GREENVILLE, SC,
Sept. 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ - Scio
Diamond Technology Corporation (OTCBB: SCIO) (hereinafter "Scio" or
the "company") today announced that it has entered into product
specific Joint Venture Agreement to produce Type lla, Single
Crystal CVD diamond for a specific gemstone market.
Scio Diamond has signed a Joint Venture
agreement as the technology and delivery provider and has teamed
with two partners who bring more than 75 years collective
experience in the gemstone industry giving the consortium financial
strength while allowing the production to be vertically
integrated.
The joint ventures' facility will be located in
China, and will be initially
fitted out with 100 Scio designed diamond-growing reactors as well
as support equipment, such as lasers operation and HPHT pressing
machines. The facility will have the capability to expand to
400 diamond-growing reactors over the next 2 years. Scio's
current production technology has the produces 32,000 plus rough
carats of diamond annually with its 10 growers. This is
greater than a 50% improvement over 1-year ago. The Joint
Venture will be employing the next level of technology at its
outset, which will increase production by an additional 50%.
Scio is providing its patented CVD Diamond
Technology to the Joint Venture through a licensing agreement that
provides Scio with both an equity position and licensing
revenues. Scio's partners are responsible for providing
the Joint Venture funding as well as associated
technologies. "This venture affirms the acceptance of
Scio's technology platform and our proven ability to mass produce
quality diamond, by two of the industry leaders in their respective
fields", says Michael McMahon,
Scio's CEO.
The new entity is estimated to begin producing
diamond in the summer of 2014. "This is a significant time in
the history of Scio Diamond", said McMahon. "We have spent
our first year of operations focused on the mass-production of high
quality diamond, which has now been recognized".
"The partners of Scio Diamond in this venture
are showing by their investment, relationships and experience that
they have tremendous confidence in this approach. The three
of us have worked on this deal since April of this year", as we
have tested the market, the product, the improvement to the
product, the ability to mass-produce and together are convinced of
its potential", added McMahon.
From now until the first of the year, the JV
team will be engineering and installing the infrastructure of the
China facility. Most
importantly they will be hiring and training the technical
staff. Much of the upfront training will be taking place in
Greenville, SC, Scio's
headquarters. "One of the challenges, is taking our very
detailed processes and procedures, translating them and making sure
they are totally understood, prior to production startup", say
McMahon.
This joint venture clearly shows the confidence
of two of the industry's leaders in Scio's vision to become the
leader in the mass-production of high quality type lla single
crystal diamond.
About Scio
Scio employs a patent-protected chemical vapor
deposition process to produce high-quality, single-crystal diamond
in a controlled laboratory setting, with such diamond referred to
as "lab-grown" diamond. This lab-grown diamond has chemical,
physical and optical properties identical to "earth-mined" diamond.
The company's manufacturing process enables it to produce
high-quality, high-purity, single-crystal colorless, near colorless
and fancy colored diamond.
Scio's technology offers the flexibility to
produce lab-grown diamond in size, color and quality combinations
that are very rare in earth-mined diamond. Additionally, Scio
produces diamond that has the structural, optical and electronic
characteristics for industrial, medical and semiconductor
applications.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements
This press release contains forward-looking
statements that may involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties
and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance
or achievements of Scio to be materially different from future
results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by any
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements, which
involve assumptions and describe future plans, strategies and
expectations of the company, are generally identifiable by use of
the words "may," "will," "should," "could," "would," "forecast,"
"potential," "continue," "contemplate," "expect," "anticipate,"
"estimate," "believe," "intend," "or "project" or the negative of
these words or other variations on these words or comparable
terminology. These forward-looking statements are based on
assumptions that may be incorrect, and there can be no assurance
that these projections included in these forward-looking statements
will come to pass. Actual results of the company could differ
materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking
statements as a result of various factors. Except as required by
applicable laws, the company has no obligation to update publicly
any forward-looking statements for any reason, even if new
information becomes available or other events occur in the
future.
For further information: Contact Scio Diamond
Technology Corporation 
Michael McMahon
at mmcmahon@sciodiamond.com
SOURCE Scio Diamond