ANN ARBOR, Mich., Jan. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Seven teams, all with connections to the University of Michigan, have advanced to semi-final round in the Clean Energy Prize competition.

The competition was founded this year to help move clean energy technologies from the laboratory to commercial production. DTE Energy, through its DTE Energy Ventures subsidiary, and U-M, are challenging teams from Michigan colleges and universities to develop the best business plans for bringing new clean energy technologies to market. The teams with winning ideas will share $100,000 in prize money, with a grand prize of $65,000.

The competition is a rigorous, multi-round process geared to reward top clean energy business ideas and provide students with experience and expert feedback on what it takes to create a successful clean energy startup business. Each successive round requires more information about the proposed business -- leading up to a full business plan -- to be submitted by the advancing teams.

In the first round of judging last month, 14 teams advanced from the 20 teams that entered the competition. Those teams submitted seven-page market and financial overviews for Round 2 judging.

The seven teams advancing to the Semi-finals must submit a complete 20- page business plan with full financial information. Judging in the semi-final round will be Feb. 13. The finals will be March 20, when the grand prize will be awarded.

Following are the advancing teams and a summary of their business proposals:

-- Algal Scientific -- Turn-key water treatment systems that combine wastewater treatment with biofuel production using algal growth bioreactors and proprietary processing technology.

-- CTW International -- Land-based projects that deliver climate, biodiversity, and community benefits based on accountable metrics and carbon accounting.

-- Energy Technology Components -- Flexible fuel electricity generation products for use in military, trucking, and distributed power markets.

-- Husk -- Convert agricultural waste into thin, high-grade insulation for the refrigeration industry that delivers a significant improvement over conventional, petroleum-based insulation.

-- Lean Energy -- Complete energy efficiency retrofit solution for residential customers.

-- SITumbra -- Rigid solar shading window system configured to respond to seasonal variations with optimal energy efficiency.

-- Vortex Hydro Energy -- A patented technology that derives clean energy from moving water

The U-M Ross School of Business' Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, College of Engineering's Center for Entrepreneurship, and the Michigan Memorial Phoenix Energy Institute along with student organizations MPowered Entrepreneurship and the Ross Energy Club have organized the competition. The competition is open to students and faculty from all Michigan colleges and universities, but each team must have at least one University of Michigan student. The Clean Energy Prize is part of the Michigan Business Challenge.

The competition requires teams to focus on business ideas that support renewable energy, energy efficiency, smart grid technologies, environmental control technologies, plug-in electric vehicles or energy storage. The prize money will help the winning teams start new businesses that can contribute to Michigan's emerging role as a leader in clean energy.

Details of the competition are available on the Clean Energy Prize Web site: http://www.dtecleanenergyprize.com .

DTE Energy Ventures is a DTE Energy company that invests in emerging energy technologies and to date has invested more than $100 million in energy- related companies and funds, making it one of the larger Michigan-based venture capital operations. Information about DTE Energy Ventures is available at http://www.dteenergyventures.com .

DTE Energy (NYSE: DTE) is a Detroit-based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy-related businesses and services nationwide. Its operating units include Detroit Edison, an electric utility serving 2.2 million customers in Southeastern Michigan, MichCon, a natural gas utility serving 1.3 million customers in Michigan and other non- utility, energy businesses focused on power and industrial projects, coal and gas midstream, unconventional gas production and energy trading. Information about DTE Energy is available at http://www.dteenergy.com .

The globally recognized Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies provides the curriculum, program initiatives, community involvement, and alumni outreach activities that deliver exclusive resources for future entrepreneurs of the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.

The Michigan Memorial Phoenix Energy Institute develops, coordinates and promotes multidisciplinary energy research and education at the U-M. Some 75 faculty in disciplines ranging from engineering to policy to environmental science to urban planning are a part of the institute.

This competition coincides with a number of other energy and sustainability related initiatives at the University of Michigan, including the College of Literature, Science and the Arts' theme semester Energy Futures: Society, Innovation and Technology, which will examine the human and social behaviors associated with energy demand.

SOURCE DTE Energy