20 Nov 2013 07:00
NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN, INTO OR FROM THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND OR THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA. ANY FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THESE RESTRICTIONS MAY CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE SECURITIES LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND OR THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA.
20 November 2013
Applied Graphene Materials plc
("Applied Graphene Materials" or the "Group")
Admission and First Day of Dealings on AIM
Applied Graphene Materials plc (AIM:AGM), the producer of specialty graphene materials, is pleased to announce the admission to trading on AIM of its entire issued ordinary share capital, and the commencement of dealings, at 8.00 a.m. today.
Summary
· £11.0 million (before expenses) has been raised for the Group through the Placing of 7,096,775 new Ordinary Shares at 155 pence per share;
· The total number of Ordinary Shares in issue at Admission is 16,890,458, giving the Group a market capitalisation of approximately £26.2 million at the Placing Price;
· The proceeds of the Placing will be used to fund growth through investment in headcount, infrastructure and increased production capacity, as well as for collaboration projects; and
· N+1 Singer is acting as Nominated Adviser and Broker to the Group.
On joining AIM, Bryan Dobson, Chairman of Applied Graphene Materials plc, commented:
"We are delighted with the investor response to the Placing which recognises Applied Graphene Materials' proprietary, scalable manufacturing process and its associated intellectual property and know-how. Joining AIM marks a significant milestone for the Group."
Jon Mabbitt, Chief Executive Officer of Applied Graphene Materials plc, commented:
"This funding will allow us to begin the next phase of development and to strengthen relationships with our partners. Applied Graphene Materials is now well positioned to meet the growing global appetite for graphene as a wonder material of the 21st Century."
About Applied Graphene Materials
The Group was founded by Professor Karl Coleman in 2010 with its operations and processes based on technology that he initially developed at Durham University. The Group has developed a proprietary bottom-up process for the production of high purity graphene nanoplatelets and owns the intellectual property and know-how behind this process. Applied Graphene Materials' process is based on sustainable, readily available raw materials and therefore does not rely on the supply of graphite, unlike a number of other graphene production techniques. It is capable of producing high purity graphene using a continuous process. Applied Graphene Materials provides dispersion and product integration expertise to deliver solutions for a wide range of applications. The Group is based on the Wilton Site on Teesside.
Applied Graphene Materials' strategy
The commercial value of graphene lies in the ability to transfer its intrinsic properties into other materials, thus creating value-added products possessing specifically enhanced characteristics.
The Group's commercial strategy is to be a value-added supplier of graphene-based specialty chemical products to partners who are manufacturing products incorporating graphene, rather than simply being a commodity producer of graphene.
The high purity of the graphene that the Group produces and the number of its potential applications means that Applied Graphene Materials has the opportunity to generate growing revenue streams as commercial applications of graphene develop.
Applied Graphene Materials' initial target applications are in polymer composites, paints and coatings and lubricants, with further potential target applications in energy storage, such as batteries and supercapacitors, and in electronics, such as thermal management solutions, encapsulants and material for printed electronics.
The Group has collaboration arrangements in place with nine commercial partners, which range from feasibility assessments to detailed research investigating uses of graphene in various application areas.
Use of funds
The net proceeds of the Placing receivable by the Group are approximately £9.9 million and, based on currently anticipated demand, are expected to be used as follows:
· headcount and infrastructure - expansion and broadening of the engineering, production, technical and business development teams to support additional product development and enhancements to the Group's dispersion and preparation capabilities;
· capital expenditure to increase production capacity to approximately eight tonnes per annum;
· collaboration projects - enhancement of existing, and development of new, intellectual property and know-how with external partners; and
· working capital requirements - funding working capital to support anticipated future growth.
Graphene and the graphene market
Graphene, in its purest form, is a material which possesses an unsurpassed combination of electrical, thermal and mechanical properties.
Due to its properties, graphene has been described as a disruptive technology with the potential to enable enhanced products within sectors including aerospace, automotive, paints and coatings, communications, electronics, optoelectronics, lubricants, energy storage and sensors, amongst others.
Whilst the market is currently limited due to the relative infancy of the material, significant growth is anticipated over the next five years as the market for graphene applications develops. Recent reports suggest a market for graphene products of US$195 million by 2018, with growth at a compound annual rate of 47.1 per cent, to reach US$1.3 billion by 2023*. Total volume demand for graphene is expected to increase from circa 80 tonnes in 2013 to circa 400 tonnes in 2017**.
