of capital, technology entrepreneurs, and policy makers to participate in this forum as sponsors. Please contact Nikki Benner at Benner@BlankRome.com for more information. 

You don't want to miss this very popular event -- register today! 

See you there! 

(Disclosure: The author is co-founder and a board member of the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, which is co-host for this event.)

Upcoming Event: Advanced Materials & Nanotechnology: Investment Opportunity, Not Science Fiction

Breakthroughs in advance materials are happening every day. 

Whether it’s catalysts and solvents improving energy generation and storage or membranes for better water filtration and air purification; from materials that foster greater energy efficiency to nanomaterials for use in the latest clean technologies, advanced materials provide solutions to make products more efficient, less expensive, safer, and even longer lasting.

Join us for an informative and lively dialogue with industry experts, entrepreneurs and investors on the current state and future potential of this emerging growth sector.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013
11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Morgan Lewis
1701 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

Advanced Materials & Nanotechnology: Investment Opportunity, Not Science Fiction

Featuring:
David Paratore, President and CEO, NanoSteel
Tucker Twitmyer, Managing Director, EnerTech Capital
Joseph King, Managing Director, DuPont Ventures
Michael A. DeSimone, President & CEO, DeSimone Group Investments

Moderated by:
Scott Edward Anderson, Global Marketing Director for Cleantech, Ernst & Young, and CAMA co-founder

For more information, contact Jennifer Cohen.

Register for this event

Sponsored by:

4th Annual Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Investment Forum - April 12th

The Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, along with Blank Rome's Cleantech Group and the Academy of Natural Sciences are pleased to host our 4th Annual Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Investment Forum featuring panels of experts and thought leaders discussing the new future of shale gas development, cleantech venture and corporate investing, as well as our annual showcase of leading Mid-Atlantic cleantech companies.

The program will include:

Keynote Speaker: Mark Fulton, Managing Director and Global Head of Climate Change Investment Research & Strategy, Deutsche Bank Climate Change Advisors

Shale Development Panel featuring
Andrew Leitzinger, Director, Appalachian Basin UG Services, URS Corporation
N. Foster Mellen, Senior Strategic Analyst-Oil and Gas, Ernst & Young LLP
Thomas Murphy, Extension Educator and Co-Director, Penn State Marcellus Center for Outreach and Research 
Peter Terranova, Vice President Midstream Assets and Services, UGI Energy Services, Inc.
Moderated by Peg Hill, Chair of Blank Rome's Marcellus Shale and Hydraulic Fracturing Industry Group

Cleantech Investment Panel including:
Bruce Chung, Vice President-Venture Investments, NRG Energy
Michael Cichowski, Principal, Edison Ventures
Ellen Purdy, Chief Financial Officer, Renmatix
Tucker Twitmyer, Managing Director, EnerTech Capital
Josh Wolfe, Founding Partner and Managing Director, Lux Capital
Moderated by Thomas P. Dwyer and Louis Rappaport, co-leaders of Blank Rome's Cleantech Group 

When: Thursday, April 12, 2012, 3:30-7:30 PM
Where: The Academy of Natural Sciences, 1900 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy, Philadelphia

To purchase tickets: Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Investment Forum


(Disclosure: The author is co-founder of the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic.)

The Future of Biofuels: What's Hot, Hype, and Possible

Renmatix Super Converter

What is the future of BioFuels?

From algae to switchgrass and wood waste to sewer grease, many advances in next generation biofuels are being made today. But what is realistic and how do you cut through the hope and hype to get at viable solutions?

The US military is one of the largest investors in advanced biofuels development and is in a position to make the market ripe for commercialization on a massive scale. Can it do for biofuels what it did for GPS and the Internet?

I'll be moderating an informative and lively dialogue with industry experts, entrepreneurs and investors on the current state and future potential of this emerging growth sector.

Featuring:
Mike Hamilton, CEO, Renmatix, Inc.
Sam Gabbita, Partner, Element Partners
Steve McCracken, Director of Strategic Marketing & Sales, AMERIgreen Energy

A Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technology & Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic event, it takes place Thursday, February 16, 2012, at the offices of Morgan Lewis in Philadelphia.

You can register today at: The Future of Biofuels


(Full disclosure: I am a co-founder and board member of the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, a business network for cleantech entrepreneurs, investors, and service providers.)

IMPACT 2011 Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic to Feature Cleantech

IMPACT 2011 Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic, the annual conference put on by PACT (the Greater Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technologies), will take place a week from today and tomorrow (November 29 & 30) at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Philadelphia, the Pennsylvania Convention Center and the Crystal Tea Room.

On Wednesday, the 30th, I'll be telling a "Tale of Two Cleantech Companies," offering perspective on a success story and a failure (hint: one of them is Solyndra) and Monday Night Football's Ron Jaworski, known to his fans as "Jaws," will be the keynote over lunch. Timothy C. Draper, Founder and Managing Director of Draper Fisher Jurvetson, will close the 29th as keynote speaker.

A rich cleantech track has been developed for this year's conference, including panels offering investors's perspectives on the challenges and opportunities of investing in clean energy technology and fund managers's perspectives on energy efficiency finance.

Panelists include representatives from Meidlinger Partners, SJF Ventures, Ben Franklin Technology Partners, Blue Hill Partners, New Venture Partners, DB Climate Change Advisors, Transcend Equity Development Corp and the City of Philadelphia.

