12 Enterprise Ireland-supported Companies Visit Region to
Engage with Local Clean-tech Leaders

PALO ALTO, Calif. and DUBLIN, Ireland, Sep. 28, 2009—Representing the best of Ireland’s clean-tech innovation, the CEOs of 12 Irish companies will visit Silicon Valley this week to engage with the region’s clean-tech influencers, establish connections with strategic partners and showcase their technologies to local innovators, municipalities, utilities and venture capitalists.  Within the technology mix there are new-generation bio-fuels, inventive solar solutions and a unique technology to harness ocean energy and deliver electricity to the on-shore grid.  There are also software technologies for energy monitoring and control, and a novel approach to manage household and industrial waste.

Some of the entrepreneurs are exploiting Ireland’s distinctive maritime and climatic conditions and its abundant natural resources like grass and peat; others are finding inventive ways to turn low-value agricultural by-products into high-value renewable energy.  All are tapping into the country’s talent bank to develop and commercialize alternative energy solutions and discover new ways to optimize energy efficiency.

The delegation is being led by Enterprise Ireland (EI) the Government’s export engine for innovative technologies and services created by Irish companies. Growing the indigenous clean-tech sector—currently valued at approximately $4 billion—is a priority for the Irish Government both to boost the nation’s export-led economy and address its environmental imperatives.  The visiting CEOs are important partners in the national effort to meet the country’s ambitious environmental goals.  Moreover, in addition to advancing Ireland’s eco-agenda, their companies’ technologies are also being deployed across the world.

Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Coughlan, said, “Ireland, as an open economy, has a strong base of export-focused companies offering innovative and quality products and services across many industry sectors.  Clean-tech is an area of strong priority in Ireland and a national effort is underway to address the challenge of climate change, develop renewable energy capability, mainstream environmental considerations and comply with environment legislation.”

Minister Coughlan continued, “This is Ireland’s first dedicated clean-tech trade mission to Silicon Valley. It includes 12 Irish clean-tech companies with a proven product or service that is backed by a strong commitment to research and development.  These companies are all dynamic and innovative, offering advanced and flexible solutions.  This visit is aimed at helping them to secure key technical, financial and market partnerships in the US.”

Calling Silicon Valley the nerve center of global clean-tech ingenuity and a top target market for Ireland’s clean-tech products, Sean Davis, Enterprise Ireland’s Senior Vice President, Clean-tech, Industrial and Life Sciences, said, “We’re delighted to be visiting the region this week and meeting with some of the world’s most innovative clean-tech companies.  We share much in common with Silicon Valley: a fast-growing clean-tech sector, a research community dedicated to high-potential R&D projects, no shortage of technical brains, and the entrepreneurial mindset required to turn a great idea into a high-value product.”

Companies participating in the EI-supported Silicon Valley visit include:

AER: Uses advanced enzyme technology to convert algae and other natural resources into next-generation biofuels for the worldwide market.  AER’s proprietary approach is faster, more efficient and more cost-effective than prior-generation conversion technologies. AER is also a leading supplier of biofuels to the Irish market.

Automsoft: Provides data-management solutions for the utilities, life sciences, oil and gas, mining, and pulp and paper industries.

BioSpark: A joint venture between Sustainable BioPolymers and Imperative Energy Ltd.  The organization utilizes next-generation technology to convert organic materials, such as straw and wood biomass into bio-based products like ethanol, lactic acid, lignin, methane and hydrogen.

Episensor: Develops sensors, routers and monitoring software for energy saving in street light control systems.  Using open-standard ZigBee wireless networking protocols, together with Episensor’s electricity metering technology, savings of 30-70 percent in operating costs have been achieved.

Kedco: Instals, operates and maintains power generators on partner sites using the partner’s waste product as feedstock. The waste is converted into energy, via anaerobic digestion or gasification technologies using combined heat and power or CHP units, and transferred into the national energy grid.

Phive: Designs and manufactures plasma sources for incorporation into PECVD equipment for the manufacture of thin-film silicon photovoltaic products.

ResourceKraft: A software company that delivers energy cost control and management software solutions as a service to enterprises and institutions throughout Ireland, UK and the USA.

ServusNet: Provides Operations and Maintenance (O&M), and Operational Intelligence (OI) software solutions for wind farms and other distributed energy-generation technologies.

SolarPrint: Develops dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) technology for cheap solar power aimed at consumer electronics. It’s a third-generation printable flexible solar cell technology that uses abundant, cheap raw materials and employs a low-cost, fast and easy manufacturing process.

Surface Power: Designs, manufactures and distributes renewable energy equipment.

The City Bin Co: Provides software for waste & recycling services that promotes behavior-changing characteristics with respect to how people, companies and local government authorities manage waste.

Wavebob: Wavebob is a technology company specializing in ocean wave energy conversion. The company is one of the first in the industry to succeed in producing electricity from the power of ocean swells.

About Enterprise Ireland
Enterprise Ireland is the Government Agency responsible for driving leadership and growth for innovative Irish companies in international markets.  With a network of 13 domestic offices and 32 international locations, Enterprise Ireland helps world-class Irish companies establish strong positions in global markets, thereby increasing regional and national prosperity. To learn more about Enterprise Ireland, please visit www.enterprise-ireland.com or www.americas.enterprise-ireland.com

Media Contact
Jane Evans-Ryan
Genuity PR for Enterprise Ireland
Tel: (408) 489-6391
Email: jane@genuitypr.com

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