Fusion Corporate Partners

Private Equity busines The Riverside Company has sold environmental consulting company ENTRIX to Australian professional services provider Cardno. It is Riverside’s first exit of 2010. The price was not disclosed, though Riverside said it had achieved a 2.8x gross cash-on-cash return on its investment.

ENTRIX provides environmental and natural resource management consulting services. The business was founded in 1984 and has 33 offices in 17 states and three countries. It serves over 1,000 clients each year on over 2,000 projects. During its seven-year holding period, Riverside  completed three add-on acquisitions:

• Northwest Economic Associates of Vancouver, Washington (January 2004)
• Water Resource Solutions of Cape Coral, Florida (February 2006)
• Biological Research Associates, LLC of Panama City, Florida (April 2007)

ENTRIX’s management team will remain in place under Cardno ownership.

“We’re proud of the work we’ve done to build ENTRIX into a bigger and better company with a leadership position in water and natural resource management and a national scope,” said Anne Hayes, Riverside Partner. “ENTRIX has a stellar management team that has driven the growth initiatives and the effective integration of acquisitions which were key to our strategic plan – to capitalize on ENTRIX’s strong brand and reputation to extend their services and geographic reach. This successful exit comes despite an uncertain macroeconomic environment, which is further evidence of the deep underlying value ENTRIX offers to its clients.”

Todd Williams, ENTRIX CEO said, “Partnering with Riverside has allowed us to position ENTRIX for stronger growth than the overall market. This opportunity exists due to our ability to provide practical solutions to the many complex challenges faced by our clients such as water scarcity, greenhouse gas emissions and land use conflicts. The diversification across markets and services creates a unique ability to serve a variety of customers.”

Harris Williams acted as the exclusive adviser to ENTRIX and Riverside on the transaction. Jones Day and Kirkland & Ellis provided general counsel to Riverside on the sale.

Location: ENTRIX – USA, Houston, Texas: Cardno – Brisbane, Australia

Ref: F231109-493

Hybrid Energy Holdings has signed a Letter of Intent with KS IP Holdings, a private Intellectual Property Holding company specializing in clean energy technologies, to acquire and develop a select group from KS-IPH’s Solar Energy Technologies portfolio. The transaction is valued at $18 million and will be completed as an equity-based transaction with no issuance of debt or use of cash reserves.

The Company is currently completing its due diligence on the individual assets, systems and operations as the first acquisition under its recently announced Solar Energy Acquisition and Development Project; the first official project of the Company’s diversification strategy. The Company will be issuing formal updates as the review and integration process progresses and anticipates a formal closing on this Letter of Intent within the next 30 days.

The Solar Energy Acquisition and Development Project is the first major acquisition and development project under the Company’s New Energy Initiative, which calls for the aggressive investment in, acquisition of and development of nascent ‘New Energy’ technologies Intellectual Property assets and operations in the Clean Energy, Energy Smart Technologies and Carbon Capture & Storage sectors of the Energy Sector.

The Company recently announced Phase II of its growth and acquisition strategy; the diversification and expansion of its current asset holdings with the launch of the ‘New Energy Initiative.’ The Company has successfully established a strong and growing asset base of clean energy producing assets with strong recurring profits and cash-flows. The company will continue its acquisitions in this sector and expand the scope of its acquisitions.

Location: USA, Reno, NV

Ref: F231109-490

Smart energy efficiency company Octus. has acquired substantially all of the assets of Quantum Energy Solutions, a smart energy efficiency company that reduces energy costs for commercial and institutional buildings through energy-efficient lighting, HVAC and energy management systems. 

Founded in 1974, Quantum is one of the first energy management companies in the United States to specialize in energy efficiency.

Quantum has executed more than 1,500 energy projects totaling more than $100 million in value for clients including ARCO, Bank of America, Blockbuster, Chevron, Delta Airlines, Frito Lay, Hewlett-Packard, Home Depot, Ikea, Nabisco, Pepsi, Petco, Safeway, Sears, Siemens, and University of California.

“Quantum is a leader in implementing energy efficiency solutions for commercial, industrial and institutional building owners and managers,” said Chris Soderquist, Octus CEO. “This expansion catalyzes our mission to significantly reduce energy expenses and increase cash flow — immediately and perpetually — for building owners, managers and occupants. We believe there has never been a better time to invest in energy efficiency.”

