Lilliputian Systems Raises More for Portable Fuel Cells

A butane cartridge-powered fuel cell charger for consumer devices

Eric Wesoff June 22, 2011

Eric Wesoff

Editor-at-Large
Greentech Media

Eric Wesoff is Editor-at-Large at Greentech Media. Prior to joining GTM, Eric Wesoff founded Sage Marketing Partners in 2000 to provide sales and marketing-consulting services to venture-capital firms and their portfolio companies in the alternative energy and telecommunications sectors. Mr. Wesoff has become a well-known, respected authority and speaker in these fields.

His expertise covers solar power, fuel cells, biofuels and advanced batteries. His strengths are in market research and analysis, business development and due diligence for investors. He frequently consults for energy startups and Silicon Valley's premier venture capitalists.

Wilmington, Mass.-based Lilliputian Systems aspires to commercialize a butane cartridge-powered fuel cell charger for consumer devices. The firm was spun out of MIT in 2002 and has raised more than $90 million from VCs including Kleiner Perkins, Atlas Venture, Fairhaven Capital, Rockport Capital, Stata Venture Partners and Altira Group. Lilliputian looks to combine silicon economics and fuel cells.

The firm just raised $11.1 million of a planned $21 million financing campaign, according to SEC filings. The firm received an investment from Intel Capital in November.

Here's a thorough recap of the fuel cell industry.

I relish announcements of VC investments in fuel cells, as they allow me to provide this list:

Here's an updated list of the top three profitable publicly held fuel cell firms:

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Last year Lilliputian won a $5 million loan from MassDevelopment and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center to purchase wafer manufacturing equipment for its Wilmington plant.

With a VC investment of $90 million, and VCs requiring a substantial multiple -- what firm might acquire Lilliputian, a 10-year-old company with negligible revenue and customers?