Last checked at 11 Apr 2012 14:15
11 April 2012
AFC Energy plc
("AFC Energy" or the "Company")
Commercialisation agreement with Waste2Tricity
AFC Energy plc (AIM: AFC), a leading developer of low-cost alkaline fuel cell technology for industrial applications, is pleased to announce that Waste2Tricity Ltd ("W2T") has exercised its right to exclusively represent AFC Energy in the UK for applications involving the integration of the Company's fuel cell products with hydrogen derived from the gasification of municipal solid waste to generate clean energy, pursuant to the agreement announced on 4 February 2009.
Under the terms of the agreement, AFC Energy is due to receive a non-refundable appointment fee of £1 million payable in stages over 4 years. The first instalment of £150,000 is due immediately. W2T will, subject to performance, be AFC Energy's exclusive agent for an initial term running until 2022 in the UK for securing fuel cell system supply contracts from projects where municipal waste is gasified, from which AFC Energy expects to derive further revenues. The agreement also grants W2T a right of first refusal regarding the supply of AFC Energy's fuel cells to further territories in Europe and North America for use in projects where hydrogen is derived from the gasification of municipal solid waste. AFC Energy and W2T will continue to work together to target and develop waste-to-energy opportunities as they arise.
On 4 February 2009, AFC Energy announced it had entered into an agreement with W2T to supply AFC Energy fuel cell products for integration into W2T's projects for the conversion of municipal solid waste to energy and for AFC Energy to receive a £1 million licence fee for granting exclusivity to W2T, subject to fundraising by W2T which has now been satisfied. AFC Energy is pleased with the commercial and financial progress made by W2T. In addition, under the terms of the agreement AFC Energy received an option to acquire 25% of the share capital of W2T, which was exercised in June 2009 for a nominal fee, and on 5 March 2012, AFC Energy announced it had received £152,500 in full repayment with associated interest of the loan made to W2T under the agreement.
W2T was established to initiate waste-to-energy projects using the most economically viable technologies available. W2T selected AFC Energy's fuel cell systems as having the greatest potential to be the most efficient technology for generating electrical power from gasified waste. The agreement follows significant progress made by W2T in the development of waste-to-energy projects within the UK.
Ian Williamson, Chief Executive of AFC Energy plc, said: "This agreement is an example of how AFC Energy is gaining commercial traction for its technology by targeting multiple industrial sectors. We have been very focused on creating licence revenues for our technology. Working with W2T, we are opening up excellent commercial opportunities for our fuel cell products to be deployed within the waste-to-energy sector. Lead-times in this industry can be long and W2T are considerably shortening the time scale for market entry. We look forward to working closely with them to develop the most economically and clean way of generating electricity from domestic and commercial waste."
John Hall, Managing Director of Waste2Tricity, said: "Today's agreement for exclusive rights builds on our relationship with AFC Energy who, like ourselves, see tremendous environmental and commercial benefits from treating waste as a feedstock resource rather than as a problem to be buried in landfill or burned in incinerators. Compared to any alternate technology the significantly higher efficiency of using AFC Energy's technology with high temperature gasification means we can produce more electricity from the same amount of feedstock. We see this combination of efficiency and clean power generation becoming the dominant solution for post recycled waste and it offers a future proof Carbon Capture ready answer. W2T have a solid pipeline of UK projects and are beginning to assess opportunities in the rest of Europe and North America and we believe this agreement will be beneficial for both companies."
For further information, please contact:
AFC Energy plc Ian Williamson, Chief Executive Ian Balchin, Deputy Chairman
| +44 (0)1483 276726
|
Allenby Capital - Nominated Adviser and Broker Jeremy Porter James Reeve
| +44 (0)20 3328 5656 |
Luther Pendragon Neil Thapar Leigh Marshall Alexis Gore
| +44 (0)20 7618 9100 |
About AFC Energy
Founded in 2006, AFC Energy plc is re-engineering proven alkaline fuel cell technology to reduce the cost of electricity. Alkaline fuel cells have been used on US and Russian manned space missions for decades to provide electrical power and drinking water. By using modern materials, design tools and manufacturing processes at scale, AFC Energy is developing fuel cells that will compete with conventional technologies such as turbines for electrical power generation. Today, AFC Energy is pursuing opportunities in several sectors where hydrogen is readily available including the chlorine, clean coal and waste-to-energy industries as well as applications for distributed/back-up power. For further information, please visit our website: www.afcenergy.com.
About fuel cells
A fuel cell is a device that produces electricity, heat and water by reacting a hydrogen-rich fuel with oxygen. Conventional engines and turbines combust fuel to produce mechanical energy prior to generating electricity. The direct generation of electricity allows fuel cells to be highly energy efficient. There are several different types of fuel cell, each with its own characteristic but they are all based around a common central design. Fuel cells are increasingly being deployed for applications ranging from vehicles, domestic boilers, powering portable equipment and large scale power stations.
About Waste2Tricity
Waste2Tricity is a British venture established to implement the most efficient energy conversion process available - by implementing a unique combination of AFC Energy's new generation alkaline fuel cells with Alter NRG's plasma gasification and other existing proven technologies. The system will therefore have significant environmental and cost benefits over other methods of electricity generation. Waste2Tricity are Alter NRG's sales representative in the UK for waste derived applications of this technology. For more information, visit Waste2Tricity at www.waste2tricity.com