Fresh off a new investment in Newfoundland, GrowthWorks Atlantic Venture Fund has invested $1.75 million in three companies nestled in the bustling tech community of Saint John.

GrowthWorks announced Tuesday it has invested $1.1 million in Enovex Technology Ltd., $400,000 in Spinzo Corp. and $250,000 in MedRunner Health Solutions Inc. The funding announcement comes hot on the heels of the labour-sponsored venture fund leading a $750,000 funding round by Adfinitum, the St. John’s-based advertising data bank.

“The fund is delighted to announce it has invested nearly two million dollars in three companies that each have a strong value proposition, a large market opportunity and talented entrepreneurial leaders,” said Thomas J. Hayes, President and CEO of GrowthWorks Atlantic. “We are extremely pleased to be working with experienced local angel and seed investors to provide New Brunswick’s emerging economy companies with the capital to commercialize and expand their businesses.”

The biggest investment is in Enovex, a clean technology company developing advanced gas separation materials. Enovex raised $150,000 in seed financing in 2010, and CEO Scott Walton told Entrevestor in September he was working on a first round of investment. The company’s other investors include New Brunswick Innovation Foundation, and angel Gerry Pond (it was said to be his first CleanTech investment).

 GrowthWork’s Peter Clark said Enovex will use the money to ``scale up their technology’’ and add equipment and resources, bringing the company to the point at which it can raise its next round of funding.

Enovex has created technology that can remove 60 percent of the emissions from the smoke produced by coal-burning power plants. There are two parts to the technology: a mechanical device that removes CO2 from the waste, working in tandem with a synthetic material that enhances the process.

MedRunner – another company backed by Pond, as well as the First Angel Network – is a leader in developing and deploying electronic prescription solutions to physicians and pharmacies. The company has its product up and running in New Brunswick and is planning launches in Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia. Clark will join the company’s board of directors.

Spinzo allows consumers to register to buy a product or service, and the more people that join the lower the price drops. It’s active in a relatively young social media segment known as collaborative consumption, in which groups of people join together to get the best deal possible.

 “This funding will enable us to launch our innovative platform, giving small and large merchants a much-needed way to promote their offerings online,” said CEO Emmanuel Elmajian. “With a strong backbone of New Brunswick support, Spinzo is seeking to lead the shift toward social eCommerce.”