The Week in Cleantech – Apr. 1 – 5

It was an exciting week in cleantech, with several rounds of venture financing raised by startup companies. Aquion Energy, a developer of batteries based on ambient-temperature sodium-ion technology and targeting the grid energy storage market, led headlines with a $35 million round led by Bright Capital, and with participation from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Foundation Capital, and others.

In the energy efficiency sector, two companies raised sizable rounds for their technology offerings, which target efficiency alternatively in data centers and visual displays. QD Vision, a developer of a quantum dot technology that it says delivers increased color and brightness and requires less power than current LED technologies, raised $11.7 million from investors including Highland Capital Partners and North Bridge Venture Partners. On the data center efficiency side, Rhode Island-based GreenBytes reeled in $7 million in new equity capital from Battery Ventures and Generation Investment Management.

There were also several interesting company relationships formed during the week. Among them, one that stood out was the announcement from Amyris that it would expand its partnership with French energy company Total, forming a joint venture by the end of 2013 to market biodiesel and jet fuel made from Biofene Amyris’s renewable brand of farnesene.

Finally, we hope you’ll join us April 16-18 at Cleantech Forum Europe in Bilbao! Register today!