CST CO2 Solutions Inc

TSX-V: CST

QUEBEC CITY, Nov. 15, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - CO₂ Solutions Inc. (the "Corporation" or "CO₂ Solutions") (TSXV: CST) today announced its financial results for the three-month period ended September 30, 2018. The Corporation's detailed financial statements and management's discussion and analysis ("MD&A") will be filed and available on www.sedar.com.

• Carbon capture equipment at Saint-Félicien being readied for start-up by end of year
• Valorisation Carbone Québec (VCQ) site prepares to receive first CO₂ conversion technology in first quarter of calendar year 2019
• Hydro-Quebec joins VCQ as its tenth partner

Three-month Period Ended September 30, 2018, and Subsequent Operational Highlights

Update on the Saint-Félicien Project

The Saint-Félicien carbon capture project is proceeding as expected. Construction of the capture unit on the site at the Resolute Forest Products pulp mill in Saint-Félicien, Quebec by the Corporation's selected contractor Alco-TMI, from Alma, Quebec began in June 2018. The absorption and desorption columns have been assembled and the unit's modules are in place. Completion of the construction is expected by December 2018 and will be followed by a six-month period of commissioning and demonstration. Following the commissioning and demonstration period, the commercial operation, which consists in providing CO₂ to the adjacent greenhouse operated by Serres Toundra, will begin.

Update on the VCQ Project

The Corporation continues to lead the world's most comprehensive CO₂ capture and utilization demonstration project, Valorisation Carbone Québec. Launched in February 2017, the objectives of this project are to develop and demonstrate commercially viable end-to-end solutions to capture and utilize CO₂ in various applications while reducing greenhouse gas ("GHG") emissions. The CO₂ Solutions' carbon capture unit is operating at the Parachem site in Montreal-East, Quebec on a 24/7 schedule. The first CO₂ conversion technology is expected to be deployed by the first quarter of the calendar year 2019.

CO₂ Solutions Welcomes Hydro-Québec as Service Provider in VCQ Project

On July 17, 2018, CO₂ Solutions announced that Hydro-Québec, through its Laboratoire des technologies de l'énergie (LTE), had joined the VCQ project as a Service Provider Partner. Hydro-Québec represents the tenth partner to adhere to VCQ since the launch of the project in 2017.

CO₂ Solutions Receives $375,000 Contribution from Natural Resources Canada

On August 7, 2018, CO₂ Solutions announced that it had received a $375,000 non-refundable contribution from Natural Resources Canada ("NRCan") towards the reduction of the cost and improvement of the performance of the Corporation's proprietary carbon capture technology. Under the terms of the contribution agreement, NRCan's assistance is directed towards helping the Corporation improve the overall performance of its CO₂ capture system through optimized process configurations. Such improvements translate into a decrease in capital and operational expenditures.  

Summary of financial results

Revenues and Loss
The Corporation recorded no revenues for the three-month period ended September 30, 2018. The Corporation recorded $0.02 million for the same period in 2017. The loss for the three-month period ended September 30, 2018, increased by $0.83 million from the same period last year to $1.6 million, reflecting the increase in levels of activities in the Saint-Félicien and VCQ projects, partially offset by government assistance relating to these projects.

Research and Development Expenses
Research and development expenses, before tax credits and government assistance, increased by $0.79 million to $0.90 million for the three-month period ended September 30, 2018, compared with $0.10 million for the same period last year. The change reflects an increase in research and development activities associated with the Saint-Félicien and VCQ projects.

Government assistance for the three-month period ended September 30, 2018, was $3.88 million, compared to $3.50 million for the same period in 2017. This government assistance comes in the form of subsidies granted to the Corporation mainly by the government of Quebec for the VCQ project, as well as assistance received from Sustainable Development Technology Canada, and Technoclimat (Transition Énergétique Québec) associated with the Saint-Félicien project. 

General and Administrative Expenses
General and administrative expenses totalled $0.46 million for the three-month period ended September 30, 2018, up slightly from the $0.44 million for the same period in 2017.

Liquidity and Financial Position
As at September 30, 2018, the Corporation held approximately $4.29 million in cash and cash equivalents, consisting primarily of advances received from the Government of Quebec applicable to the VCQ project, $3.6 million in receivables, and $0.26 million in provincial tax credits receivable in the short-term, for total liquid assets of approximately $8.16 million ($8.62 million as at June 30, 2018).

Such amounts may prove insufficient to fund the Corporation's forecasted working capital requirements for the next 12 months. Through current and ongoing negotiations with potential funding partners and provincial and federal government agencies, the Corporation's management is actively seeking to raise the necessary additional capital to meet its funding requirements. 

A more comprehensive discussion of the Corporation's operations and financing activities along with CO₂ Solutions' audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended June 30, 2018, the unaudited condensed interim consolidated financial statements for the three-month period ended September 30, 2018, and related notes included therein and the Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three-month period ended September 30, 2018, will be filed and available in the Corporation's filings on www.sedar.com.

Grant of Options

The Corporation announced that it has granted, on November 15, 2018, a total of 2,282,708 stock options to certain of its directors, officers and employees. Each stock option, governed by the Corporation's stock option plan, allows the holder thereof to acquire one common share of the Corporation at a price of $0.10 per common share until November 15, 2023.

Grant of Restrictive Share Units (RSU's)

On November 15, 2018, in accordance with the terms of the RSU plan that was approved in November 2015, the Corporation's Board of Directors granted 970,579 RSU's to certain officers, consultants and employees. In accordance with the terms of the plans, these RSU's were valued at $0.085 per share, that being the last closing price of the Corporation's Common Shares on the TSX-V immediately prior to the date on which market value of the units is determined, that date being November 14, 2018. The RSU's granted will fully vest on January 1, 2019. 

Results of the Shareholders' Annual General Meeting

At the Corporation's Shareholders Annual General Meeting held today, November 15, 2018, in Quebec City, Quebec, shareholders re-elected Evan Price, Glenn R. Kelly, Robert Manherz, Kimberley Okell, and Jocelyn Proteau to the Board of Directors. In addition, shareholders voted to increase the maximum number of common shares of the Corporation reserved for issuance under the Corporation's Restricted Share Unit Plan and Deferred Share Unit Plan. Shareholders also voted to reappoint PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP/s.r.l./s.e.n.c.r.l., Chartered Professional Accountants, as auditor of the Corporation for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2019.

About CO₂ Solutions Inc.
CO₂ Solutions is an innovator in the field of enzyme-enabled carbon capture and has been actively working to develop and commercialize the technology for stationary sources of carbon pollution. CO₂ Solutions' technology lowers the cost barrier to Carbon Capture, Utilization and Sequestration (CCUS), positioning it as a viable CO₂ mitigation tool, as well as enabling industry to derive profitable new products from these emissions. CO₂ Solutions has built an extensive patent portfolio covering the use of carbonic anhydrase, or analogues thereof, for the efficient post-combustion capture of carbon dioxide with low-energy aqueous solvents. Further information can be found at www.co2solutions.com.

CO₂ Solutions Forward-looking Statements
Certain statements in this news release may be forward-looking. These statements relate to future events such as CO₂ Solutions' future economic performance, and reflect the current assumptions and expectations of management. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, general business and economic uncertainties, third party events and adverse market conditions as well as those risks set out in the Corporation's public documents filed on SEDAR. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. CO₂ Solutions undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable law.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

www.co2solutions.com

SOURCE CO2 Solutions Inc.