17 Dec 2007 07:00
Embargoed Release: 07:00hrs Monday 17 December 2007
Zenergy Power plc (`Zenergy' or the `Group') Key FCL Technical Milestone
Zenergy Power plc (AIM:ZEN.L), the specialist manufacturer and developer of commercial applications for high-temperature superconductive (`HTS') materials, is pleased to announce that it has successfully tested its groundbreaking electricity grid stability device, proving it to be capable of instantaneously and automatically responding to multiple surges in electrical power whilst maintaining a continuous, uninterrupted and stable supply of electrical power to `downstream' devices. The successful testing of the Group's HTS medium-voltage Fault Current Limiter (`FCL') is the first such achievement in the United States and was conducted under the close observation of a number of US utility companies and representatives of The National Electric Energy Testing, Research and Applications Center (`NEETRAC').
Accordingly, the Group is proud to announce that the HTS FCL performed in line with management expectation and is advancing on schedule to become the first such device in the United States to be installed into a commercial power grid. The Board considers the US market for HTS FCLs to be the largest in the world and estimates it to be worth several billion dollars per annum. The Group was delighted in February of this year to receive Notice of Allowance from the US Patent Office for the issuance of its core patent surrounding the HTS FCL and is now positioned to progress towards the first ever installation of an HTS FCL in the United States.
Comparable to a computer network's `firewall', the Group's patented HTS FCL is capable of absorbing huge amounts of unwanted and highly damaging electrical power generated by fault currents in national electricity grids without having to interrupt the steady supply of power to downstream grid users. In doing this, the Group's HTS FCL not only protects electrical grid equipment from damaging power surges, but also prevents the common knock-on effect associated with blackouts that occurs when one part of the grid fails resulting in an `over-spill' of power to an adjacent grid. The effects of this `over-spilling' of electrical energy can be devastating and widespread as witnessed in August 2003 during the infamous northeast United States blackouts which began in northern Ohio and spread eastward through New York and up into parts of Canada affecting over 50 million people.
The global market for FCLs is expected to be worth up to US$5bn per annum.
The groundbreaking test of the Group's HTS FCL, attended by a number of representatives from some of the largest utility companies in the United States, was conducted at the world class facilities of Powertech Laboratories, based in British Columbia, Canada. At these facilities, the Group's device was - for the first time - exposed to real-life grid operating conditions and repeatedly tested with electrical energy surges replicating the severe fault currents associated with blackouts in national power grids. It is testimony to the Group's ability to develop and produce world-class industrial devices based upon its proprietary HTS know-how that the HTS FCL device consistently performed to management expectation and further demonstrated its readiness for commercial deployment.
These tests represent a major endorsement of the HTS FCL design and moreover of the ability of Zenergy's engineering team to scale-up previously constructed prototypes into grid-ready full-scale machines. Accordingly, the Board of Directors feels that the successful testing of this full-scale medium-voltage machine justifies a significant level of confidence in the successful outcome of two major existing FCL projects in which the Group is engaged:
* Firstly, as announced on 2 April 2007, the Group's wholly owned subsidiary, SC Power Systems, Inc. (`SC Power') based in San Mateo, California has been granted US$500,000 by the California Energy Commission to install its medium-voltage HTS FCL into the Californian Electricity grid. The successful testing of the Group's medium-voltage HTS FCL as announced today gives the Board significant confidence that Zenergy will be the first Group ever to successfully install an HTS FCL into a commercial grid within the United States. * Secondly, as announced on 29 June 2007, SC Power has also been awarded a further $11 million grant from the US Department of Energy to work with Los Alamos National Laboratory, Delta Star Inc., Southern California Edison (California's largest utility) and the Consolidated Edison Company of New York Inc. (a subsidiary of Consolidated Edison Inc., one of the largest investor-owned energy companies in the US) to install a larger scale high-voltage version of the HTS FCL into the US electricity grid. It is the consideration of the Board that the successful scaling up and testing of the Group's medium-voltage HTS FCL demonstrates the ability of Zenergy's engineering team and affords them increased confidence in the successful outcome of this major US Federal Government project.
Frank Lambert, Program Manager of NEETRAC, commented:
`The continuing increase in electricity consumption and corresponding load density growth is requiring more and more generation and grid interconnections in the electrical utility network. The level of fault current is beginning to exceed the capabilities of existing circuit breakers and other power system equipment. Fault current limiters can provide an economic solution for this critical problem on our utility infrastructure.'
-Ends- Further information:Dr. Jens Mƒ¼ller Zenergy Power Plc + 49 22 26 90 60 200 Andrew Tan Hansard Group + 44 207 245 1100 Tom Hulme Landsbanki Securities + 44 207 426 9000 (UK) Limited About NEETRAC
The National Electric Energy Testing, Research and Applications Center (NEETRAC) is a non-profit, member supported electric energy research, development and testing center, housed in the Georgia Institute of Technology's School of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Widely recognized as one of the world's foremost electric energy research, testing and evaluation centers, NEETRAC is engaged in a wide spectrum of innovative activities. Members of NEETRAC include among others; Baltimore Gas & Electric, Consolidated Edison Co. of New York, Florida Power & Light, PacifiCorp and Southern California Edison.
For more information regarding NEETRAC please visit: http:// www.neetrac.gatech.edu/
About Zenergy Group plc
Zenergy Power plc is a global specialist manufacturer and developer of commercial applications for superconductive materials. Comprising three operating subsidiaries located in Germany (Trithor), USA (SC Power Systems) and Australia (Australian Superconductors), Zenergy is highly focussed on the commercialisation of a number of energy efficient applications to be adopted in renewable energy power generation, energy distribution and large scale, energy intensive industrial processes and achieved the world's first commercial sale of an industrial scale HTS device in September 2007.
About superconductivity
Superconductive materials are capable of conducting electricity without any resistance and were first discovered in 1911 in what was to prove to be one of the most significant scientific breakthroughs of the 20th century.
The global HTS market is substantial and growing, with a number of market studies projecting multi-billion dollar markets for the application of HTS materials and products. The proliferation of the use of superconductor materials is largely being driven by the following key factors:
(a) HTS materials are highly complementary to energy efficient technologies as a substitute for copper
(b) HTS wires have power densities of over 100x that of copper
(c) Current developments are leading to substantially reduced costs in the production of HTS wires and are targeting to be cheaper than copper over the next few years
(d) HTS applications deliver exceptional energy efficiencies and thus reduced power consumption and running costs
(e) HTS technology is set to play a significant role in reducing CO2 emissions in line with international targets
(f) HTS applications are capable of delivering vastly increased levels of power with increased reliability and reduced material usage
ZENERGY POWER PLC