NRG Said to Invest in Energy Management/Technology Company, And Home Energy Services Firm

EnTouch Controls, a provider of cloud-based energy management systems for restaurant and retail chains, said that it has raised a total of $8.25 million in Series B equity and debt financing.

EnTouch Controls said that the financing was led by SJF Ventures and said that the financing included new investor NRG Energy, Inc., as well as EnTouch Controls's initial investor Trailblazer Capital.

The new funding will be used to expand EnTouch Controls' energy management service offerings, accelerate development of energy analytics and load curtailment tools and add to its sales and support staff to serve its growing set of national chain restaurant and retail customers.

NRG's Green Mountain Energy retail business and EnTouch Controls had previously teamed to offer small businesses a bundled energy supply and management solution (click here for story).

Separately, in October, EcoFactor, which offers cloud-based home energy services, said that it had closed $10 million in its Series B financing round with NRG Energy, Inc. as a new investor joining Claremont Creek Ventures, RockPort Capital Partners, and Aster Capital. EcoFactor said that investment will go towards the development of new services, enhancing EcoFactor's home energy service, and expanding its engineering and sales staff.

EcoFactor's said that in late 2012, NV Energy began mass deployment of EcoFactor's integrated demand response and energy efficiency service under the mPowered program, which achieved as much as 3KW load shed per home and double digit HVAC energy savings. EcoFactor's energy efficiency service is also part of the Xfinity Home platform by Comcast.