Mainebiz

V O L . X X I N O. X I I I J U N E 2 9 , 2 0 1 5 8 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E Pulkkinen was indicted on 15 counts of aggravated forgery and an aggregated theft charge. Pulkkinen was indicted after a months-long investigation by the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles, which alleges that he sold custom- ers vehicles that were borrowed from a lender and had outstanding liens on them. e bureau said Pulkkinen hadn't been paying back the lender for the cars and instead had been using the sales proceeds to pay other bills. None of the impacted 23 customers were given a title for their respective vehicles. N O T E W O R T H Y C E N T R A L & W E S T E R N MaineShare, an agency in Augusta that raises money for nonprofi ts | SBA Preferred Lender Providing Financing to Help Maine Businesses Grow. Richmond, Maine Kennebec River Biosciences Congratulations on your recent expansion and continued international growth! To learn how we can help your business, contact: Daryl Wentworth, SVP, Chief Commercial Officer 207.210.0788 207.210.0788 | dwentworth@northeastbank.com dwentworth@northeastbank.com Advancing security, life safety, and communications. www.norrisinc.com Portland and Topsham fi rms in the running for $200,000 national Cleantech competition Fresh off its win at the Top Gun Showcase, Portland-based sustainability software company Rapport has been selected as one of two Maine fi rms to compete in a regional Cleantech business accelerator program that could ultimately lead to a $200,000 national prize. Cleantech Open Northeast announced recently that Rapport and Topsham- based energy generation company Beltane Solar were among the selected 34 companies, representing various cleantech sectors, including agriculture, energy effi ciency, information and communications technology and transportation. Rapport walked away with a $10,000 prize from the Maine Center for Entrepreneurial Development's Top Gun Showcase on June 3. It was also among three companies at the showcase to each receive $60,000 in in-kind software and services from Microsoft Corp. "In 2015, the Northeast led the country in accelerator applicants for the second year in a row, continuing our legacy as one of the strongest regional cleantech ecosystems in the country," Cleantech Open Northeast Executive Director Katherine MacDonald said. "We look forward to supporting the Class of 2015 by focusing on their major business challenges and connecting them to the extensive professional network Cleantech Open and the New England Clean Energy Council have to offer." The program kicked off last week with the two-day Cleantech Open East Coast Academy at Babson College in Wellesley, Mass., where companies were con- nected with mentors, entrepreneurship education and opportunities to access capital. It will continue into October, when eight semifi nalists will be chosen to present at an awards gala in New York City. The program will then choose four regional winners that will advance to the National Final Judging and Global Forum, where the grand prize winner will walk away with $200,000 in cash and in-kind services from sponsors. There will also be a runner-up prize, a sustainability prize and eight category prizes. — D Y L A N M A R T I N P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F S T E P H E N DAV I S P H I L L I P S Don Gooding (left), executive director of the Maine Center for Entrepreneurial Development, with Rapport CEO John Rooks and Rapport COO Justin Jaffe and Rumena Manolova and Chris Pasko of Blackstone Advisory Group at the Top Gun Showcase on June 3.

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