Pelamis Wave Power (Edinburgh – Scotland)

The sun sets and the wind can die down, but anyone who has spent a few days on a boat knows that ocean swell waves rarely stop. This continuous movement makes the world's oceans an ideal, and more predictable, source of renewable energy. And there's plenty of it. If the United Kingdom could tap all the wave energy in its surrounding continental shelf it could power itself three times over. Estimates vary, but some contend there's enough economically recoverable wave energy to generate up to 2,000 terawatt-hours a year; equivalent to nearly 20 per cent of the electricity consumed every year in the United States.

The potential is clearly huge, and Edinburgh-based Pelamis Wave Power Ltd. is leading the pack, as well as riding a wave of interest in this promising but less talked about source of renewable energy. The company has developed and is currently deploying the world's first commercial wave-energy farm in deep water off the coast of Portugal at the Agucadoura Wave Park. The first phase comprises three snake-like Pelamis machines, called Wave Energy Converters, which are a series of semi-submerged cylindrical sections linked by hinged joints. Each machine is 100 meters long, and together they will produce 2.25 megawatts of electricity, enough to power more than 1,500 Portuguese households.

How does a Pelamis machine generate electricity? As a wave rolls in it moves (both lift and sway) each section at a different time, and this relative motion is resisted by hydraulic rams. The rams pump high-pressure oil through hydraulic motors, which in turn drive generators that produce electricity. The power from each joint is collected in a single umbilical cable and carried to a junction on the seabed. Several Pelamis Wave Energy Converters can be clustered together and the power they produce can be brought to shore through a single cable. One machine has so far been deployed as part of the Agucadoura Wave Park, and the other two will be deployed in the coming few weeks. The next milestone is to sustain operation through the winter months, after which a second phase is planned for the latter half of 2009 that could add another 20 megawatts.

At the same time, Pelamis is working with several power utilities to deliver its next-generation wave energy converter in 2009. E.ON, one of the world's largest power and gas utilities, will likely be next to take advantage of this grid-connected wave power technology. It aims to have up to seven Pelamis systems installed at the Wave Hub, a project being developed off the coast of Cornwall, U.K., which will provide "sockets" into which wave energy converters can be easily plugged. The Wave Hub will be connected to the grid and have a capacity of 20 megawatts, or 5 megawatts for each of its four berths. Negotiations are well underway with Statoil and ScottishPower and are expected to lead to significant commercial contracts by the end of the year.

Emerald co-lead a Series A round together with Statoil back in 2004 and has been a strong supporter of wave energy and Pelamis Wave Power. Other investors include GE, BlackRock, Statoil Hydro, and Atmos.
Visit: www.pelamiswave.com

Inge Watertechnologies AG (Greifenberg – Germany)

Demand for water treatment technologies around the globe has nowhere to go but up, including regions of the world that are struggling with water scarcity. It's why sales of water filtration membranes and equipment are expected to reach $11 billion (U.S.) in 2011, an increase of about 35 per cent compared to 2007, according to market researcher McIlvaine Company. Inge Watertechnologies AG, Germany's largest ultrafiltration company, has already established itself as an industry leader with its membrane fibers, modules and racks, which can be a decisive component in treating drinking water, process water, waste water and sea water. Ultrafiltration membranes have very small pores that intercept not just particles, but also microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses.

Inge's technology offers numerous advantages. Its membrane modules allow for quick and easy installation, and the membranes are designed to be extremely resilient and stable. Its Multibore membrane is both chemically and physically inert,leading to the fact that all installed membrane fibers have held up after more than five years on the market, with no reports of breakage. Inge has cleverly engineered an attractive portfolio of products around its Multibore membrane, including modules of different sizes. More recently, it has developed the T-Rack, a set of preassembled modules on a rack that saves on design costs, allows for quicker installation, and conserves space.

Meanwhile, Inge has significantly increased its market presence, with direct sales to large-scale treatment plants in Europe and China representing a lion's share of its revenues over the past few years. For sales to the Americas, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, the company has established a formal cooperation agreement with Siemens Water Technologies. It also signed a distribution agreement recently with LG Chem Ltd. for the Korean and Japanese markets. Last year it signed an agreement with MIDEA, one of the largest household appliance manufacturers in China. Under that deal, Inge will develop for MIDEA a new water-purification product for the home.

Emerald, through its Emerald Cleantech Fund I LP, has been an investor in Inge since 2004. Other investors include Siemens Venture Capital GmbH, StoneFund N.V., Entrepreneurs Fund BV, and Taprogge Watertech GmbH.
Visit: www.inge.ag

A complete list of our portfolio companies can be found at:
www.emerald-ventures.com/ourPortfolio.aspx