14 cleantech companies will present, including

AHI Technologies
Alencon Systems, Inc.
e2e Materials, Inc.
FieldView Solutions, Inc.
Holganix, LLC
LED Saving Solutions
Liberty Hydro, Inc.
Local Food Systems, Inc.
MATCOR, Inc.
Organica Sustainable Water, LLC
Proterro
Quench
Rho Renewables, Inc.
WhiteOptics LLC

See the full agenda here, including non-cleantech related agenda items.

Hope to see you there!

Global Cleantech Cluster Association's Top 30 Companies Announced

As readers of The Green Skeptic know, I co-founded the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, a business network for cleantech professionals working from New York to Northern Virgina.

Earlier this year, we joined the Global Cleantech Cluster Assocication (GCCA), which is comprised of 30 cleantech clusters and networks around the globe from Switzerland to Singapore and San Diego to Syracuse.

Together the GCCA members represent 4,000 Cleantech Companies Worldwide.  And now the GCCA has an award to recognize some of the best of the best of those companies, nominated by its member organizations.

A Global Top 30 semi-finalists for the 2011 award were announced today and will now be judged by 28 cleantech venture capitalists, investors and serial entrepreneurs who collectively manage $3.5 billion in clean technology investments.

From this group ten winners will be picked in each of ten categories.  The award winners will be announced on November 14th in Dublin, Ireland, at the Dublin Cleantech Forum and GCCA Later Stage Awards.

Co-hosted by An iSli Ghlas – The Green Way, Ireland’s cleantech cluster, the full-day event will feature CEO presentations and high-level discussions on the most critical topics for emerging clean technology companies and investment opportunities.

The Global Top 30 Companies are:

Category	Companies	Clusters
Biofuels	Imperative Energy	An tSlí Ghlas – The Green Way, Ireland
	Chempolis	Finnish Cleantech Cluster
	Synthezyme	NYC Acre
Energy Efficiency/ Green Buildings	Omnio	swisscleantech
	Albeo	Colorado Cleantech IA
	PearlLED	Chicago Clean Energy Alliance
New Materials	Genomatica	CleanTech San Diego
	Beneq	Finnish Cleantech Cluster
	OPX Biotechnologies	Colorado Cleantech IA
Other renewables	AWS Ocean Energy	ecoConnect, U.K
	Open Hydro	An tSlí Ghlas – The Green Way, Ireland
	NovaThermal Energy	Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, U.S.A.
Solar	Alencon Systems	Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, U.S.A.
	PrismSolar	Clean Technology & Sustainable Industries U.S.A.
	Solaris	Chicago Clean Energy
Storage/Smart Grid	PowerGenics	CleanTech San Diego
	HydroGenics	MaRS Discovery District, Toronto, CA
	ICE Energy	Colorado Cleantech IA
Transportation	Achates Power	CleanTech San Diego
	Rapid Electric Vehicles	Green Tech Exchange, Canada
	SAM Group	swisscleantech
Water	Trunz	swisscleantech
	Rentricity	NYC Acre
	PortaPure	Chicago Clean Energy
Waste	EcoATM	CleanTech San Diego
	Newalta	EcoTech Quebec
	Akkuser	Finnish Cleantech Cluster
Wind	Moventas	Finnish Cleantech Cluster
	STEP	EcoWorld Styria, Austria
	Acrosoma	Flanders Cleantech Association

For more information about the Global Cleantech Cluster Association, go to their website: GlobalCleantech.org  

Pennsylvania Can Clean Up in Clean Tech

Kevin Brown, my co-founder of Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic, says, "Pennsylvania can clean up in clean tech," in the Philadelphia Inquirer this weekend:

 Philadelphia identifies with underdogs: Rocky, the Eagles, and now energy.

When business people or policymakers think of Philly, they naturally jump to the Big Five: pharmaceuticals, higher education, legal, finance, and technology. Clean tech, or renewable energy, rarely makes the list. But that's about to change. We have the potential to be a full-fledged front-runner in one of the hottest growth industries.

Read the full story here.

3rd Annual Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Investment Forum

The Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Investment Forum has become the premier showcase for clean- and greentech companies and investors in the region.

A collaboration between the Cleantech Alliance Mid-Atlantic (of which I am co-founder) and Blank Rome's energy law practice, the Forum brings together investors and entrepreneurs from around the region.

Now in its third year, the Forum takes place at Philadelphia's Academy of Natural Sciences and there's something deliciously ironic about networking with the region's cleantech leaders among the dinosaurs and fossils housed at the Academy.

This year's program includes Keynote Speaker Mark Fulton, Managing Director and Global Head of Climate Change Investment Research and Strategy for Deutsche Bank Climate Change Advisors; a Cleantech Investment Panel, featuring Gary Golding of Edison Ventures, Kevin Brophy of Meidlinger Partners, Josh Wolfe of Lux Capital; a dialogue with representatives from the Greater Philadelphia Innovation Cluster for Energy Efficient Buildings (moderated by yours truly); and a cleantech company showcase featuring some of the region's hottest companies.

Register today for the 3rd Annual Mid-Atlantic Cleantech Investment Forum.

Here's a video from last year's Forum, attended by over 390 people, and we're expecting a capacity crowd again this year -- so get your tickets before it's too late.