Clean Energy Trust Announces Judges for 2013 Clean Energy Challenge

Venture Capitalists, Clean Energy Entrepreneurs, Innovators, Policy Makers and Thought Leaders to Evaluate Cutting Edge Businesses

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Clean Energy Trust today announced the slate of judges for the 2013 Clean Energy Challenge, a $310,000 business plan competition to take place April 4 in Chicago.

“The caliber of the judges at this year’s competition really speaks to the hunger in the marketplace for new clean energy ideas”

This prestigious group of clean energy leaders and investors will select the winners at the third annual Challenge. Eight companies from four states will compete for the $100,000 early-stage prize. Nine student finalists will vie for the $100,000 Student Challenge prize. Cash prizes in both tracks are provided by the U.S. Department of Energy. In addition, all competitors are eligible for the $50,000 McCaffery Lakeside Prize, sponsored by McCaffery Interests.

“The caliber of the judges at this year’s competition really speaks to the hunger in the marketplace for new clean energy ideas,” noted Amy Francetic, Clean Energy Trust executive director. “Certainly the prize money and acceleration services are incentives for the finalists, but they are very excited by the opportunity to have their businesses evaluated by the most discerning minds in cleantech.”

The 2013 Clean Energy Challenge Judges:

Tom Brennan	Arch Venture Partners
Matt Brown	Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP
Tim Brumbaugh	GM Ventures
Paul Cummings	Honda Strategic Ventures
Issam Dairanieh	BP Ventures
Rahul Das	Intellectual Ventures
Ira Ehrenpreis	Technology Partners
Tom Filarski	Steptoe & Johnson LLP
Declan Flanagan	Lincoln Renewable Energy
Mike Frerker	Invenergy
Gerd Goette	Siemens Venture Capital
Ashley Grosh	Wells Fargo
Michael Horowitz	Robert W. Baird and Company
Val Jensen	ComEd
Anand Kamannavar	Applied Ventures
Tom Kappel	Danfoss
Dick Kiphart	William Blair
John Krzywicki	True North Venture Partners
Adam Lerner	McNally Capital
David Marquardt	Ernst & Young
Matt McCall	New World Ventures
Ed Miller	Joyce Foundation
Steven Moffitt	GE Energy
Marc Neri	Silicon Valley Bank
Pin Ni	Wanxiang America Corp.
Mil Ovan	Navitas Systems
Armando Pauker	Apex Venture Partners
Mark T. Peters	Argonne National Lab
Jeff Phillips	Renergy Capital
Daniella Proske	BASF Ventures
Dan Radamski	NextEnergy
Mike Rehberg	Dow Chemical
Anna Remis	Sidley Austin
Craig Rigby	Johnson Controls
Susanne Roslon	Abbott Laboratories
Jimmy Samartzis	United
Rick Smith	Ameren
Sven Strohband	Khosla Ventures
Richard Stuebi	Early Stage Partners
Tim Stojka	Agentis Energy
Matt Trevithick	Venrock
Steve Vielmetti	Johnson Controls
Tracy Warren	Battelle Ventures
Steve Weiland	KPMG Corporate Finance
Dennis Welch	American Electric Power
David Wells	Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers
Rob Winner	Seyfarth Shaw LLP
Ed Woodbury	McCaffery Interests
Mark Zhu	DTE Energy Ventures
Matthew Zoerink	UK Trade & Investment

The 2013 Clean Energy Challenge sponsors include: United States Department of Energy, Advanced Energy Economy, Ernst & Young, GE, Joyce Foundation, McCaffery Interests, SC Johnson, United Airlines, Wells Fargo, Abbott Laboratories, Ameren, Invenergy, Missouri Energy Initiative, Nortech, Northwestern University, Purdue University, Skadden, University of Illinois, University of Illinois at Chicago, University of Missouri, Wanxiang America Corporation, Wisconsin Energy Research Consortium, ARCH Venture Partners, Applied Ventures, BP Alternative Energy, ComEd, Danfoss Group Global, DTE Energy, Dow Venture Capital, Exelon Corporation, Illinois Ventures, Johnson Controls, Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, Katten Muchin Rosenman, Khosla Ventures, Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, Lincoln Renewable Energy, Missouri Technology Corporation, New World Ventures, Next Energy, Renergy Capital, Sidley, Steptoe & Johnson, Technology Partners, True North Venture Partners, UK Trade & Investment, Venrock, Walgreens, Agentis Energy, Baird Capital, Case Western Reserve University Great Lakes Energy Institute, Dominion Community Foundation, EDP, Northeast Ohio Public Energy Council, Ohio State University Office of Energy & Environment, Shaw Group, Silicon Valley Bank, University of Dayton and University of Missouri.

About the Clean Energy Trust:

The Clean Energy Trust was founded by prominent business and civic leaders to accelerate the pace of clean energy innovation in the Midwest. The trust is supported by grants from the U.S. Department of Energy, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the Joyce Foundation, the Chicago Community Trust, the Small Business Administration and donations from over 50 investors, corporations, universities and trade groups. For more information, visit www.cleanenergytrust.org.