REG - EQTEC PLC - Billingham Project Update

EQTECAnnouncement

15/02/2022 07:00

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RNS Number : 6543B  EQTEC PLC  15 February 2022

15 February 2022

EQTEC plc

("EQTEC", the "Company" or the "Group")

 

Billingham Project Variation to the Land Purchase Agreement

 

EQTEC plc (AIM: EQT), a world-leading technology innovation company enabling
the Net Zero Future through advanced solutions for hydrogen, biofuels, SNG and
other energy production confirms that, further to its announcement on 26
February 2021, Haverton WTV Limited ("Haverton") a wholly owned subsidiary of
EQTEC, and Scott Bros. Enterprises Limited ("Scott Bros") have reached an
agreement (the "Variation") to extend the existing, conditional Land Purchase
Agreement (the "LPA") relating to the land on which the proposed, up to 25 MWe
Billingham waste gasification and power plant (the "Project") at Haverton
Hill, Billingham, UK, will be constructed (the "Project Site").

 

Key terms of the Agreement and Variation:

 ·         The consideration for purchase of the Project Site remains £8,600,000;
 ·         A deposit amount of £260,000 was paid by Haverton to Scott Bros on 26
           February 2021;
 ·         A further payment of £250,000 will be paid on or before 24 February 2022,
           with an additional payment of £500,000 to be paid on or before 30 September
           2022 to Scott Bros. These two payments will be deducted from the total
           purchase price along with the previously paid deposit;
 ·         The balance of £7,590,000 is payable at completion of the land purchase,
           which must occur on or before 23 December 2022, (the "Longstop Date");
 ·         In addition, a further fee of £250,000 as consideration for the Variation,
           will be paid by Haverton to Scott Bros on or before 24 February 2022;
 ·         All other conditions of the existing LPA remain the same regarding
           satisfaction or waiver by Haverton of specified conditions prior to the
           Longstop Date. These conditions refer to development and financing of the
           Project, including: Haverton's having reached financial close in respect of
           such financing; Haverton's having agreed the form of key construction,
           operational, offtake and feedstock contracts; and the Project's having been
           fully permitted by the relevant planning and environmental authorities; and
 ·         Haverton and Scott Bros have agreed to transfer responsibility for management
           of the grid connection from Scott Bros to Haverton prior to the Longstop Date.
           The grid connection has already been secured.

 

David Palumbo, CEO of EQTEC, commented:

"The Billingham project on Teesside continues to generate strong and varied
interest from investors, EPC and technology partners and offtake purchasers,
including potential customers for hydrogen or biofuels. As we drive completion
of feasibility studies on these options and adjust the proposed business model
for the plant, we are increasingly excited about the impact we can make and
the role we can play in development of Teesside's leadership with innovative
energy provision in the UK. Our decision last year to defer this project is
already giving us the space to gather together an exciting team and to
actively engage a range of potential partners in the area. We look forward to
providing regular updates on our progress and to sharing more news as we
advance as an innovation leader for clean baseload energy and biofuels."

 

Further information about the Project

This announcement follows a number of updates made by the Company in respect
of the Project. Most recently, as announced on 13 December 2021, and 1
February 2022, whereby the Company announced it had deferred financial close
from 2021 and had been actively engaged with Tier 1 EPC companies planning and
costing for the front-end engineering design work. This work commenced on
schedule in January 2022. Since then, an EPC legal framework has been defined
by the Company.

 

Over the same period, developments in gas and power markets have created new
and compelling opportunities for offtake from the plant. As a result, the
Company has entered discussions with local, industrial offtake customers for
potential provision of a range of syngas-to-power, syngas-to-heat and
syngas-to-chemical applications. The Company has also received updated
indicative terms for power offtake from three investment grade, bankable power
operators, with improved pricing in line with current wholesale electricity
market prices. The Company is evaluating these offers in conjunction with the
recent syngas-to-chemicals offtake opportunities to find the optimal revenue
mix for the Project.

 

The Project has existing planning permission for advanced thermal conversion
and EQTEC's revised planning approval both improves the economics of the
Project and reduces the size of the footprint of the plant.

 

This announcement contains inside information as defined in Article 7 of the
EU Market Abuse Regulation No 596/2014 and has been announced in accordance
with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of that Regulation.

 

ENQUIRIES

 EQTEC plc                                                     +44 203 883 7009
 David Palumbo / Nauman Babar

 Strand Hanson - Nomad & Financial Adviser                     +44 20 7409 3494
 James Harris / James Dance

 Arden Partners - Joint Broker                                 +44 20 7614 5900
 Paul Shackleton (Corporate) / Simon Johnson (Sales)

 Canaccord Genuity - Joint Broker                              +44 20 7523 8000
 Henry Fitzgerald-O'Connor / James Asensio / Patrick Dolaghan

 Alma PR - Financial Media & Investor Relations                +44 20 3405 0205
 Josh Royston / Sam Modlin / Matthew Young                     EQTEC@almapr.co.uk (mailto:EQTEC@almapr.co.uk)

 BECG - General Media Enquiries                                +44 7554 014 188 / +44 7867 452 269
 Carrie Lowe / Tom Gosschalk                                   EQTEC@BECG.com (mailto:EQTEC@BECG.com)

 

About EQTEC plc

As one of the world's most experienced gasification technology and engineering
companies, with a growing track record of delivering operational and
commercial success for transforming waste-to-energy through best-in-class
technology innovation, engineering and project development, EQTEC brings
together design innovation, project delivery discipline and solid commercial
experience to add momentum to the global energy transition. EQTEC's proven,
proprietary and patented technology is at the centre of clean energy projects,
sourcing local waste, championing local businesses, creating local jobs and
supporting the transition to localised, decentralised and resilient energy
systems.

 

EQTEC designs, supplies and builds advanced gasification facilities in the UK,
EU and US, with highly efficient equipment that is modular and scalable from
1MW to 30MW. EQTEC's versatile solutions process over 50 varieties of
feedstock, including forestry wood waste, vegetation and other agricultural
waste from farmers, industrial waste and sludge from factories and municipal
waste, all with no hazardous or toxic emissions. EQTEC's solutions produce a
pure, high-quality synthesis gas ("syngas") that can be used for the widest
range of applications, including the generation of electricity and heat,
production of synthetic natural gas (through methanation) or biofuels (through
Fischer-Tropsch, gas-to-liquid processing) and reforming of hydrogen.

 

EQTEC's technology integration capabilities enable the Group to lead
collaborative ecosystems of qualified partners and to build sustainable waste
reduction and green energy infrastructure around the world.

 

The Company is quoted on AIM (ticker: EQT) and the London Stock Exchange has
awarded EQTEC the Green Economy Mark, which recognises listed companies with
50% or more of revenues from environmental/green solutions.

 

Further information on the Company can be found at www.eqtec.com
(http://www.eqtec.com/) .

 

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