More money for Tesla

Last week Tesla Motors closed on another $40mm in bridge financing co-led by Chairman Elon Musk and Valor Equity Partners—haven’t seen yet anywhere if other investors took part, but it wouldn’t be surprising.  At the Piper Jaffray Clean Technology and Renewables Conference in NYC, where a Tesla Roadster is parked right out front in the Madison Ave. courtyard of the New York Palace, the company presenter also mentioned that they have a “clear path to our Series D E later this year,” which the FT reported could be as much as $250mm including equity and debt, “and an IPO next year,” which may also be part of that $250mm total.  I think I also heard the presenter say that Musk now owns 40% of the company, which would be surprisingly high to me, but as always yours truly is no journalist—I could have heard wrong on any of the above, so happy to correct that if so…

I look forward to my test drive.

Cleantech investors around the world:

• In South Africa, German billionaire Hasso Plattner is announcing a R350mm (approx. $45mm) venture capital fund, to invest in local tech startups—including cleantech and, given South Africa’s current major electricity shortages, alternative energy.

• The government of Abu Dhabi is committing $15 billion to cleantech and sustainable business opportunities.  The money will flow through the Masdar Initiative into a number of different efforts including investments, projects, and education.

• Meanwhile, a coalition of 40 institutional investors and corporations under the Ceres umbrella has committed to invest $10 billion into cleantech over the next two years.

Other news and notes:  More on the ongoing corn-based ethanol debate...  Neal identifies the low-hanging fruit...  And finally, uh oh, looks like I’m out of a job.