Symphony Env. Regulatory News (SYM)

27 May 2008 11:04



SYMPHONY ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGIES PLC

Offer of Grant

Symphony Environmental Technologies Plc ("Symphony"), the degradable plastics and waste-to-energy Group, announces that it's wholly owned subsidiary, Symphony Energy Ltd (the "Company") has now been officially advised by the Technology Strategy Board that the Company and its consortium partners have been offered a £1.19m grant for collaborative research and development in the area of High Value Manufacturing, for the consortium's Rubber Product Enhanced Recovery Technology project ("RµPERT"). 

The Company is the lead partner; the other members of the consortium are Imperial College London, ABB Limited (Robotics Division), Hughes Pumps Limited, Credowan Limited (Subsidiary of Cobham Plc) and ARTIS (a business of Avon Rubber Plc). The partners were chosen for their expertise which wholly supports the collaborative research and development of microwave pyrolysis and rubber product enhanced recovery.

The Grant will support a substantial part of Symphony's external project cost through the Partners but excludes direct management cost. The Grant project is subject to reaching and completing further intellectual property and other agreements with the consortium members.

The Company now has until the 1 July 2008 to accept the offer and would anticipate a project launch within the next three months.

Michael Laurier, CEO of Symphony, and Robert Nash, MD of Symphony Energy said:

"We are delighted to be working with all the partners on this exciting programme and look forward to giving updates as we progress through the stages and bring the technology to commercialisation". 

Dr. Geoff Fowler, Research Fellow of Imperial College London commented:

"This award builds on the close working relationship between my Research Group and Symphony and we are delighted to be a key part of the team. The opportunities offered by the award are significant - both in terms of the research and the environmental benefits which innovative, energy efficient, material recovery technology of this type affords."

Mike Badger, Account Manager at ABB Ltd (Robotics Division) commented:"We are pleased to be involved in the RµPERT consortium and wholly support the research and development of processes for product recovery as these innovative technologies are essential in today's environment". 

Phil Cranford, Managing Director of Hughes Pumps Ltd commented:

"We are also delighted to be involved in this ground breaking project, working alongside other consortium partners who are also leaders in their particular fields". 

Nigel Bowes, Sales and Marketing Director of Credowan Ltd commented:

"We are very happy to be part of the RµPERT consortium, supporting it with our expertise and look forward to the exciting opportunities that the project will bring".

Martyn Bennett, Chief Scientist of ARTIS commented:

"We are very excited to be involved in this programme and believe Symphony Energy has put together the right mix of expertise in the consortium to deliver a successful outcome to the project".

For further information, please contact:

Further information on the Symphony Environmental Technologies Group of companies:

SYMPHONY ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGIES PLC is a world leader in oxo-biodegradable plastic technology. The technology is recognised by the d2w® droplet logo on thousands of tonnes of oxo-biodegradable plastic products. In the last 12 months it is estimated that more than 5 Billion plastic products have been made with Symphony's d2w® pro-degradant additives.

Symphony has a diverse and growing customer base and has successfully established itself as an international business. Its d2w® products can already be found in more than 60 countries. Symphony is proud to be a member of the Oxo-biodegradable Plastics Association (www.biodeg.org).

Symphony is also developing innovative waste-to-energy technology and is developing cost-effective processes to convert plastics, tyres and other waste streams into valuable products.

Further information on the Symphony Group can be found at 

The Technology Strategy Board is a business-led executive non-departmental public body, established by the government. Its mission is to promote and support research into, and development and exploitation of, technology and innovation for the benefit of UK business, in order to increase economic growth and improve the quality of life. It is sponsored by the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). For further information please visit www.innovateuk.org.