GRANHOLM - Granholm Pitches California Venture Capitalists on Investing in Michigan, Creating Jobs

LANSING - As part of her ongoing effort to go anywhere and do anything to create jobs in Michigan, Governor Jennifer M. Granholm spent Monday with leaders of five San Francisco-area- based venture capital firms, encouraging them to make Michigan their premiere choice for future investment. The two-day California jobs mission continued today in Los Angeles where the governor met with Primafuel, a biofuel company working on zero carbon fuels.

"We want companies to stand up and take notice of Michigan's assets for growing our economy and creating jobs," Granholm said. "We have an economic plan that will grow our alternative energy sector and an infrastructure second to none - thanks to our skilled workforce, our manufacturing capacity, our footprint of forests, and our abundant wind - all of which make Michigan the best place for venture capital firms to consider investing."

Granholm said investment firms across the country are looking for growing companies, innovative entrepreneurs, and startups all in the business of alternative energy. The governor has worked tirelessly to foster those alternative energy investments here in Michigan, which will eventually lead to the transformation of Michigan's economy both in terms of the diversification of the business sector and future job growth.

Granholm spent Monday with representatives from Kleiner-Perkins, VantagePoint, Nth Power, Corium International, and Khosla Ventures as she promotes alternative energy as an economic driver for future growth in Michigan. Granholm also visited the headquarters of Google on Monday to thank them for their investment in Michigan.

"This jobs mission illustrates to the nation's business community that we are committed to transforming Michigan's economy and making our state increasingly attractive so more companies will locate, expand, and create jobs here," Granholm said.

Granholm has long been committed to building the alternative energy industry in Michigan. Her 21st Century Jobs Fund, which is working to diversify Michigan's economy by developing high-growth industries, has a strong focus on the alternative energy sector.

The governor's previous efforts to bring jobs to Michigan by visiting Europe and Asia have resulted in more than $230 million worth of new investments and more than 1,100 new Michigan jobs. Earlier this year, Granholm traveled to Sweden, a world-wide leader in alternative and renewable energy, to build relationships with Swedish alternative energy companies that may want to expand and create jobs in Michigan. During that visit, she announced the first-ever Sweden-Michigan Alternative Energy Summit to take place in early 2008.

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