MIT Clean Energy Prize Semifinalists Advance to Next Round of Competition
Twenty-five student teams promoting clean energy innovation compete for over $600,000 in prizes
March 6, 2009
The MIT Clean Energy Prize today announced that 25 student teams selected from over one hundred entries representing 40 colleges and universities from across the country will compete in the next round of the competition.
The MIT Clean Energy Prize is a national student competition to accelerate the pace of clean energy entrepreneurship. It provides capital resources and mentoring to help the next generation of entrepreneurs jumpstart business ventures that promote clean energy innovations with significant market potential.
The student teams will develop business plans and present them before a distinguished panel of judges. They will ultimately compete for the $200,000 grand prize to be awarded by NSTAR and the U.S. Department of Energy as well as several smaller cash prizes in five clean energy areas including: biomass, renewable energy sources, energy efficiency, clean hydrocarbons and transportation. Cash prizes will also be supplemented by “in kind” awards to help the teams launch their businesses, raising the total value of all prizes to over $600,000.
“With almost triple the number of student entrants this year, the enthusiasm and commitment of students from across the country to help solve the nation’s energy challenges is encouraging,” said NSTAR Chairman, President, and CEO Tom May. “In sponsoring this competition, we recognize that fresh ideas are needed to develop clean energy solutions that will ultimately diversify our fuel resources, increase energy independence and help attain environmental goals.”
The semifinalists must now get down to business and craft business plans on their emerging clean energy solutions that will be the basis for the next round of the competition. Five finalists will be announced at the NSTAR Clean Energy Forum on May 7 and the grand prize winner will be announced on May 12.
“This year the competition has really taken hold as the premier clean energy entrepreneurship competition in the world – run for and by students,” said MIT Clean Energy Prize Chairman Bill Aulet. “Its role to accelerate the pace of clean energy innovation is the vision that MIT, NSTAR and the U.S. Department of Energy had when the competition was founded last year.”
The MIT Clean Energy Prize is being administered in partnership with MIT’s $100K Entrepreneurship Competition – the most well known student business plan competition in the U.S. that has facilitated the birth of over 85 companies and created over 2,500 jobs. For the complete list of semifinalists and for further information on the MIT Clean Energy Prize, go to www.mitcep.org.
