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Perkins Coie plays active role in CICC's Inaugural Israel Cleantech Tour
Press Release
San Francisco Bay Area (November 14, 2008) – The California Israel Chamber of Commerce (CICC) coordinated its first annual cleantech tour, bringing 12 selected Israeli Clean Technology companies to the Silicon Valley to participate in a delegation to meet with industry leaders, investment firms and utility giants. The four-day tour wrapped up yesterday, November 13th.
CEOs of the selected Israeli cleantech companies engaged with cleantech leaders in California in an attempt to find collaboration, partnerships and investments. These leaders included: PG&E, GE Energy, Sunpower, Energy Recovery Inc., Google, Chevron Energy Solutions and BrightSource as well as policymakers such as the California Public Utilities Commission and the US Department of Energy. Also joining were investment firms such as Silicon Valley Bank, Applied Ventures Greylock Partners, Nth Power, Intel Capital, Israel Cleantech Ventures, US Venture Partners, Vantage Point Venture Partners, and Jefferies. Participating research institutions included SRI International, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Tel-Aviv University and Stanford Energy Crossroads
Perkins Coie hosted the Cleantech Fundraising Workshop that was held in the firm's Menlo Park office on day one of the tour. Workshop panelists included Perkins Coie Partner, Buddy Arnheim, Tilli Kallisky of Greylock Partners, Jacques Benkoski of US Venture Partners and Matt Price of Nth Power. These legal and financial experts presented on "market" terms for cleantech venture investments, key differences between fundraising for cleantech vs. IT, as well as fundraising trends, opportunities, sources of funds as well as best practices in pitching a company to investors and an overview of the process. Ziv Yoash, Perkins Coie Associate and Co-Chair of the firm's Israel Practice Group, commented, "It was an honor for Perkins to host this panel and play such an active role in the CICC Cleantech tour. The insight we were able to gain from our participation in this inaugural event was invaluable."
Day two of the tour, the "Israel Cleantech Company Showcase," took place at Stanford University and was kicked off with a keynote speech by Andy Karsner, Assistant Secretary of the Department of Energy, 2006-2008. The day progressed with company presentations and panel discussions on topics involving "Cleantech in Israel, Investment Opportunities in Water and the Water-Energy Nexus, and Corporate Innovation in Cleantech." Perkins Coie Partner, Buddy Arnheim, Firmwide Chair of both the Emerging Company and Israel practice groups, moderated the panel on "Corporate Innovation in Cleantech." Industry leaders from GE Energy, SRI International, Chevron Energy Solutions, Applied Materials, and Intel Capital presented their views on cleantech investments, innovation and trends and participated in a healthy discussion, fielding questions from audience members.
Perkins Coie was proud to be involved in this initiative from its infantile stages as a member of the tour's steering committee, a mentor to presenting Israeli companies and as an event sponsor.
About Perkins Coie: Founded in 1912 in Seattle, Perkins Coie has more than 850 lawyers in
19 offices across the United States and Asia. The firm is celebrating its 100th anniversary of
representing great companies ranging in size from start-ups to FORTUNE 100 corporations.
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