Member Info for hxulcolrdoh

Looks like the CFO played with the head.

The company is over stretched. I was wondering why there had been no movement in the proposed share buybacks.

Tharisa I'm sure strive to maintain a modest dividend but realistically that is going to be the best that it will be able to do for quite some time.

The KARO investment was a disastrous decision. It will never pay back what has been shoveled into it.

No.

Qualcomm and Bidco have received irrevocable undertakings from 50.1% of the shareholders to accept the offer.

https://www.lse.co.uk/rns/AWE/recommended-acquisition-uh149y6kqllxapg.html

As the board is/was visited by some knowledgeable people ...

There is another British company IQE who claim be leaders in Gallium based epitaxy https://www.imarcgroup.com/epitaxial-wafer-market

Generally GaN and it's potential to deliver significant power savings in a world where compute is sucking vast amounts energy out of the grid seems to be particularly interesting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUE5UWygGKg

However I'm struggling deterime IQE's relevance in the markets in which it operates. The only thing that I could confirm is that they are world leaders in is hiding their light under a bushel. Anybody have any ideas on what the opportunity might be and how to quantify IQE's ability to address it ?

Recommending anything can be fraught even when the analysis is spot on eg

- BP. tanked after Deepwater Horizon

- FXPO tanked when Russia invaded Ukraine (Russian companies such as EVR fared even worse )

- RR tanked when covid struck and planes were grounded (they don't sell engines they sell flying hours)

- etc etc

Things don't always work out as you hoped. In the case of AWE I bought for an average of 106p and sold for 181p but was ultimately quite disappointed for 2 reasons

- I think in the long term AWE would have done a lot better

- AWE was one of two 'swing for the fences' holdings and I was hoping that which ever peaked first I could roll winnings over onto the second. When Qualcomm revealed they were considering making an offer the other share was at 60p. At the first deadline it was still only 64p. However by the time AWE had dithered / equivocated / made their minds up it had shot up to 100p (I still think it has a lot of upside but it will have to consolidate/tread water for a while from here). So rightly or wrongly (probably wrongly) I think it is a pity that AWE threw in the towel. Given that they did it is a pity they didn't do it sooner.

The best laid plans of mice and men ...

I would have interpreted it as a sign of liquidity issues / working capital distress.

Presumably they have already burned through the N340bn 4 year facility they arranged in Jan 2024. I'm sure they envisaged that it was adequate when they set it up.

I'd suggest it is a "Owe Your Banker £1,000 and You Are at His Mercy; Owe Him £1 Million and the Position Is Reversed" situation.

TBH I'd be considerably more interested in the H1 2025 figures than those for FE 2024 which at this point will be hopelessly out of date.

Maybe the auditor is thinking along the same lines and that is why a potential August resolution timescale is being bandied about?

With a six month rear view mirror of 2025 if would maybe give them more confidence to endorse a Dec 2024 projection (if things stack up) ?

Links for the events are in the RNS

https://www.londonstockexchange.com/news-article/VANQ/notice-of-interim-results-investor-presentations/17114062

It will certainly be a red letter day in my diary.

If only I had a £1 for every 'cut n paste' bum steer Malcy penned ...

The anticipated "As already communicated to the market we have a problem delivering audited accounts" message has arrived.

It is just another red flag (not that this matters to SAVE'ers who tend to be colour blind and prefer to explain any red flags drawn to their attention as 'fake news' motivated by 'malice').

In 2023 CFO Nick Beattie's remuneration was $1m. We don't have accounts for 2024 but on the assumption that he was paid a similar amount why is he paid $1m p.a. when he fails to do the 'No.1'/'must be done'/'no excuses'item on his TODO list ?

Reminder Seplat typically have their audited year end Dec 31st accounts out late Feb/early March. Six months is more than enough time (for anyone up to the job).

No

A copy of the VANQ .v. TMS Legal proceedings

https://caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ewhc/kb/2025/1599

Somebody over on the CBG board helpfully pointed out that VANQ's case against TMS Legal is bubbling away in the background. It has yet to go to trial. TMS attempted to get the case quashed but rightfully this has failed.

https://www.fountaincourt.co.uk/2025/06/novel-use-of-the-unlawful-means-tort-against-claims-management-companies-upheld/

Thanks BassCadet.

I'm still trying (and failing) to understand the investment case for IQE. I've probably been spoiled by AWE who were excellent at communicating what they did.

IQE's investment case blurb ( https://www.iqep.com/investors/investment-case/ ) reads like generic slop.

In a similar vein I did look up the mythical(?) ULTRARAM.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz-sYyfojw4

If anything like it was on the horizon and IQE stood to benefit from it in any significant way it would be EPIC/SENSATIONAL.

However if I read the RNS of June 16th regarding the joint project with Quinas I haven't the slightest clue if anything commercially useful has been achieved or where IQE might fit in the frame.

I have an impression of clever people doing clever things whilst waiting for someone to come along and steal their lunch.

Thanks for the input LLL.

The company seems to have some strengths but one that they don't seem to have is recognizing their weaknesses.

If they don't have the right people / industry connections then they need to partner up with those that do.

The company seems to be a potential player in some interesting technology areas.

GaN and it's potential to deliver significant power savings in a world where compute is sucking vast amounts energy out of the grid seems to be particularly interesting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUE5UWygGKg

However I'm struggling deterine IQE's relevance in the markets in which it operates. It seems to have made a royal mess of commercially exploiting any advantages that is has thus far. The companies web site is largely devoid of any briefings, whitepapers or content that explains what their addressable market is, what their vision is and how they plan to achieve it.

I did find a CMD from 2022 that stated they hoped to treble revenue by 2027 (so far that looks like an epic fail). I presume the 2022 plan has been superceded by events and needs to be updated. An up to date CMD would not go amiss.

Does the company have the right personnel and strategy to succeed? Given that they seems to be woeful in putting forward their own case is there anyone on the board who can share any useful insights?

Thanks for info Liberty2!

(still think 11.125% is a lot of interest)

Do I misunderstand. Is it the case that CBG bonds only deliver one terminal payment when they mature ?

Why do CBG bonds carry such onerous interest rates ?

They seem like something an AIM startup would be charged to fund a speculative venture in a dodgy jurisdiction.

I'm comparing it with another company I am familar with

Alphawave IP Group PLC - London-based designer of high-speed connectivity solutions - Prices an issue of $150 million in senior unsecured convertible bonds due 2030. The bonds will carry a coupon of 3.75% per annum.

If the CFO put the proceeds of his 225k share sale into a deposit account yielding 4.5% he'd get a risk free £8.5k in interest.

He'd need to be sure that Tharisa's dividend was at least 5c to get the same return.

5c is doable but probably at the top end of the likely range. Given the Karo situation the company realistically is in no position to pass on any improvements in Pt & Pd prices the form of extra dividends for the foreseeable future.

Further if/when the Karo issue is resolved Tharisa will remain tainted by the perceived 'related party' chicanery associated with the project. It is unlikely that it will ever attract a valuation other than that supported by the dividend yield.

If the CFO is not a risk taker the upside is probably limited and doesn't counter balance the risk that his capital is exposed to.

If he is a risk taker there are much better opportunities for capital appreciation elsewhere.