SSTI Digest

Many states are now pursuing seed and venture investment strategies to support the growth of clean energy businesses. Last month, Pennsylvania concluded a year-long series of meetings with private sector investors, financial experts, and nonprofit state energy funds and introduced a $90 million strategy to leverage public and private capital for renewable energy. The plan links economic development and environmental protection in a manner intended to promote the state as a leader in emerging clean energy industries.   The centerpiece of this new strategy is the creation of the $40 million Keystone Green Fund (the Fund), which will provide private equity and debt investments, venture capital placements, and project financing for projects related to alternative power sources. The state Treasury Department is pledging $15 million of these funds to support the commercialization of clean energy technologies. Recipients, which must have a direct business connection to Pennsylvania, will be considered for additional investment by Pennsylvania's sustainable energy funds, including the TRF Sustainable Development Fund, the West Penn Power Sustainable…

Earlier this month, representatives from the clean energy community in all 50 states met in St. Louis to address the growing need for alternatives to fossil fuels. Advancing Renewable Energy: An American Rural Renaissance, a national conference sponsored by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Energy (DOE), hosted a range of discussions on the future of renewable energy technologies and President Bush's Advanced Energy Initiative.   The event also gave Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns and Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman an opportunity to announce $34.5 million in awards and other funding for renewable energy research and development. The funds will be distributed among the department's ongoing partnerships to support research in biomass genomics, solar energy and cost-effective biomass power.   More than $17 million of the funding was awarded for 17 research, development and demonstration projects focusing on biobased products, bioenergy, biofuels and biopower. Most of these awards will support R&D to improve the affordability and efficiency of biomass power at research universities. Highlights…

Wind power is the fastest-growing method of renewable power generation in the U.S. This new attention is due to the fact that, over the past 20 years, the cost of harnessing wind for the production of electricity has fallen 90 percent. The relative affordability of wind power has made wind a prime target for investment by states looking to increase their energy independence and to reduce their contribution to global climate change. A recent study suggests there might be another justification for this investment. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) reports that wind power offers greater direct economic returns on state investment than other sources of power, including coal and natural gas.   The NREL study examines the economic impact of building and operating the various components necessary to introduce electricity generated by commercially available technologies. Coal, natural gas, and wind facilities in Colorado, Arizona and Michigan were used as models to evaluate the economic impact new power generation can have for a state. Having a diverse portfolio of energy sources can attract a wide range of associated businesses and can…

During his keynote address at this month's renewable energy conference in St. Louis, President Bush informed attendees that the number of U.S. ethanol plants is expected to increase 40 percent in 2007. As the market for biofuels like ethanol grows, many states are creating plans to support businesses and research that can fill the current need for renewable alternatives at the pump. Among the states having taken steps to build a profitable alternative fuels industry and cleaner and safer highways are Michigan and Tennessee.   Michigan Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm has made the first round of appointments to the state's recently approved Renewable Fuels Commission. The appointees will oversee Michigan's efforts to promote the production and distribution of petroleum alternatives, as well as the manufacture of vehicles that capitalize on eco-friendly biodiesel and ethanol technologies. The Commission will identify new ways to spur fuel research and recommend alternative fuel strategies to the governor and legislature.   Twenty-five representatives from the state's research universities, fuel producers and…

The Georgia Environment Facilities Authority (GEFA) has released the second draft of its State Energy Strategy for Georgia to encourage public discussion about the state's plan to develop an affordable and diverse energy supply. The plan calls for a thorough analysis of the states energy efficiency and renewable energy potential, as well as a statewide technology transfer program to support the commercialization of clean energy research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Georgia's research universities.   Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue launched the development of the state plan in March, citing the destruction resulting from Hurricane Katrina as evidence that the state needs to limit its dependence on fossil fuels. The original draft, published in June, attracted 358 comments from the 222 participants who registered to be a part of the process. The second draft has attracted twice as many participants, many of whom also attended one of the town hall meetings held throughout the state earlier this month. The governor's Energy Policy Council will incorporate public comments collected at these meetings into the current draft and release a final…

Clean Edge's annual report on clean technology trends was released earlier this year and includes valuable data for any state building a comprehensive plan to encourage alternative energy technologies. The research and publishing firm, which actively supports investment in clean energy technologies, predicts rapid growth in clean energy markets by 2015. As these technologies become cost-competitive with nonrenewable sources of power over the next 10 years, the market for biofuels, wind power, solar power, and fuel cells will grow to four times its current size. Clean Energy Projected Growth 2005-2015 (US $Billions) Clean Energy Technology 2005 2015 Biofuels $15.7 $53.5 Wind Power $11.8 $48.5 Solar Power $11.2 $51.1 Fuel Cells $1.2 $15.1 Total $39.9…

