Angstrom Power Inc. announced that it has closed US$18 million of private equity financing. The new investment is led by VantagePoint Venture Partners who join Angstrom's existing investor consortium including Ventures West, GrowthWorks Capital, Chrysalix Energy, OPG Ventures, and Micro-Generation Technology Fund.
Angstrom was founded in 2001 to develop high energy density micro-structured fuel cells. In late 2005, Angstrom demonstrated what the company claims is the world's highest energy density (>400 Wh/l) micro fuel cell system for portable electronic devices (<25 cc system volume). The company claims to have a clear research and development path to deliver performance well beyond these levels in 2007.
"We are pleased to announce this expansion of capital that will provide a very strong foundation for Angstrom's next stage of growth — commercialization of the world's leading fuel cell technology for handheld applications," said Angstrom CEO Paul Zimmerman.
"Angstrom's demonstrated performance establishes the company in a solid position to become a leader in the micro fuel cell industry," commented Sara Bradford, a consultant with Frost & Sullivan and a fuel cell industry expert. "The technology shows immense promise to provide safer alternatives to traditional batteries which is increasingly important with today's portable power source safety issues."
The unique benefits of Angstrom's patented Micro HydrogenT technology include high energy density, small form factors, passive operation and low cost manufacturability. The company is also working with industry-leading strategic partners to develop infrastructure solutions to enable widely available and cost effective fuel cartridges and re-fueling on a global scale.
Stephan Dolezalek, Managing Director with VantagePoint Venture Partners, stated, "We have looked closely at dozens of micro fuel cell companies over the last several years and we have chosen Angstrom for our investment in this sector because of the exceptional base of intellectual property. We believe that the company has, by far, the best opportunity to meet the future needs of the handheld consumer electronics manufacturers."
In addition to the large market for handheld consumer electronics products such as mobile phones, MP3 players and digital still cameras, Angstrom's technology can be applied to military and industrial applications that require longer run times.
