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.