News and Events

July 12, 2021

Fortistar Invests In Groundbreaking Sustainability Solutions Company, Breakthrough Technologies

Breakthrough Technologies’ First Commercial Offering Recovers Up To 90% of Water Loss During Normal Cooling Tower Operations

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (July 12, 2021)

Fortistar, a privately-owned investment firm that provides capital to build, grow and manage companies that address complex sustainability challenges, today announced that it is leading a growth round of capital for Boston-based Breakthrough Technologies, a company that builds innovative industrial products that improve water and energy sustainability and drive better business performance. 

“With record droughts threatening water supply for millions, we’ve been looking for a company with water solutions for quite some time. Breakthrough Technologies industrial innovations will dramatically change how companies use and consume water and energy today,” said Mark Comora, President of Fortistar. “We all know that rapid population growth and industrialization are a major cause of carbon emissions and climate change. The world needs sustainable solutions now and we are proud to invest in a company that will deliver meaningful sustainable benefits with financial value.” 

“Fortistar is a leader in growth investments in sustainability and we’re excited to have them on board as our principal investor and long-term partner,” said Irwin Heller, Chief Executive Officer of Breakthrough Technologies. “Our game-changing technologies have already found their first customers and Fortistar’s capital and expertise will ensure that we can expand our products and services to an industry-leading scale.”

Breakthrough Technologies’ first commercial solution, Aqua Liquefaction with Ionization (ALI), which recovers up to 90% of water loss during normal cooling tower operations, is poised for substantial growth and will have a major impact on water sustainability issues. According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), 14.8 billion gallons of water per day is used for industrial use. With an estimated two million cooling towers in the U.S. and one mid-sized tower losing up to 100,000,000 gallons of water each year, Breakthrough Technologies estimates that 10,000 mid-size cooling towers with ALI technology can save up to 1 trillion gallons of water and create $5 billion in water cost-savings. Using U.S. Environmental Protection Agency consumption figures (83 gallons per person, per day), 1 trillion gallons is enough to provide water for 33 million people every year.

ALI uses patent-pending technology to increase the efficiency of industrial cooling tower operations and decrease operating costs. It places a proprietary duct system over existing cooling towers to capture and condense evaporating water. Without using heat or chemicals, ALI recovers 90 percent of water loss and reduces the concentration of impurities in water cooling systems, which over time leads to corrosion and bacteria growth. ALI also eliminates the plume, which often spreads these bacteria into the atmosphere. ALI only requires one day for installation and involves no moving parts, which means minimal maintenance and operating expenses.

About Breakthrough Technologies:
Boston-based Breakthrough Technologies is led by a world-class engineering team managed by one of Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s brightest engineers. Unlike any other sustainable technology company, Breakthrough Technologies’ engineers utilize the principles of physics to solve sustainability issues associated with industrial processes. This unique approach ultimately leads to chemical-less, cleaner and cost-saving sustainable solutions. For more information about Breakthrough Technologies or its innovative industrial products, please visit www.bt-tech.com and follow the company on LinkedIn.

Contacts:
Charles Chamberlayne
Director of Communications
FORTISTAR
Tel. (202) 302-7612
cchamberlayne@fortistar.com