*BCC Research 2013, Graphene: Technologies, Applications and Markets
**Future Markets Inc. 2011, The World Market for Graphene to 2017
For further information, please contact:
Applied Graphene Materials
Jon Mabbitt, Chief Executive Officer +44 (0) 1642 438 214
Oliver Lightowlers, Chief Financial Officer +44 (0) 1642 438 214
www.appliedgraphenematerials.com
N+1 Singer
Shaun Dobson / Richard Lindley / Joe Stroud +44 (0) 207 496 3000
Hudson Sandler
Charlie Jack / Emily Dillon +44 (o) 207 796 4133
Notes to Editors
Applied Graphene Materials was founded by Professor Karl Coleman in 2010 with its operations and processes based on technology that he initially developed at Durham University. The Group has developed a proprietary bottom-up process for the production of high purity graphene nanoplatelets and owns the intellectual property and know-how behind this process. Applied Graphene Materials' process is based on sustainable, readily available raw materials and therefore does not rely on the supply of graphite, unlike a number of other graphene production techniques. It is capable of producing high purity graphene using a continuous process. Applied Graphene Materials provides dispersion and product integration expertise to deliver solutions for a wide range of applications. The Group is based on the Wilton Site on Teesside.
Board
Dr. Bryan Dobson, Non-Executive Chairman
Bryan has over 33 years' experience in the chemical industry with ICI plc and Croda International plc. Bryan started his career with ICI in 1978 and had a number of roles, both in the UK and overseas, including being European Regional Director of ICI Uniqema in the Netherlands in 2006. Following the acquisition of Uniqema by Croda International plc in September 2006, Bryan remained within the group and was President of Global Operations from 2008 until his retirement in 2011. He has held a broad range of senior business, technical and operational roles in the UK, the US, Belgium and the Netherlands. He is also currently a non-executive director of the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and of Revolymer plc, an AIM listed technology company which designs, develops and formulates polymers for consumer goods. Bryan holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Cambridge and a PhD from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. He joined Applied
Graphene Materials in April 2012 as Chairman.
Jon Mabbitt, Chief Executive Officer
Jon is an experienced Managing Director with 25 years' experience in senior positions in manufacturing and engineering. From 2008 to October 2012, Jon was Managing Director of Umeco Composite Structural Materials, one of two divisions within Umeco plc, a £250 million revenue business listed on the London Stock Exchange's Main Market. Prior to that, between 2006 and 2008, Jon was the Managing Director of Advanced Composite Group Limited, a subsidiary of Umeco plc, which was acquired in 2004. In this role he was responsible for 350 people and led the company through a period of significant organic growth and targeted acquisitions in the UK and the US. Jon also held the positions of Group Operating Director, General Manager, Sales Manager and Technical Sales Engineer with Advanced Composite Materials Limited, having joined in 1984. Jon left Umeco plc following its acquisition by Cytec Industries, Inc. in July 2012. Jon's technical expertise is broad with an in-depth knowledge of advanced composite materials. He holds a BEng from the University of Sheffield. Jon was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Applied Graphene Materials in July 2013.
Oliver Lightowlers, Chief Financial Officer
Oliver was appointed as Chief Financial Officer in October 2013, having previously been Chief Financial Officer of Ensus Limited, a UK producer of bioethanol and high protein animal feed. Ensus was acquired by CropEnergies AG from the Carlyle Group in July 2013. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Coopers & Lybrand and is a graduate of UMIST (Management Sciences). Before Ensus, Oliver was Group Finance Director of Spice plc, a provider of outsourced support services, principally to the utility sector, which listed on AIM in 2004 and moved to the Official List in 2008. Spice was acquired by private equity firm Cinven in 2010 for an enterprise value of £350 million.
Professor Karl Coleman, Chief Technical Director
Karl is a Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at Durham University, having previously been in the chemistry departments at the University of Oxford and the Université de Strasbourg. Karl achieved a PhD in Chemistry at the University of Leicester in 1996 and is a Chartered Chemist, Chartered Scientist and fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry. His work since 2000 has focused on nanoscience and nanotechnology, particularly the chemistry of carbon nanotubes. He has been funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Royal Society and he has authored / co-authored over 75 publications in peer reviewed journals which have accumulated over 2,500 citations. His work has been recognised with numerous awards, including the international Royal Society of Chemistry Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2011 for his development of intellectual property around the production of graphene, and the Times Higher Education Research and Innovation Award 2012. He is the secretary of the Chemical Nanosciences and Nanotechnology subject group of the Royal Society of Chemistry. Karl established the Group in 2010 and whilst he is employed by Durham University, he is seconded to Applied Graphene Materials for two and a half days per week.
