Participated · Series A · Nov 2022

Boston Materials is a materials-science company focused on solving thermal bottlenecks in advanced semiconductor packaging with its patented Z-axis Carbon Fiber™ architecture and proprietary liquid-metal alloys. Its flagship product line, Liquid Metal ZRT®, has already reached the market with the first-generation LMZ1100, which the company claims provides more than a 10 °C cooling improvement for kilowatt-scale, liquid-cooled accelerators while maintaining compatibility with high-volume manufacturing. The firm is now developing a second-generation Liquid Metal ZRT aimed at high-power ASICs and GPUs used in AI and HPC data centers. Through a new strategic partnership with Mitsubishi Chemical Group, Boston Materials will leverage MCG’s global electronic-materials supply chain and upcoming semiconductor-packaging labs in Asia to accelerate product qualification and scale deployment, particularly across APAC. Mitsubishi Chemical’s validation testing has reportedly confirmed the performance gains over incumbent and next-gen thermal interface materials, positioning Boston Materials as a key supplier for next-generation AI infrastructure. CEO Anvesh Gurijala highlights thermal management as a critical constraint on AI growth and sees this collaboration as a catalyst for revenue scale-up and expanded U.S. manufacturing.

Participated · Series C · Oct 2019

ESS Inc. develops and manufactures long-duration iron flow batteries, including the Energy Warehouse™ (EW) and the battery-in-a-building Energy Center™ (EC). The EW targets commercial and utility-scale applications requiring 4+ hours of flexible energy capacity and offers 20+ years of operating life with no capacity fade. The company is shipping to customers on four continents. Founded in 2011 and led by CEO Craig Evans, ESS is focused on scaling production of its second-generation iron flow technology. The company intends to use the Series C proceeds to expand and automate its manufacturing process. The article reports ESS raised $30M in Series C funding.

Participated · Series C · Oct 2019

ESS Inc. develops and manufactures second-generation iron flow battery systems, including the containerized Energy Warehouse™ (EW) and the battery-in-a-building Energy Center™ (EC). The technology uses earth-abundant iron, salt, and water for a safe, fully recyclable electrolyte and is designed for multi-hour storage (up to 10 hours) with long operating life and unlimited cycling. The company targets time-shifting of renewables, demand‑charge management, ancillary grid services, and transmission‑ and distribution‑level applications. ESS is shipping to customers on four continents and has an order pipeline it intends to serve by scaling manufacturing. To support deployments and project financing, ESS has partnered with Munich Re to offer an insurance-backed warranty. The company highlights a design-build approach for multi‑MW projects and aims to lower levelized cost of storage per kWh. Ess, Inc. develops and manufactures the Energy Warehouse™, an all-iron flow battery for commercial and utility-scale energy storage. The battery is designed to provide 4+ hours of flexible energy capacity and over 20 years of operating life with no capacity fade. Its electrolyte uses iron, salt, and water, positioning the product as an environmentally safe, long-life storage solution. The company plans to expand and automate its manufacturing process to scale production. The new funding is intended to enable a production capacity of 900 MWh per year. Ess was established in 2011 and is based in Portland, Oregon; Craig Evans is the CEO. ESS Inc. develops and commercializes an All-Iron Redox Flow Battery designed for long-duration energy storage (6–12 hours) using earth-abundant iron, salt and water. The company reports the chemistry yields no degradation over 10,000 cycles and supports 20+ year lifetimes, targeting bulk energy shifting from wind and solar and multiple behind- and front-of-meter use cases. ESS moved into a new 23,000-sq.-ft. production facility in Portland, OR and plans initial customer deployments this fall, with a production ramp of its 125kW/1MWh system in 2016. Financially, ESS closed a $3.2M Series A led by Pangaea Ventures and complements roughly $4.5M in development grants from ARPA-e, ONAMI, Oregon Best and others. The Series A proceeds will fund tooling investments for volume production of low-cost battery components and support market development activities. ESS was established in 2011 and is headquartered in Portland, OR.

Led · Equity · Oct 2011

NatureWorks produces Ingeo PLA biopolymers made from renewable resources for use across plastics, fibers, 3D printing, nonwovens and compostable packaging. The company is building a fully integrated Ingeo PLA manufacturing complex at the Nakhon Sawan Biocomplex in Thailand that will include lactic acid, lactide and polymer production. The new facility is designed for an annual capacity of 75,000 tons and to supply the full portfolio of Ingeo grades. Feedstock for the site will be sugarcane sourced from farms within a 50 km radius of the plant. Construction is on track to support start-up activities and full production in 2025. NatureWorks frames the project as expanding international customer access across the Asia Pacific bioeconomy while aligning with ESG principles and Thailand’s Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) economic model. NatureWorks produces Ingeo™, a family of commercially available biopolymers made from 100 percent annually renewable plant resources for plastics and fibers markets. The company reports a current Ingeo capacity of 140,000 tons and has seen steady 25–30% annual increases in product demand. In the last two years NatureWorks doubled Ingeo supply availability by bringing additional capacity online at its Blair, Neb., processing facility. More than 100 consumer brands and retailers across the U.S., Europe and Asia offer Ingeo-based products in packaging, food service-ware, apparel, textiles and personal care. NatureWorks has plans to globalize its Ingeo manufacturing by building a new production facility in Thailand to support its Asian customer base and diversify renewable feedstock sourcing, with the plant anticipated to come online in 2015. Until now the company has been wholly owned by Cargill; PTT Chemical’s investment is subject to regulatory approval.

Led · Equity · Jan 2011

Myriant leverages a proprietary technology platform to produce renewable chemicals from non-food, low-cost sugars, including commercial-scale D(-) lactic acid and bio-succinic acid. The company’s flagship Lake Providence, Louisiana plant is a 30 million pound-per-year bio-succinic acid facility with construction on schedule for a planned commercial start-up in early 2013. Myriant has signed multi-year customer contracts for the plant’s expected annual production and is planning a 140 million pound expansion in the United States. The firm highlights that its high-purity bio-succinic acid is a chemical drop-in replacement for petroleum-based succinic acid and is cost-competitive and more environmentally friendly. Financial support for the project includes a $25 million private bond placement under the USDA B&I loan guarantee program, a $50 million Department of Energy cooperative agreement, and a $10 million grant from the Lake Providence Port Commission and the Louisiana Department of Transportation. The Lake Providence project is expected to create roughly 40–50 direct highly skilled jobs, ~250 construction jobs, and an estimated 300 indirect jobs. Myriant develops and produces high-value bio-based chemicals using proprietary microbial biotechnology and low-cost cellulosic sugars. The company produces D(-) lactic acid at commercial scale (started June 2008) and planned a 30 million pound succinic acid plant at the Port of Lake Providence beginning in early 2011. Myriant’s succinic acid is made via fermentation of sugars and is positioned as a replacement for petroleum-derived chemicals used in food, pharmaceuticals, surfactants, plastics, fibers and biodegradable solvents. Headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts, the company leverages a team of molecular biologists, engineers and chemists to commercialize specialty renewable chemicals. Myriant received a $60 million strategic investment to support expansion and the creation of biochemical plants in North America and Asia and to advance commercialization. Management characterized the partnership as validation of the technology and an important step toward global expansion.