Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Brewery waste recycler Purpose Energy raises $587K

By Rodney H. Brown

Purpose Energy Inc., an Arlington company making technology to recycle brewery waste into energy, has raised $587,000 of a planned $750,000 new funding round, according to federal documents.

While the filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission did not name the 15 participants in the latest round of funding, the Purpose Energy website lists as financial partners the Vermont Department of Public Service and Green Mountain Power, also in Vermont.

With a total of four financing rounds, PurposeEnergy has raised approximately $2.9 million in institutional funding. The company was founded in 2007 by MIT graduate and company CEO Eric Fitch. Among the early users of the company’s technology is Magic Hat Brewery in South Burlington, Vt.

Purpose Energy makes a biodigester that takes the waste byproduct from the brewing process and converts it into a burnable gas. That gas is burned and used to power a generator, which makes electricity — enough so that it can be sold to the local electric utility. In addition, the brewery does not have to pay for the removal of the used grain and wastewater. The company was one of the “Startup Watch: Five you should follow” on Mass High Tech’s website in February of 2010.