The two position opportunities described below were recently posted on the SSTI Job Corner. More information, including complete details on responsibilities, qualifications and application deadlines (when available), is available at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm. Purdue University seeks an individual with vision and demonstrated leadership skills to serve as the Avrum and Joyce Gray Director of Purdue University's Burton D. Morgan Center of Entrepreneurship (BDMCE). The mission of the BDMCE is to facilitate the commercialization of promising Purdue University and Discovery Park intellectual property and technology, to involve and familiarize Purdue undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students with all aspects of entrepreneurship, and to enhance entrepreneurial activities throughout the state of Indiana. The director should hold a doctorate degree, and/or an MBA or its equivalent, and must have demonstrated success in entrepreneurial activities. The Rosen Center for Advanced Computing (RCAC), a research computing center at Purdue University, seeks a managing director to lead the daily computing activities of RCAC,…

The venture capital fund investing in biotechnology companies that locate to the North Carolina Research Campus is doubling its holdings to $200 million. This substantial increase is a result of a donation provided by David Murdock, the billionaire businessman and owner of Castle and Cooke Inc. who also provided the initial $100 million to start the fund. The venture capital fund is an integral component of the $1.5 billion biotechnology hub being constructed in Kannapolis, N.C.    Located between Charlotte and the Research Triangle, Kannapolis is a city of 39,000 residents that was heavily impacted by the bankruptcy of the Pillowtex textile corporation in 2003. The subsequent closing of the local manufacturing facility laid off 4,300 employees in Kannapolis, alone, part of the largest permanent layoff in the history of North Carolina.   Construction of a main component of the research campus has already begun on the site of the demolished textile factory complex. The building to house much of the campus core laboratory and equipment space is expected to be completed in 2007, and tenants for the building have…

In a time of tightening budgets and funding shortfalls, many institutions are searching for innovative sources of capital to finance their investment needs. Financial Innovations for Accelerating Medical Solutions, a recent report from the Milken Institute, provides some insight on inventive ways to raise capital for the biotechnology industry.    Milken convened two workshops in the fall of 2005, one in Santa Monica and one in New York City, of various stakeholders in the drug development process. These workshops included patent brokers and intellectual property lawyers, private equity investors and analysts, insurance consultants, biotechnology entrepreneurs, academics, and members of foundations. The report decries the lack of venture capital for early-stage product investments, especially between the preclinical and clinical stages of development.   Six main recommendations are provided to reduce credit risk, attract investors, and accelerate commercialization in a broad range of disease areas: Reduce the scientific risk through the diversification or pooling of intellectual property. Use…

On Oct. 31, SSTI will offer four exciting options as pre-conference activities. Registration is separate from the full conference fee. Transforming a Regional Economy: Moving Forward Together How does a medium-sized city in a small state accomplish big things? How was a down-at-the-heels tract of urban landscape transformed into a 27-acre research park featuring a seven-building complex with 600,000 sq. ft. of Class A wet lab space and a 97 percent occupancy rate? How did the city convince its citizens to support one of the largest capital improvement projects in the country one that has already yielded more than $2.4 billion in public and private investment? This full-day session will provide answers and insights from the key players in the initiatives that have radically transformed the face of the community. In the morning, participants will travel to the Presbyterian Health Foundation Research Park. The complex's master plan calls for the construction of 10 buildings, raising the total research and office space to more than 1 million sq. ft. Working in cooperation with federal, state and local agencies,…

Starting next year, every Rhode Island high school student will be able to participate in the Vex Challenge, an international robotics competition that gives students firsthand experience with project management and engineering. A coalition of education and science and technology advocates, led by the nonprofit Business Innovation Factory, will cover the costs to schools and funding for an annual statewide tournament beginning in 2007. Rhode Island Gov. Donald Carcieri has endorsed the program, which he calls an important part of our plan for educating Rhode Islands next generation of science, technology, and engineering leaders.   FIRST, a nonprofit STEM organization founded in 1989 by Segway-inventor Dean Kamen, began the Vex Challenge last year as a spinoff of its advanced competition for college students and professional engineers. Students are issued a basic robotics kit and set about designing a robot that will complete certain basic tasks, such as placing balls in goals or racing towards a finish line. At the statewide tournament, participating teams go head-to-head and score points by completing these tasks. Kits can be reused year after…

FSU hopes new hires will enhance reputation The competition for the superstars of the research world is heating up, as more and more universities create programs to attract research faculty to their campuses. One of the most ambitious in the country is Florida State University's Pathways to Excellence program. FSU intends to hire 200 tenured or tenured-track professors within a five-year period, with the intention of transforming the quality of its Ph.D. programs.   Under the faculty development arm of this program, the university will hire 6-8 star professors built around each of six academic themes. In its first round of hires to create these interdisciplinary clusters, between $4 million to $5 million was spent to attract 38 faculty members. Twelve of these hires have been at the senior, Full Professor level. Additional goals of the program include enhancing the number and amount of federal grants, scholarly productivity, and increasing graduate program and faculty recognition, and the number of Ph.D. graduates. Besides encouraging the development of its academic reputation, the university hopes these efforts will be a…