Pursuant to the asset purchase agreement, Octus purchased substantially all of the assets of Quantum for a purchase price subject to certain post-closing adjustments described in the agreement, and the company agreed to assume certain liabilities associated with Quantum. Consideration to be paid and liabilities assumed by Octus in the transaction include: 150,000 shares of common stock granted to Quantum; assumption of approximately $108,000 in Quantum accounts payable and credit facilities; assumption of $130,000 in Quantum long-term debt; and assumption of approximately $50,000 in Quantum accounts receivable. In addition, Octus entered into a two-year consulting agreement with Quantum president Jim Collins.

Location: USA, USA, Davis, CA 

Ref: F231109-489

Energate a provider of demand response and home energy management solutions for utilities and their consumers, thas secured $7.2 million in Series B funding. The funding will be used to drive sales growth and customer deployment initiatives while supporting the company’s ongoing product development efforts and strategic partnerships.

The investment was led by Cycle Capital Fund I. New and existing investors participated in the round, as did the Ontario Capital Growth Corporation’s (OCGC) Ontario Emerging Technology Fund (OETF). OETF is a direct investment fund established by the Province of Ontario in 2009 to invest alongside Qualified Co-Investors into innovative, high-growth, private Ontario companies.

The financing will enable Energate to continue to scale operations and strengthen its position in the growing Demand Response and Smart Grid market. Energate has propelled itself to the forefront of this area by developing solutions such as its broadband-enabled and Smart Grid-interoperable Consumer Connected Demand Response (CCDR) solution set that is utility-focused yet allows consumers to control their own personal requirements. Utilities are deploying demand response programs to curb energy usage, especially during peak periods. Managing peak demand is proven to be significantly more cost effective than building new power plants, and those savings benefit utilities, governments, consumers and the environment.

“Energate’s market lead in Smart Thermostats and Demand Response combined with their smart grid partnerships gives us confidence that the company will deliver results and tremendous growth in this global market,” said Andrée-Lise Méthot, Founder and Senior Partner and Bernhardt Zeisig, Senior Partner with Cycle Capital. “We are impressed with the Energate team and what they have accomplished – the best is yet to come for this organization.”

Location: Canada, Ottowa, ON

Ref: F231109-469

BrightSource Energy, developer of utility-scale solar thermal power plants, has raised an additional $150 million in its most recent equity financing. The Series D round brings BrightSource’s total equity financing to more than $300 million.

New investors including Alstom and the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) joined existing investors in this round, led by VantagePoint Venture Partners, Morgan Stanley and Draper Fisher Jurvetson. As part of the financing, global power-generation leader Alstom has committed to invest up to $55 million.

The additional financing will be used to support BrightSource’s 2,610 megawatts in contracts with Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) and Southern California Edison to build 14 solar power plants in the US southwest by 2016. The funds will also be used by BrightSource to further its international expansion plans.

BrightSource Energy’s proprietary LPT 550 energy system is based on proven power tower technology. The system uses thousands of small mirrors to reflect sunlight onto a boiler atop a tower to produce high temperature steam. The steam is then piped to a conventional turbine, which generates electricity. In order to conserve precious desert water, the steam is air-cooled and piped back into the system in a closed-loop, environmentally friendly process.

In February 2010, BrightSource received a conditional commitment from the U.S. Department of Energy for $1.37 billion in loan guarantees to support the financing of BrightSource’s Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System project – the first of its US-based power projects. Once constructed, Ivanpah will be the world’s largest solar energy project, nearly doubling the amount of solar thermal electricity produced in the US today. The project will also create more than 1,000 local jobs at the peak of construction and generate $250 million in construction wages. The power plant will be constructed by Bechtel, the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the Ivanpah project. BrightSource expects to commence construction later this year.

Location: USA, Oakland, CA

Ref: F231109-456

Octus, a smart energy management company that reduces energy costs for commercial and institutional building, is to acquire privately held energy management company Quantum Energy Solutions.

“Quantum and its principals are energy industry leaders with a rich history of successfully deploying energy efficiency projects throughout the United States and Canada,” said Chris Soderquist, Octus CEO. “When the transaction is completed, we believe the fusion of our companies, our capabilities, and our sales pipelines will significantly and immediately expand Octus’s ability to develop energy efficiency projects. This will be a seminal step in Octus’s growth as a leading developer of smart energy efficiency solutions.”

Founded in 1974, Quantum was one of the first energy management companies in the United States to specialize in energy efficiency. Quantum’s principals have executed more than 1,500 energy projects totaling more than $100 million in value for clients including ARCO, Bank of America, Blockbuster, Chevron, Delta Airlines, Frito Lay, Hewlett-Packard, Home Depot, Ikea, Nabisco, Pepsi, Petco, Safeway, Sears, Siemens, and University of California.

Location: USA, Davis, CA

Ref: F231109-440