Flowgroup Regulatory News (FLOW)

15 Jun 2009 07:00



Energetix Group plc

('Energetix' or 'the Group')

Energetix Group's subsidiary VPhase achieves CE Certification

Energetix Group plc (AIM:EGX), a company with three cost-effective products to meet the growing demand for alternative energy, is pleased to announce that its subsidiary, VPhase plc (AIM:VPHA), has achieved CE Certification for its Smart Voltage Management product.  The full transcript of the VPhase plc ('VPhase' or 'the Company') RNS is set out below:

VPhase plc (AIM:VPHA), a leading developer of energy saving products for residential and commercial properties, is pleased to announce that it has achieved CE Certification for its Smart Voltage Management product. CE marking will allow VPhase, a subsidiary of Energetix Group plc (AIM:EGX), to immediately initiate commercial sales of its product in the UK and mainland Europe.

Certification will also enable VPhase to carry out household field trials with its UK utility partners, Scottish & Southern Energy and British Gas, and to continue to develop its pipeline of potential sales contacts established in the past year through the Company's ongoing marketing efforts.  

CE Certification is a prerequisite marking for all electrical appliances before they can be sold in the UK and mainland Europe. The CE marking has been achieved following a series of rigorous tests by independent test houses, covering the key requirements of electromagnetic compatibility (both emissions and immunity) and safety compliance.

The VPhase Smart Voltage Management product reduces and regulates incoming voltage into a household. Testing has demonstrated that the product can result in savings on typical electricity bills of up to 10% or more. VPhase is targeting its first sales via partnerships with energy utilities, social housing organisations, and energy efficiency companies to introduce the units into UK homes. In addition, VPhase has started a programme to introduce the units to other geographical markets such as mainland Europe and the US. It has begun discussions regarding routes to the US market with British Gas, whose parent group Centrica plc is owner of Direct Energy, one of the US' leading integrated energy companies.

The UK installation of domestic energy efficiency measures such as the VPhase device is being boosted by the Government's Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) programme, which expects to spend over £3 billion on such measures during the period from 2008 to 2011.  

Lee Juby, CEO of VPhase, says: "We are very pleased that we have now achieved CE Certification for our Smart Voltage Management unit, which means that we can immediately instigate the push to commercial sales of our units.  Our agreements with British Gas and Scottish and Southern Energy will, subject to satisfactory trials, allow access to up to 40% of the UK housing market, and we are continuing to establish further opportunities through other routes.

"I would like to commend all of our team for their dedication to developing and marketing the VPhase product. We now look forward to achieving commercial sales in the UK market and making headway into additional countries."

Adrian Hutchings, Energetix CEO and VPhase Executive Chairman, says "I am extremely pleased that VPhase has succeeded in achieving the critical milestone of CE marking for the VX1 product.  This comes at an exciting time for Energetix Group, bringing us a step closer to all three of our businesses being able to deliver product to customers.  Pnu Power has already achieved this goal, with CE marking achieved last year, and is now delivering product to initial customers in Europe and the USA. Also Genlec is well on course to trial Genlec-enabled microCHP boilers this year."

- Ends -

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About Energetix Group plc

Energetix Group plc has three businesses with cost-effective products to meet the growing global demand for alternative energy. With a focus on distributed generation, energy storage and energy efficiency, the Energetix businesses are:

Energetix (Pnu) Power Limited - compressed-air back-up power;

Energetix Genlec Limited - distributed generation in the home; and

VPhase plc - domestic energy efficiency.

Energetix's strategy is to create products based on robust engineering principles, regularly utilising existing mass-produced components configured in a novel and patentable way. Avoiding cutting-edge science has enabled the Group's businesses to de-risk the new product development process which in turn reduces development time and costs. This has enabled the businesses to have a lower-than-normal technology risk while still producing strong intellectual property. In addition, this facilitates the outsourcing of production and assembly, significantly reducing the Group's investment in capital equipment. The body of know-how developed within the Group has also enabled our businesses to modify the design of existing mass-produced components to reduce costs, improve efficiency and strengthen the Group's intellectual property position.

Energetix Group joined AIM in August 2006. The Group and its subsidiaries are all based near Chester, NW England.  

www.energetixgroup.com