Seed Funding | Green Energy News

September 12, 2004 – Vol.9 No.25

SEED FUNDING.

Think all inventions and earth-changing innovations or products come only from large corporations or government and university labs? Think again. The most notable inventions seem to have their roots in start-up companies or are often the work of one or a few individuals, not teams of scientists, engineers and product designers. Apple Computer and Hewlett Packard both started in garages. Google came from a dorm room.

But while earth-changing inventions are being developed inventors have to eat, pay mortgages, raise families, buy materials and supplies. The small-time inventor needs money too - seed money.

On the west coast of the U.S. the California Energy Commission through its Energy Innovations Small Grant Program has announced the winners of this year’s awards of grants up to $75,000. A sampling are:

--- United Innovations, Inc. for a device called dielectric light injector to increase the electricity conversion capacity of advanced solar energy concentrators.

--- Hi-Q Products, Inc. for its Mamikon spinner that could increase the electricity yield of small wind turbines.

--- Alice Agogino of the University of California, Berkeley, for research on more effective lighting controls to save electricity.

--- Konarka Technologies, Inc. to develop aesthetically pleasing photovoltaic modules for California applications, to match residential roofing materials. http://www.konarkatech.com/

--- Ning Pan of the University of California, Davis, for an advanced rechargeable battery technology to store and deliver electricity on demand.

--- Laurent G. Pilon of the University of California, Los Angeles, for research to develop a cheap and reliable source of hydrogen to power fuel cells.

--- Mario A. Medina of the University of Kansas, for phase-change framewalls to reduce peak demand, shift load and reduce energy use in the coastal areas of California.

--- Lieberman Research Associates for research to lower the cost of storing energy from wind.

The Commission notes that one of last year’s recipients, Nanosolar Inc., has captured an additional $10.3 million in funding from other sources to develop its nanomaterials solar photovoltaic technology. Without the seed money they may not have been able to do that.

The California Energy Commission offers contact information should others be interested in further funding or investing in the above grant winners. http://www.energy.ca.gov/ . (See Press Release for 9/14/04 under New on our Website.)

On the east coast of the U.S. the state of Massachusetts has announced the winners of a seed funding program through the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC) and Renewable Energy Trust.

The winners there are:

--- Lilliputian Systems $500,000 for micro fuel cell development.

--- Fideris, $250,000 for fuel cell development. http://www.fideris.com/

--- Nanoptek, $250,000 for solar- to-hydrogen technologies. http://www.nanoptek.com/

--- Second Wind, $250,000 for wind monitoring technologies http://www.secondwind.com/

--- Solectria, $250,000 for solar/power electronics. http://www.solectria.com/

--- Agrivida, $50,000 for biomass development. http://www.agrivida.com/

--- Seahorse Power, $50,000 for solar photovoltaics. http://www.seahorsepower.com/

--- SolarOne Solutions, $50,000 for solar photovolatics http://www.solarone.net/

MTC, as of publishing, has not offered additional information about these awards. Visit Mass Tech at http://www.masstech.org/ .