Dr. Claudio Marinelli, Business Development Director
Claudio has extensive experience in the commercialisation of emerging technologies, including product development and marketing and business strategy. He was Open Innovation Director and later Business Management Director for Nokia Research between 2008 and 2012 where he was responsible for the strategic and operational oversight of the portfolio for research and development collaboration at 13 Nokia sites across. He also co-led Nokia's Impact and Tech Transfer work packages within the European Commission Future and Emerging Technologies' Graphene Flagship proposal, a ten year, €1 billion project with over 80 industrial and academic partners. Prior to joining Nokia, Claudio was Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the University of Cambridge for Advance Nanotech, a US seed investment fund specialising in academic spin-offs, between 2006 and 2007. From 2001 to 2002 Claudio was Senior Device Engineer at Luxnet Corp, a California based start-up company supplying optoelectronic and telecommunication components. Other previous roles include Senior Research Associate in photonics at the Engineering Department of the University of Cambridge. Claudio holds a Laurea degree in Physics from the University of Trieste, Italy, a PhD in Electronic Engineering from the University of Bristol and an MBA from the Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge. Claudio joined the Group in July 2013, after consulting for six months on a part-time basis, and is responsible for customer engagement, sales and product and application development.
Nick Edgar, Non-Executive Director
Nick is an investment manager in IP Group's Newcastle-based team which manages the Finance for Business North East Technology Fund. Nick has a wealth of transactional experience investing across more than 30 companies. He is currently board observer on a range of early-stage portfolio businesses in diverse sectors including software and digital, cleantech and advanced manufacturing. Nick is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland and holds a finance-specific MBA from Manchester University.
Important Notice
Defined terms used in this announcement have the same meaning as set out in the admission document published on18 November 2013, which is available at the Group's website www.appliedgraphenematerials.com.
This announcement does not constitute an admission document relating to the Group and does not constitute, or form part of, any offer or invitation to sell or issue, or any solicitation of any offer to purchase or subscribe for, any shares in the Group in any jurisdiction nor shall it, or any part of it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied on in connection with or act as any inducement to enter into, any contract therefore.
Recipients of this announcement who are considering acquiring shares following publication of the admission document are reminded that any such acquisition must be made only on the basis of the information contained in the admission document which may be different from the information contained in this announcement.
N+1 Singer, which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the FCA, is acting as nominated adviser and broker to the Group in connection with the Admission and Placing and will not be acting for any other person or otherwise be responsible to any person for providing the protections afforded to customers of N+1 Singer or for advising any other person in respect of the Admission and / or the Placing. N+1 Singer 's responsibilities as the Group's nominated adviser under the AIM Rules are owed solely to the London Stock Exchange and are not owed to the Group or to any Director or to any other person in respect of such person's decision to acquire shares in the Group in reliance on any part of this announcement. N+1 Singer has not authorised the contents of any part of this announcement and neither accepts liability for the accuracy of any information or opinions contained in this announcement nor for the omission of any material information from this announcement for which the Group and the Directors are responsible. No representation or warranty, express or implied, is made by N+1 Singer as to any of the contents of this announcement (without limiting the statutory rights of any person to whom this announcement is issued).
The shares have not been, nor will they be, registered under the US Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act") or with any securities regulatory authority of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States or under the applicable securities laws of Australia, Canada, Japan, the Republic of Ireland or the Republic of South Africa. Subject to certain exceptions, the shares may not be offered or sold in the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, the Republic of Ireland or the Republic of South Africa or to or for the account or benefit of any national, resident or citizen of Australia, Canada, Japan, the Republic of Ireland or the Republic of South Africa or any person located in the United States. The offer of the shares and the distribution of this announcement in other jurisdictions may be restricted by law and the persons into whose possession this announcement comes should inform themselves about, and observe, any such restrictions.
This announcement may include "forward-looking statements". All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this announcement, including, without limitation, those regarding the Group's financial position, business strategy, plans and objectives of management for future operations (including development plans and objectives relating to the Group's evaluation of the potential acquisition) are forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties and accordingly the Group's actual future financial results and operational performance may differ materially from the results and performance expressed in, or implied by, the statements. These factors include but are not limited to those described in the formal admission document.