TIDMBMN
RNS Number : 2719U
Bushveld Minerals Limited
01 April 2021
1 April 2021
Bushveld Minerals Limited
("Bushveld Minerals" "Bushveld" or the "Company")
Follow-on investment in Enerox GmbH
Bushveld Minerals Limited (AIM: BMN), the AIM quoted, integrated
primary vanadium producer and energy storage solutions provider,
with ownership of high-grade assets in South Africa, ("Bushveld"),
is pleased to provide an update in respect of Bushveld Energy
Limited, its 84%-owned energy subsidiary ("Bushveld Energy") and
its investment in Enerox GmbH ("Enerox"), a Vanadium Redox Flow
Battery ("VRFB") manufacturer providing grid scale and micro-grid
energy storage solut ions.
Highlights
-- A consortium of investors in Enerox Holdings Limited ("EHL"),
which wholly owns Enerox, is investing US$30 million to scale up
production capacity to 30MW by 2022.
-- Bushveld Energy has an indirect interest in Enerox of 25.25
per cent, through VRFB Holdings Limited ("VRFB H") , which owns 50
per cent interest in EHL.
-- Bushveld will contribute its share of the investment, being
US$7.5 million comprising US$5 million paid on 31 March 2021 and
US$2.5 million payable during the month of April 2021.
-- Bushveld's funding strategy for Bushveld Energy initiatives
is to promote self-funding and funding sharing with external
partners, including its follow-on investment in Enerox.
Self-funding options being realised by Bushveld Energy include
proceeds of the sale of a portion of its holding in Invinity Energy
Systems Plc ("Invinity").
-- The investment is in line with Bushveld's strategy to
mobilise capital to scale up growth and manufacturing capacity of
VRFB manufacturers, as illustrated by the previous and on-going
success of Invinity.
Fortune Mojapelo, CEO of Bushveld Minerals, commented:
"Investing in VRFB manufacturers is a part of Bushveld Energy's
strategy, designed to play a catalytic role in mobilising
third-party capital to assist VRFB manufacturers scale up of sales
and manufacturing capacity in order to meet the fast-growing demand
for long duration energy storage solutions.
Our first investment of US$5 million in Invinity played a
critical role in establishing Invinity out of the merger of Avalon
and RedT, and allowed it to access follow-on funding from the
equity capital markets, establishing a leading VRFB player. In
addition, to a healthy return from Bushveld's US$5 million
investment, the success of the investment in Invinity is evidenced
by its AIM listing with a healthy >US$150 million market
capitalisation and a well-funded programme to scale up its
production capacity to support a solid pipeline of announced VRFB
projects.
Our investment in Enerox follows the same script of mobilising
third-party financing to scale up manufacturing capacity and sales,
while establishing a platform for collaboration in developing
projects into which we will supply vanadium. The funding
commitments of Enerox's shareholders are a strong vote of
confidence in the potential and strategy of the company. We believe
that this additional capital will place Enerox on the path to
becoming a major player in the industry. It further cements VRFB
technology in the rapidly growing stationary energy storage
sector.
The sell down of our Invinity stake is no reflection of any
diminishing faith in the potential of the company. We are proud of
its achievements and continue to cooperate on other topics,
including vanadium supply, vanadium electrolyte rental and the
overall growth of the VRFB industry. Our decision is rather
informed by our conservative capital allocation strategy across the
Group, which focuses resources on our mining and processing
operations and seeks to place Bushveld Energy on a path to
self-fund its future plans.
Enerox update
As part of Bushveld strategy of partnering with VRFB Original
Equipment Manufacturers ("OEMs") that includes supply of vanadium
and electrolyte, deployments and investment, the Company
successfully completed in 2020 the acquisition of Enerox as part of
a consortium, Enerox Holdings Limited ("EHL").
Enerox is a leader among VRFB peers, with a more than 20 years
development and production history, over 130 systems / 23MWh
deployed. In H2 2020, Enerox secured 13 MWh in signed orders for
its systems.
EHL holds a 100 per cent interest in Enerox, with Bushveld
Energy a 25.25 per cent shareholder in EHL through VRFB H. To date
EHL has invested US$14.6 million into Enerox to fund acquisition
consideration, transaction costs and working capital
requirements.
The EHL shareholders and Enerox management have determined that
the growth capital required by Enerox is US$30 million, which will
provide sufficient funding for Enerox to scale up to 30 MW (120 -
240 MWh) per annum manufacturing capacity and sales, executing upon
a strong pipeline of available projects, with a future expansion
allowing Enerox to scale to at least 150 MW (600 - 1,200 MWh) by
2025.
