Contour Energy Systems Finalizes Series C Funding Round with Addition of New Investor SBI Jefferies Asia Fund L.P.

Next-Generation Battery Company to Leverage Over $20M in New Funding to Expand R&D, Ramp-Up Production Capacity and Apply Working Capital to Support Sales

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Contour Energy Systems

Oct 06, 2011, 08:00 ET

AZUSA, Calif., Oct. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Contour Energy Systems, an innovative portable power company commercializing next-generation battery systems, today announced it has finalized its Series C round of financing that now includes SBI Jefferies Asia Fund L.P. as its newest investor. The closed Series C round, totaling over $20 million, includes Singapore's leading global fund, EDBI as lead investor. Contour Energy's previous investors CMEA Capital, Harris & Harris, Schlumberger and U.S. Venture Partners also participated in this investment round.

With this latest round of funding, Contour Energy Systems will continue to expand its breakthrough R&D efforts in carbon-fluoride chemistries being developed to significantly increase the energy and power densities of next-generation batteries for a broad cross-section of markets. The company will also apply its new financing to expand production capacity and allocate working capital in support of projected sales growth. A key objective of this strategic investment round is to commercialize and accelerate time-to-market cycles for its portfolio of next-generation primary and rechargeable batteries targeting applications in consumer, industrial, medical, military and specialty markets worldwide.

"Contour Energy's next-generation battery technology has significant potential to disrupt the portable power industry," said Masaki Takayanagi, managing director and CEO of SBI Ven Capital Pte Ltd. "Based on our evaluation of Contour Energy's core technologies, the company is poised to deliver considerable battery performance improvements in areas where it counts most—energy density, power density and reliability across a wide range of operating environments."

In addition to broadening its R&D efforts in carbon fluoride chemistry, Contour Energy will continue to advance its nanomaterials science and manufacturing processes for next-generation primary and rechargeable portable power systems.

Comprised of decorated battery industry veterans and research specialists including co-founder Dr. Robert Grubbs, a Nobel Laureate in chemistry with Caltech, Contour has amassed over 45 patented and patent-pending technologies. The company also maintains exclusive technology licensing agreements with the California Institute of Technology, CNRS and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as strategic partnerships with Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA, Schlumberger, and other academic and private institutions.

"Closing out our Series C round with the addition of SBI Jefferies Asia Fund provides us with another strategic partner that maintains important relationships in key Asian markets," said Joe Fisher, Chief Executive Officer with Contour Energy Systems. "We now have one of the industry's most elite corps of investors and substantial new capital to accelerate our ambitious technology and product development initiatives that we believe will reshape portable power."

About SBI Jefferies Asia Fund

SBI Jefferies Asia Fund is a joint venture fund between SBI Group, a TSE listed Japan based financial services conglomerate and Jefferies Group, a NYSE listed global investment bank. The investment advisor to this fund is SBI Ven Capital Pte Ltd, the overseas private equity arm of SBI Group. SBI Group is the largest Japanese private equity/venture capital house, with more than USD $4B of committed capital. SBI Ven Capital primarily focuses on providing growth capital to promising companies in the mid market sector in Asia. With its base in Japan, SBI Group has an extensive network across Asia including Singapore, China, Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei, Indonesia and India. More information on SBI Group is available at www.sbigroup.co.jp/english.

About Contour Energy Systems

Contour Energy Systems is an innovative portable power company commercializing customizable battery technologies for a wide range of cross-industry applications. Contour's next-generation battery systems are designed to deliver unprecedented improvements in energy and power density, and are capable of performing in extreme operating conditions at significantly improved costs. Founded through the collaboration of Caltech and CNRS, the French National Center for Scientific Research, the company combines expertise in nano-materials science, patented Fluorine-based battery chemistries and manufacturing processes to significantly advance the state of portable power. Headquartered in Azusa, CA, Contour Energy is managed by a world-class team of battery industry leaders from Caltech, Energizer, General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Sanyo and Valence Technologies. The company is privately held.

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SOURCE Contour Energy Systems