Noted San Francisco-based financier G. Steven Burrill announced that his company will be making an investment in a Minnesota biomass company.
Burrill declined to disclose the name of the company. Snehal Desai, business vice president, at Golden Valley-based Segetis, said that his firm has been in talks with Burrill's firm and other venture capital firms in the East and West coasts in the past six months, but did not confirm or deny whether Burrill is funding the company.
Another West Coast venture capitalist – Vinod Khosla, who was a co-founder of Sun Microsystems and runs Khosla Ventures – invested $15 million in Segetis in 2007. Segetis, which bills itself as a "green chemistry company," develops bio-based chemical products from renewable agricultural and forestry feedstocks. That technology competes with the traditional method of developing a wide variety of products that are based on fossil-fuel.
In addition to making this announcement, Burrill provided a small update on his Elk Run project – the 2,325-acre land in Pine Island that he owns and hopes to transform into a bio business park. The goal was to raise a $1.1 billion fund that would finance small, innovative companies who would set up shop there, as well as help commercialize promising technologies from the University of Minnesota and the Mayo Clinic. Two buildings are being developed on the property and Interchange 52 has been built connecting the land to Highway 52.
On Friday afternoon, Burrill acknowledged the difficulty he has had in raising money.
"The money is not in the bank yet," he admitted. "We are not getting the support that we expected."
While Burrill acknowledged his disappointment in seeing the reluctance of Minnesota-baesd organizations, he declined to say why companies are hesitant to commit money for Elk Run.
"They say, "Attaboy, good luck or you're nuts." he said.
That reluctance has led him to decide that he was not going to wait to raise the fund before beginning to invest in promising technologies. He also has decided that the fund need not be tied to companies being housed in the bio business park in Pine Island.
"We have done this before," Burrill said pointing to investments in other states like Indiana as well as in countries like India. "We have returned 21 percent to our investors. It's not like they are throwing (money) down a rat hole."
"They say, "Attaboy, good luck or you're nuts." he said.
That reluctance has led him to decide that he was not going to wait to raise the fund before beginning to invest in promising technologies. He also has decided that the fund need not be tied to companies being housed in the bio business park in Pine Island.
"We have done this before," Burrill said pointing to investments in other states like Indiana as well as in countries like India. "We have returned 21 percent to our investors. It's not like they are throwing (money) down a rat hole."
没有评论:
发表评论