Bushveld Energy's share of the funding requirement is
approximately US$7.5 million, of which it has already paid US$5
million. It intends to invest another US$2.5 million in VRFB H, and
thus ultimately in Enerox, in April 2021 in order to maintain its
25.25 per cent indirect shareholding.
Invinity update
Bushveld Energy has monetised a portion of its Invinity holding
and received approximately US$8.8 million. As at the last
practicable date, being 31 March 2021, Bushveld Energy's Invinity
holding was less than three per cent. The proceeds from the sale
will be used to fund Bushveld Energy initiatives in 2021, including
the Vanadium Electrolyte Rental Limited ("VERL"), the partnership
established with Invinity to rent vanadium electrolyte, the global
scale up of the vanadium electrolyte rental product and the follow
on investment in Enerox.
Bushveld's right of first refusal to supply vanadium and
vanadium electrolyte to systems sold by Invinity will still be
effective up to the second year anniversary of the agreement. This
is buoyed by the planned manufacturing expansion capacity announced
by Invinity in its March 2021 update, including "stack
manufacturing expansion, delivering a total 200% capacity increase
over December 2020 levels" and an agreement with a "strategic
manufacturing partner in China giving the Company an option to
increase manufacturing capacity up to +80%."
S
Enquiries: info@bushveldminerals.com
+27 (0) 11 268
Bushveld Minerals Limited 6555
Fortune Mojapelo, Chief Executive
Officer
Chika Edeh, Head of Investor
Relations
SP Angel Corporate Finance Nominated Adviser +44 (0) 20 3470
LLP & Broker 0470
Richard Morrison / Charlie
Bouverat
Abigail Wayne / Richard Parlons
+44 (0) 20 7236
BMO Capital Markets Limited Joint Broker 1010
Tom Rider
+44 (0) 20 7418
Peel Hunt Limited Joint Broker 8900
Ross Allister / Alexander
Allen
Tavistock Financial PR
Charles Vivian / Gareth Tredway
/ +44 (0) 207 920
Annabel de Morgan 3150
ABOUT BUSHVELD MINERALS LIMITED
Bushveld Minerals is a low-cost, vertically integrated primary
vanadium producer. It is one of only three operating primary
vanadium producers, owning 2 of the world's 4 operating primary
vanadium processing facilities. The Company produced more than
3,600 metric tonnes of Vanadium in 2020. The Company is funded to
grow its production to more than 6,800 mtVp.a. by 2025 (almost
double the achieved production in 2020), and could, subject to
funding, increase its production to more to 8,400 mtVp.a. over the
same period.
Bushveld Minerals owns a diversified vanadium product portfolio
serving the needs of the steel, energy and chemical sectors.
Bushveld Minerals participates in the entire vanadium value chain
through its two main pillars: Bushveld Vanadium, which mines and
processes vanadium; and Bushveld Energy, an energy storage
solutions provider. Bushveld Energy is focused on developing and
promoting the role of vanadium in the growing global energy storage
market through application in vanadium redox flow batteries.
Detailed information on the Company and progress to date can be
accessed on the website
Detailed information on the Company and progress to date can be
accessed on the website www.bushveldminerals.com .
About Bushveld Energy Limited
Bushveld Energy is a leading energy storage solutions provider,
focusing on the African market. Bushveld Energy recognises that the
requirement for electricity in Africa touches on both the paramount
potential for social transformation and an immense commercial
opportunity.
Bushveld Energy is focused on developing and promoting the role
of vanadium in the growing global energy storage market through
application in vanadium redox flow batteries. Its near-term
strategy is to deploy several VRFB systems as part of its longer
term vision to become a significant electricity storage provider in
Africa, meeting the demand for utility scale energy storage in
Africa by leveraging South Africa-mined and beneficiated vanadium.
As part of its strategy of partnering with VRFB Original Equipment
Manufacturers ("OEM") for the supply of vanadium material, vanadium
electrolyte and vanadium electrolyte rental products, the Company
is invested in Invinity Energy Systems Plc and Enerox GmbH. In
addition, Bushveld Energy is developing its own hybrid mini-grid at
the Vametco vanadium mine comprising 3.5 megawatts of solar
photovoltaic and 4 megawatt hours of VRFB energy storage. In
addition, Bushveld Energy has developed a vanadium electrolyte
plant in partnership with the Industrial Development Corporation,
with an initial 200 megawatt hours capacity, in East London, South
Africa. The Company has also
created and rolled out an innovative vanadium electrolyte rental
product that reduces costs of VRFBs and introduces vanadium into
the circular economy.
http://www.bushveldenergy.com
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