Many have thus noted for the quality of their technology

This is what Silicon Valley knows how to make better that anyone in the world: Associate private capital, industry and enterprise to accelerate the pace of innovation. End of March, the region still gave the example by launching "Clean tech Open". It is a competition open to any startup to launch the development of a new technology making it more efficient renewable energy.

For applicants, the exercise is simple: it is sufficient to write a "business plan" showing the benefits of this new technology. The winner will receive 100,000 dollars in cash and one year of free incubation. And certainly much more success, as this award is funded by some of the most prestigious firms in venture capital in the region: Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers (investor, among others, Google and Amazon) or Venrock Associates and New Enterprises Associates. With such sponsors, the winner has no difficulty in financing its development thereafter. The Chevron tanker is associated with this initiative, and many other major California companies specialized in other sources of energy. The City Hall of San Francisco and of many universities including the MIT in Boston! complement an initiative which symbolizes the current craze of all these media for the "clean".

It is well on the innovative start-up venture capital firms build to speed the transition to these energies. "70 Dollars per barrel of oil, US officials, but also from around the world, are looking for alternatives and many entrepreneurs are to meet the challenge", thus provides John Doerr, one of the leaders of Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers in Menlo Park. And in fact, his company, just provide a $ 100 million fund dedicated to these technologies, has already invested in promising start-up. As Miasole (a firm of San Jose which develops ultrathin films for solar panels) or even Lilliputian (specialized in portable electronic terminal miniature fuel cells).

Pollution at the source

The Cleantech Venture Forum brought together end of March, in San Francisco, 18 selected among 100 companies. Of these, Extengine, a California start-up launched in 2001, was particularly noted. It has developed a technology that allows to convert greenhouse effects produced by the pots from the much less toxic gas diesel vehicle exhaust gases. A clean-up "to the source" which is already the subject of several experiments in the world.

But the real star of the event was undoubtedly ClearFuel Technology. This young company installed in Hawaïi, indeed, was elected by more than 400 present investors in the Cleantech Venture Forum as "most promising". It has developed a technique that should improve the performance of the production of ethanol used as fuel of at least 30.

More interesting, its technology can be used for the production of ethanol obtained from the fermentation of plants such as maize or beet, but of "cellulosic" ethanol made from agricultural residues and forest waste. This sector has an important future, because the natural raw material used is unlimited and does not require conventional ethanol cultivated surfaces. According to Eric Darmstaedter, one of the leaders of ClearFuel, the technology would double the yield obtained so far by conventional techniques. "We aim to inaugurate our first plant of demonstration by the end of the year", provides, recognizing that this closer step will help to validate new technology.

Almost at the same time and in the same town had held another Conference on trends in U.S. venture capital, which was also strong in these start-up "green."

Many have thus noted for the quality of their technology. This is the case of Prism Solar Technologies, which has developed a holographic solar module, "which reduces the amount of solar cells manufactured silicon for photovoltaic cell Assembly," explains Rick Lewandowski, President and CEO of the firm. This process is expected to lower the cost of returns of solar energy for domestic use. Prism Solar, launched last year, is negotiating an investment of several million dollars. Other features, the Nextreme Thermal start-up, outcome of research projects funded by Darpa, the scientific agency of the U.S. Army. The company has developed a thermoelectric ultrathin film that can be applied to electronic components to reduce the temperature they emit during their operation. The technology can also be used as a source of energy production, to convert heat into electricity. Where its presence at this Conference, the start-up cash already among its investors In-Q-Tel, the CIA venture capital firm...