BIRD Energy to invest $5.48 Million in Cooperative Israel-U.S. Clean Energy Projects

TEL AVIV, Israel, Dec. 13, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Israel's Ministry of Energy (MoE), and the Israel Innovation Authority held a virtual board meeting on November 3, 2021, resulting in the selection of six clean energy projects that were approved, to receive $5.48 million, under the Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Energy program. The projects selected are in Advanced Vehicle Technologies, Batteries, Energy Efficiency, Storage, and Water-Energy Nexus.

U.S. Secretary of Energy, Ms. Jennifer M. Granholm, said: "Through the long-standing and successful BIRD Energy program with our Israeli partners, we are supporting the innovation in renewable energy and energy efficiency needed to tackle the global climate emergency. The projects announced will help us overcome barriers to scaling up carbon-free technology and supercharge the rapidly growing international clean energy economy."

Israel's Minister of Energy, Ms. Karin Elharar, said: "Innovation and cross-border cooperation are critical in the global fight against climate change. I am pleased to continue this collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy under the BIRD Foundation, which combines significant investment in groundbreaking innovation with joint efforts between companies from the two countries working to combat the climate crisis. The companies that were awarded this year exemplify superior research and development capabilities in the area of clean energy technologies, and their success will not only contribute to the fruitful cooperation between the United States and Israel but the entire planet."

BIRD Energy was launched in 2009 under the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, supporting research and development, benefiting both the United States and Israel. The program focuses on commercializing sustainable energy technologies that improve economic competitiveness, create jobs, and increase energy security.

To date, BIRD Energy has funded 60 cooperative Israel-U.S. clean energy projects for a total government investment of approximately $47.5 million and approximately $62 million in funds matched by the private sector to commercialize clean energy technologies.

Mr. Dror Bin, CEO, Israel Innovation Authority, said: "Technological innovations are a force multiplier in dealing with various pressing challenges. We consider the combination of innovation and global collaboration as a key in finding out-of-the-box solutions to the most significant challenge humanity faces – the Global Climate emergency. BIRD Energy is a platform designed to implement applied collaborations in this field and connect both countries' needs and capabilities. These days, this activity is all the more important as the Climate Challenge gains top priority on the overall global agenda. "

The total value of the projects announced today is $12.7 million, including $7.2 million in cost-share funding. The six approved projects are:

• AGM Communication & Control (Mitzpa, Israel) and Element 16 Technologies, Inc. (Glendale, CA) will develop sulfur thermal energy storage for industrial applications.
• E.V.R. Motors Ltd. (Petach Tikva, Israel) and Continuous Solutions L.L.C. (Portland, OR) will develop "IMP" -an Integrated Miniaturized Powertrain.
• Environmental Services Company (Neot Hovav, Israel) and 374Water  (Durham, NC) will develop energy and resource recovery systems from hazardous organic waste using supercritical water oxidation technology.
• Kinetics (Airport City, Israel) and UAV Turbines, Inc.  (Miami, FL) will develop an ultra-portable turbogenerator system.
• An Israeli Company and Imprint Energy, Inc. (Alameda, CA) will develop safe, sustainable, and high-power zinc printed batteries and will manufacture and integrate them into thin and flexible cellular Internet of Things (IoT) smart tags for tracking packages, improving logistics processes, and reducing supply chain waste.
• Synvertec (Herzliya, Israel) and Rhombus Energy Solutions (San Diego, CA) will develop the Synchronverter - a dynamic and autonomous inverter utilizing a unique control algorithm - allowing 100% of renewable generation by providing grid stability solutions for inverter-based applications. 

Dr. Eitan Yudilevich, Executive Director, BIRD Foundation, said: "The BIRD Energy program brings together U.S. and Israel companies for the joint development of innovative solutions and the accelerated adoption of cleaner energy sources, which is a global imperative. We thank the BIRD Energy program stakeholders for their continued leadership and support."

Projects that qualify for BIRD Energy funding must include one U.S. and one Israeli company or a company from one of the countries paired with a university or research institution from the other. The partners must present a project that involves innovation in the area of energy and is of mutual interest to both countries.  BIRD Energy has a rigorous review process and selects the most technologically meritorious projects along with those most likely to commercialize and bring about significant impact. Qualified projects must contribute at least 50% to project costs and commit to repayments if the project leads to commercial success.

About the BIRD Foundation (www.birdf.com)

The BIRD (Binational Industrial Research and Development) Foundation encourages and facilitates cooperation between U.S. and Israeli companies in a wide range of technology sectors and offers funding to selected projects. The BIRD Foundation supports projects without receiving any equity or intellectual property rights in the participating companies or the projects themselves. BIRD funding is repaid as royalties from sales of products that were commercialized as a result of BIRD support. The Foundation provides funding of up to 50% of a project's budget, beginning with R&D and ending with the initial stages of sales and marketing. The Foundation shares the risk and does not require repayment if the project fails to reach the sales stage.

For more information about the BIRD Energy program, see: BIRD Energy

Contact:
Limor Nakar-Vincent
Deputy Executive Director of Business Development & BIRD Energy
BIRD Foundation
[email protected] 
Tel.: +972-3- 6988-315

SOURCE The BIRD Foundation