SEaB Energies

With a major environmental disaster still unfolding in the Gulf of Mexico due to offshore oil extraction, regulations on pollution and carbon control will be getting more stringent. Fossil fuel derived energy is once again under fire, and renewable energy or green energy is the obvious winner in the debate. Governments around the world are encouraging the adoption of new green technologies through incentive programs and tax credits.

Each renewable energy technology has its advantages and disadvantages, but deriving energy from waste is one of the best options. Estimates put the amount of food waste generated, at 3.2 tonnes per hour for cities like Dublin in Ireland, or Seattle in the USA! You can repeat this amount of waste around the globe, with some cultures being more wasteful than others. Diverting this waste from landfill into energy production has many benefits, not least of which is the carbon footprint reduction.

Moving to renewable energy sources is a must if you want to reduce the impact you and your business have on the world. Taking waste and processing it to collect the energy value is gaining more and more support worldwide, with a very distinct focus having been placed on anaerobic digestion by the new UK Coalition government.

Most waste is handled centrally, in major waste processing facilities. This requires shipping the waste to the facility and then transporting the energy to the end-user. This still incurs quite a significant carbon footprint for the transport of waste and energy. Alternative solutions need to be implemented.

Eliminating the transport and moving to decentralised waste to energy processing can make a further reduction. Convert the waste into energy at the source of the waste, and use the energy that is produced locally too. And your carbon footprint reduction is SUBSTANTIAL.

Using our MUCKBUSTER™ 400 to handle food waste & septic waste where it is produced can help you capture the financial and environmental benefits of this reduction.

With the MUCKBUSTER™ running at 80% of capacity, you should offset almost 40 tons of CO2 per year*.

This is good news for businesses that are starting to carry the costs of carbon on their books. So what is good for the environment can also be great for your business’ bottom line.

* This is based on USA estimated yields per kWh.

The U.S. market for small wind turbines grew 15% in 2009 with 20.3 Megawatts (MW) of
new capacity and $82.4 million in sales, and about 10,000 new units installed. Growth attributed to new and improved federal and state incentives, optimistic private equity investors, and sustained consumer demand.

Consumers are interested in small wind, but some are delaying their purchasing decisions due to lack of available financing. As the economy recovers, a surge of sales and installations is anticipated.

On grid installations in 2010 reached 5200 units, and the off-grid installation reached 15,500 globally.

The AWEA has published estimates of 13M suitable landed homes in the USA for small wind. The growth markets have been the Midwest, Northeast, upper Midwest and California. USA comprises half the global demand for small wind.

SEaB Energy approached to sell wind business early on but opted for partnership; seeks advisor for capital raise, CEO says

SEaB Energy was approached early on to sell the wind side of its business by “one of the large wind manufacturers,” but decided it would prefer to pursue a partnership, according to CEO Sandra Sassow.

The privately-held UK-based company, which provides distributed power generation through small wind turbines and anaerobic digesters, is seeking a financial adviser to assist with its capital raise, Sassow told this news service. SEaB is in the midst of securing USD 4m and has investors lined up for a second, larger round, including venture capital firms, she said. The company has raised USD 1m to date.

Sassow started SEaB in December 2008 with her husband, who was a founder of the renewable energy practices at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he advised large oil companies on their renewable energy strategy.

SEaB is working on securing partners for its wind business, Sassow said. Early M&A advances evolved into discussions about potential partnerships, she said, noting the company is focused on establishing these relationships. After the second round of funding, an IPO or acquisition by a strategic would make more sense in terms of timing, Sassow said. An IPO “would be a few years out,” she said.

SEaB expects to begin production of units this June with a view to delivery in September/October for the first commercial installations. The production has been delayed due to ongoing regulatory and certification processes in the UK, she said. The company has four orders for its WindBuster, an elliptical-shaped vertical-axis wind turbine. It also has received 14 orders for its MuckBuster, a self-contained anaerobic digester set up to process animal manure, organic waste or septic waste. The systems are designed for small local installations.

The company projects revenue from June 2011 to June 2012 of roughly USD 34.5m and expects to be profitable within a year of going to production, Sassow said. The company currently has 10 employees and plans to expand to about 20 within the next nine to 12 months, she noted.

SEaB’s current customers include Branswold Associates, Flyst Andre, Emotion Energy and Ventus Power. The company counts Ropatec, Vertical Wind Energy, Mariah Wind Power and Portagester among its competition. Sassow is an angel investor in SEaB and four other companies.

by Katherine Hunt in San Francisco

Katherine Hunt
Reporter
Mergermarket
Part of the Financial Times Group, a Pearson company
415.362.0291
katherine.hunt@mergermarket.com
www.mergermarket.com

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