Versarien Regulatory News (VRS)

18 December 2019

Versarien plc

("Versarien" or the "Company")

Airbus Graphene Flagship Project

Versarien Plc (AIM: VRS), the advanced materials engineering group, is pleased to announce that it has been selected to participate in the Graphene Flagship project led by Airbus (the "Project").

Funded by the European Commission, the Graphene Flagship facilitates cooperation between its partners, accelerating the timeline for industry acceptance of graphene technologies. The Project that Versarien will participate in will be led by Airbus and will focus on graphene enhanced thermoelectric ice protection systems.

Ice accumulates on the surfaces of airplanes affecting the pilot's control of the aircraft. Thermoelectric ice protection systems prevent this from happening using an ultra-thin conductive layer to generate heat. The Project, which is categorised by the Graphene Flagship as a "Spearhead", large-scale commercialisation project, aims to develop graphene-based thermoelectric ice protection systems and to advance the technology readiness level of graphene in these systems.

To fund Versarien's participation in the Project it has received approval for a €350,000 grant from the Graphene Flagship.

Elmar Bonaccurso, Senior Scientist and Project Manager for Surface Technology at Airbus, commented: "Airbus has been following the Graphene Flagship from the beginning. Now, after six years of successful research and development, we are at the right point to step in with a larger project. We expect that, by using graphene as a material for ice protection systems, we can reduce the complexity of these systems to create a system that uses less energy, reduces fuel consumption and allows us to become more environmentally friendly in aviation."

Neill Ricketts, CEO of Versarien, commented: "We are very pleased to be working with Airbus on this key Graphene Flagship project and to be receiving funding from the Graphene Flagship to facilitate it. This is another example of Versarien's graphene technology being deployed in the aerospace sector, one where it has the potential to add significant value. We look forward to starting work on this project in the New Year and reporting on its progress and those of our many other commercialisation projects in due course."

Enquiries:

About the Graphene Flagship

The Graphene Flagship is research, innovation and collaboration. Funded by the European Commission, the Graphene Flagship aims to secure a major role for Europe in the ongoing technological revolution, helping to bring graphene innovations out of the lab and into commercial applications. The Graphene Flagship gathers nearly 150 academic and industrial partners from 23 countries, all exploring different aspects of graphene and related materials. Bringing diverse competencies together, the Graphene Flagship facilitates cooperation between its partners, accelerating the timeline for industry acceptance of graphene technologies. The European Commission's FET Flagships enable research projects on an unprecedented scale. With €1 billion budgets, the Graphene Flagship, Human Brain Project and Quantum Flagship serve as technology accelerators, helping Europe to compete with other global markets in research and innovation.

About Versarien

Versarien plc (AIM: VRS), is an advanced engineering materials group. Leveraging proprietary technology, the Group creates innovative engineering solutions for its clients in a diverse range of industries. Versarien has seven subsidiaries operating under two divisions:

Graphene and Plastics

2-DTech Ltd, which specialises in the supply, characterisation and early stage development of graphene products. www.2-dtech.com

AAC Cyroma Limited, which specialises in the supply of vacuum-formed and injection-moulded products to the automotive, construction, utilities and retail industry sectors. Using Versarien's existing graphene manufacturing capabilities, AAC will have the ability to produce graphene-enhanced plastic products. www.aaccyroma.co.uk

Cambridge Graphene Limited, supplies novel inks based on graphene and related materials, using patented processes to develop graphene materials technology.

www.cambridgegraphene.com

Gnanomat S.L. ("GNA"), based in the Parque Cientifico Madrid, Spain, is a company capable of utilising Versarien's graphene products in an environmentally friendly, scalable production process for energy storage devices that offer high power density, fast recharging and very long lifetimes for use in electrical vehicles and portable electronics products. www.gnanomat.com

Versarien Graphene Inc - based in Texas, is the newly incorporated sales business for the UK's graphene products.

Hard Wear and Metallic Products

Versarien Technologies Limited has developed an additive process for creating advanced micro-porous metals targeting the thermal management industry and supplies extruded aluminium. www.versarien-technologies.co.uk 

Total Carbide Limited, a leading manufacturer in sintered tungsten carbide for applications in arduous environments such as the oil and gas industry. www.totalcarbide.com