The US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) in partnership with Israel’s Ministry of Energy (MOE) and the Israel Innovation Authority has announced US$4.8 million for five newly selected energy projects as part of the Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Energy programme.
The announcement on November 1 represents the ninth annual selection of BIRD Energy projects, which promote energy innovation, economic security, and bilateral cooperation. The approved projects will leverage cost-share for a total project value of US$10.5 million in the areas of hydrogen storage, advanced biofuels, sustainable transportation, and energy efficiency.
The BIRD Foundation has served as a matchmaker to develop partnerships between US and Israeli researchers at the forefront of technology across the industrial spectrum. This kind of collaboration will be mutually beneficial and allow both countries to achieve their economic and energy security goals, said US Secretary of Energy Rick Perry.
The announcement builds on the “robust and ongoing” cooperation between DOE and MOE under the US Israel Energy Dialogue, which brings together experts from both nations to encourage innovation of sustainable energy technologies, explore the energy-water nexus, and enhance energy cybersecurity.
Together with the BIRD Foundation, we can encourage joint R&D efforts that will contribute significantly to the bright and safe future of our world. We would like even to accelerate and to enhance it, and to expand it in the years to come, said Israel’s Minister of Energy Yuval Steinitz.
Bilateral energy R&D
BIRD Energy began in 2009 as a result of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Projects that qualify for BIRD Energy funding must include one US and one Israeli company, or a company in one of the countries paired with a university or research institution in the other.
The programme encourages cooperation between Israeli and American companies through funding joint research and development in a range of technologies, including solar, wind, biofuels, energy storage, fuel cells, smart grid, and water and energy efficiency. The maximum conditional grant is currently US$1 million per project.
The five approved projects are:
- Brenmiller Energy Ltd (Rosh Ha’ayin, Israel) and Power Authority of the State of New York (White Plains, New York) – will develop high-temperature storage based in combined heat and power (CHP);
- CelDezyner Ltd (Rehovot, Israel) and AdvanceBio LLC (Milford, Ohio) – will develop a process for the production of ethanol from lignocellulosic feedstocks;
- QDM Ltd (Rehovot, Israel) and ALD NanoSolutions Inc. (Broomfield, Colorado) – will develop third-generation high-temperature superconducting (HTS) cables;
- SoftWheel Ltd (Tel Aviv, Israel) and Detroit Bikes (Detroit, Michigan) – will develop an energy-efficient, low-maintenance, high-performance bicycle;
- TerraGenic Ltd. (Kadima, Israel) and Triton Systems, Inc. (Chelmsford, Massachusetts) – will develop a safe hydrogen transport and storage system.
The companies must present a project that involves innovation in the area of sustainable and clean energy and is of “mutual interest” to both countries. After undergoing a rigorous, meritable review process, qualified projects must contribute at least 50 percent to project costs and commit to repay up to 150 percent of the grant if the project leads to commercial success.
Both the US and Israel consider innovation as a major growth engine for our economies. The BIRD Energy programme facilitates this policy very effectively, said Aharon Aharon, CEO of the Israel Innovation Authority.
Over US$200 million in venture capital
Since 2009, BIRD Energy has funded 37 projects with a total investment of about US$30 million, including the five selected projects announced above. To date, BIRD Energy awardees have attracted more than US$200 million in venture capital (VC) and other follow-on funding to commercialize clean energy technologies.
During the last seven years, four BIRD Energy projects have reached the commercialization stage, including a self-powered wireless sensor for monitoring energy use in buildings, a new enzyme for the production of biodiesel, a utility-scale solar concentrated photovoltaic system employing a new active cooling module, and a new system to facilitate wind speed and power output forecasting for wind generation.
BIRD Energy actively engages in fostering partnerships between Israeli and American companies, focusing on energy efficiency which is critical to the global economy and environment, as well as cleaner, renewable energy. By providing financial support to both partners, the development and commercialization of such technologies are accelerated, bringing economic value to both countries, ended Dr Eitan Yudilevich, Executive Director of the BIRD Foundation.
