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Nova now has private investment. Fulcrums UK plant has airline investment and Lanzajet has BA investment. VLS has zero investment, a grant that cannot fully use and a executive team that is grossly overpaid.

VLS cannot even hire staff, probably due to going concern uncertainties.

It’s pretty clear now that VLS is destined for failure which is unfortunate for all those so heavily invested. I’m sure Henrick will be ok, given he’s been paid so well over the years.

Thurg. Nothing to add. What’s happening is exactly as I predicted. VLS are in a perpetual catch 22. No sales due to no commercial operational experience. No sales due to a poor balance sheet and the risk of not being around when the technology licensee needs their help. No sales, no revenue no royalties. Another placing to pay wages.

Meanwhile, the CEO/CFO are enjoying the high life.

“Inundated with enquiries and interested parties”

But still no deals.

Listening to Henrick speak about his company, is beginning to explain why VLS isn’t making progress. He Sounds unprepared, poorly advised and too removed from the reality of the market, especially considering his £500k basic salary.

New CEO needed. In fact new C-suite needed.

Rick bottom, bargain price?!? I’d say it’s overpriced given the dire state of the business and the total lack of progress.

Meanwhile the CEO is taking home half a million.

Something is out of kilter…

Yes. The Americans don’t hold back with questions, so let’s have the investor call when they are all at the beach or around the BBQ to avoid the awkward inquisition.

Token indeed. He’s just spunked a small part of his placing funded bonus on shares. He’s not of pocket, let’s face it.

With bonuses tied to sales and contracts*

Hate to say it, but seen this coming for a looong time. Velocys has some good tech, but they don’t want to progress the way you should as a developer; they don’t want to start small and work up to it. They want big projects right out of the gate, with no previous track record. The UK gov grant is an anomaly; big headline figures but all conditional on match funding, so effectively worthless at this time.

I keep saying that instead of ploughing millions into project development, the money raised in placings should be directed squarely at their tech and hire a highly skilled team of commercial executives, with none is tied to sales and contracts.

None of the current, highly paid staff is incentivesed to deliver as they already earn a fortune, despite the Company they are trying to run being in a perpetual state of debt.

Others got a mention, but it looks like VLS is no longer the darling of BA:

https://www.wearefinn.com/topics/posts/british-airways-targets-sustainable-future-with-10-saf-by-2030/

Well when VLS do go under, the Management will still be well off, courtesy of all the placings over the years.

The potential (or lack thereof) of VLS can be easily explained.

VLS is a technology company. It does not develop projects. Its technology, whilst proven at small throughput scale, has yet to be used in anger which introduces technology risk to the potential licensee. As the risks are present, well funded technology suppliers can back performance guarantees. VLS is not well funded and has no chance of providing suitable insurances or liability cover.

They are trying to develop a large scale, fully integrated project, which incorporates their technology. The aim here is to demonstrate their equipment in a commercial setting and hope that FR reactor orders subsequently flood in.

Unfortunately, investors know that VlS is not a developer and therefore strategic investment will never appear. This means they are in a perpetual chicken and egg scenario - unable to rise funding therefore unable to prove their tech, therefore unable to raise funding.

The best thing they can do is hang up their developer boots (still shiny and unworn), and hope that an oil company buys their IP. Unfortunately, many oil Co’s have their small scale FT equipment or is in partnership with JMatthey or SasolFT.

It’s a race to the bottom for VLS.

When are you lot going to see the wood for the trees? Whilst VLS competitors are raking in cash from investors, VLS leans on the usual last resort route to raise funding, which it’ll probably redirect a good chunk of to the match funding requirements for the AltAlto grant - because it can’t find a willing investor to do it.

Meanwhile, no orders for VLS reactors (nobody would order anyway as they don’t have the balance sheet to back up performance guarantees for their equipment, hence no bank would lend against it), no plants of their own, etc etc.

Meanwhile, large executive bonuses will continue to be made and the Management gets richer.

They don’t have any pilot/demo experience- of a full scale waste to SAF plant. They have plenty of demo hours on their own reactors , but those reactors are only part of a larger integrated waste to SAF plant.

I’d they are so good, why are we not seeing any in service?

Offtakes aren’t worth the paper they are written on when it comes to financing. Unless, said offtakes are contractually binding which these are not.

2phevs.

No VLS project will reach financial close.

They don’t have the right skill set to develop projects - funders and investors know this, hence why they are investing in others. Vls also don’t have any demo or pilot plant experience to lean on.

As has been said, it’s a lifestyle company that will die on the vine whilst the bigger boys and girls advance.

Smoke and mirrors as per usual.

My read of this is as follows:

- £7m of VLS own money has been spent so far, which they claim back from the grant.

- they have secured private funding from April 1st bur as stated further on, this is actually funding from VLS themselves. Total VLS spend of £7m to March 31st, then their share of £1m from April 1st.

- it states that the project has entered services and licensing agreements. I suspect some of these are with Velocys’ themselves so they can pocket the grant money rather than see it all disappear to 3rd parties.

- match funding is on track for Q4 2023 - this will be 3rd party.

To sum up: the AltAlto project has been unsuccessful thus far in securing any new match funding from external sources and has needed to resort to VLS and probably BA to fund works.

The bank is still a mystical being and is probably keeping a low profile to avoid embarrassment when it becomes clear that match funding will never arrive.

This engorged development team need to redirect their efforts away from a market that they cannot compete is. The other players are vastly more experienced and it shows in their ability to attract funding.
VLS need to tuck their tail between their legs and go back to selling reactors.

How many projects has he developed, financed and delivered to operations?

Fulcrjm has an operational plant in the US. VLS has a computer image.
May explain in part, why the investor money is going where it is.

So these start up guys can raise £5m for a sewage to SAF project but VLS can’t seem to raise anything from the private market? Being left behind….

https://flyfirefly.uk/news/f/wizz-air-invests-%C2%A35m-in-firefly