CAPCO Programs

Jason R. Smith wrote an opinion article for the Journal Sentinel in Wisconsin discussing his reasons for supporting the CAPCO program:

The venture capital industry is misunderstood and misperceived. While some think of the industry as a bunch of youngsters playing fast and loose with ideas and millions of dollars, venture capitalists have, in fact, created some of the world’s giant job creators – companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook and Apple.

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Virent, a CAPCO program portfolio company, doesn’t plan to leave Wisconsin:

Wisconsin has been a good place to start an innovative biofuels business, but competition from other states for the chance to build the first plants could draw away the industry, Virent Energy Systems CEO Lee Edwards says.

But he says Virent isn’t leaving.

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Virent Energy Systems, a CAPCO program company located in Madison, Wisc., will receive up to $4 million of the $12 million from the DOE:

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced awards totaling $12 million to support the development of “drop-in” biofuel technologies. Drop-in biofuels are fuels that can serve as direct replacements or supplements to existing gasoline, diesel and jet fuels without any changes to existing fuel distribution networks or engines. The DOE thinks these fuels have the potential to significantly reduce U.S. reliance on oil imports. We’ve seen the military extensively exploring their use.

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Virent, a previously mentioned Wisconsin CAPCO portfolio company, has been in the news in regards to its recent investment:

The U.S. Department of Energy is making a $9 million investment in a joint Israeli-American venture to develop alternative fuels.

Israel’s HCL Cleantech is joining forces with the American biofuels startup LS9 will use cellulosic feedstocks to produce alternative fuels.

HCL Cleantech uses technology developed by Nazis in Germany to produce sugars from nonfood organic sources, mainly acidic cellulosic sources, Haaretz reported.
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