Oakland, Calif.-based BrightSource Energy has pulled in some big names for solar thermal.

The developer of utility-scale solar thermal projects raised $115 million in Series C funding, with new investors including Google.org, BP Alternative Energy, StatoilHydro Venture and Black River.

This is the second solar thermal investment from Google.org, the philanthropic arm of Mountain View, Calif.-based Google (Nasdaq: GOOG).

Last November, Pasadena, Calif.-based eSolar grabbed headlines when the search giant said it was working with eSolar as part of Google's newly formed Renewable Energy Cheaper Than Coal, or RE<C, initiative (see Google creates renewable R&D group).

BrightSource had already received a big boost last month, when San Francisco-based utility PG&E (NYSE: PCG) said it signed five contracts to purchase up to 900 megawatts of solar thermal power from the company (see PG&E to get 900 MW of solar thermal from BrightSource).

BrightSource said it is currently developing a number of solar power plants in the Mojave Desert in Southern California, with construction of the first plant scheduled to begin in 2009.

Returning backers on BrightSource's latest round include VantagePoint Venture Partners, Morgan Stanley, DBL Investors, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, and Chevron Technology Ventures.

Deals we saw over the past week:

• GreenFuel Technologies, a Cambridge, Mass.-based developer of algae farm technologies for recycling carbon dioxide, raised $13.9 million in new venture capital funding. Return backers include Access Private Equity, Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Polaris Venture Partners.
• Oakland, Calif.-based BrightSource Energy, a developer of utility-scale solar thermal projects, raised $115 million in Series C funding. New investors include Google.org, BP Alternative Energy, StatoilHydro Venture and Black River. Return backers include VantagePoint Venture Partners, Morgan Stanley, DBL Investors, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, and Chevron Technology Ventures. BrightSource said it has now raised over $160 million to date.
• Delaware's DuPont (NYSE: DD) and Denmark's Danisco teamed up on a $140 million cellulosic ethanol joint venture, initially targeting corn stover and sugar cane bagasse for next generation biofuels. The companies said the venture would integrate technologies from DuPont with technology from Genencor, Danisco's Rochester, N.Y.-based biotechnology unit. The funding will cover the first three years of the venture, with the cash going toward research and development and the construction of a pilot plant in the U.S. (see Another cellulosic powerhouse formed).
• Gevo, a Pasadena, Calif.-based developer of biofuels, raised $17 million in Series C funding. The round was led by Burrill & Co. and Malaysian Life Sciences Capital Fund, joined by return investors Khosla Ventures and Virgin Green Fund. Gevo has raised over $30 million since the beginning of 2007.
• Global Water Resources, a Phoenix, Ariz.-based water and wastewater utility, is seeking to raise up to $50 million in an initial public offering. The company owns and operates 16 water and wastewater utilities in the state of Arizona, serving more than 38,000 connections. Global Water plans to use the proceeds from the IPO to repay outstanding indebtedness, for capital expenditures, and to finance potential future acquisitions and for general corporate purposes. Company chairman William Levine is the largest stockholder in Global Water, with a 42 percent stake (see Global Water Resources going public).
• Lightspeed Venture Partners closed its eigth fund with $800 million in capital commitments, above the firm's target of $675 million. Lightspeed, which has offices in Silicon Valley, China, India and Israel, said that in the U.S. and Israel, it would continue to focus on seed and early-stage companies primarily in information technology and cleantech markets. In China and India, the company said it is pursuing investments in a range of product and service businesses.
• Goldman Sachs and Macquarie Infrastructure Partners have completed their $544 million take-private buyout of Raleigh, N.C.-based Waste Industries USA, a regional provider of non-hazardous solid waste services. Waste Industries USA provides collection, transfer, disposal and recycling services to commercial, industrial and residential customer locations in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia and Mississippi.
• The U.K. government announced that it's investing $181.3 million in the research and development of low carbon vehicles. The government's Technology Strategy Board said the cash would be used by projects looking at technologies such as lightweighting, internal combustion engine developments, fuel cells, energy storage and aerodynamics. The board said it would invest $44.8 million in 16 new research projects, and $136.5 into a Low Carbon Vehicles Integrated Delivery program. Including investments from the companies involved, the Technology Strategy Board said the total value of the 16 research projects is $101.4 million. (see U.K. invests in low carbon vehicle development).
• Essex, Conn.-based wind power company Noble Environmental Power has filed plans to raise up to $375 million in an initial public offering. The company operates 282 megawatts of electrical generating capacity. Backed by investment funds affiliated with JP Morgan and the Canada Pension Plan, Noble said it plans to use proceeds from the IPO for general corporate purposes, including future turbine supply agreements (see Noble Environmental files for $375M share sale).
• Composite Technology (OTC: CPTC), an Irvine, Calif.-based manufacturer of high performance electrical transmission and renewable energy generation products, raised $10 million in a share sale to Credit Suisse. Composite Technology said Credit Suisse has an option until June 30 to invest an additional $40 million in the company. The cleantech company recently added more than 9,200 square feet of processing space at its Irvine facility (see CTC Cable expands production capacity).

Browse previous deals here.

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