Ausra has secured $60.6 million in financing as the company plans to accelerate the delivery of its technology to its customers.

Proceeds from Ausra's financing will fund the company's research and product development and commercial activities, including the completion of its 5-megawatt Kimberlina solar thermal power project near Bakersfield, California.

It is the first power plant in North America to incorporate Ausra's core technology, the Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) solar collector and steam generation system.

Investors in the latest closing were led by KERN Partners of Calgary, Alberta, Canada; and also included Generation Investment Management, based in London, England; Starfish Ventures of Melbourne, Australia; and Ausra's founding investors Khosla Ventures and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

Among the other ongoing developments for Ausra, the company's first commercial CLFR project, located in Australia, is currently under expansion. That facility will augment power production at an adjacent conventional power station later this quarter. Ausra is also developing a 177-megawatt CLFR power plant for Pacific Gas and Electric Company in central California.

Recently, the company, which provides solar power, steam and energy systems for industrial processes and utility-scale electricity generation, had announced a couple of additions in its senior management team. Debra A. Olson joined as general counsel and executive vice president, while Jeffrey J. Melby was appointed senior vice president for research and product development.