Viridity Energy, a Philadelphia-based energy tech startup, is being acquired by a Nevada-based geothermal and renewable energy company (Ormat) for an initial consideration of $35 million, reports the Philadelphia Business Journal. 

Founded in 2008, Viridity Energy offers “distributed demand management software, systems and services,” that can turn very energy-consuming businesses into producers and sellers of power back to the grid. Viridity’s technology can also help companies get paid to control and reduce their energy consumption, reported TechChrunch in 2011, after the company raised $14 Million in a series B investment.

The company’s customers to-date have been retailers, hospitals, universities and various military and government agencies. In Philadelphia, Viridity set up systems for the transit authority (SEPTA) that capture energy released by braking, electric subway trains, and store it in rail-side battery arrays, routing the power back through the third rail to reuse it for trains’ acceleration.

"Leveraging Ormat’s breadth of capabilities, electricity market expertise and resources, we will have a unique opportunity to accelerate innovation and deliver significant value to our customers and partners. Viridity will be ideally positioned to fulfill our core mission, and our employees will benefit from becoming part of a larger company," Viridity CEO Mack Treece said in a statement.

Viridity was founded by Audrey Zibelman, a Penn State University Graduate, who was formerly the COO of mid-Atlantic grid operator PJM, and now serves as the chairwoman of the New York Public Service Commission. 

Read the full story in The Philadelphia Business Journal.