Published on 11/4/2018 • Category:
TIDMCIA
12 February 2018
Clean Invest Africa plc
(the "Company" or "CIA")
CoalTech Investment
Clean Invest Africa Plc (NEX:CIA), the NEX Exchange quoted clean technology and
renewable energy investment company, is delighted to announce its first
investment. The company has signed an investment agreement with privately held
CoalTech LLC ("CoalTech"), a Delaware limited liability company, and its sister
company, Coal Agglomeration South Africa (Pty) Ltd ("CASA"), which will give
CIA shareholders exposure to a commercial and scalable technology applied to
the remediation of waste coal fines. The technology produces a high quality,
saleable energy source from what would otherwise be a problematic waste
product.
Under the terms of the investment agreement CIA will invest US$500,000 in
return for a 2.5% holding in the ordinary share capital of CASA and will also
be awarded an equivalent shareholding in CoalTech.
Information on CoalTech and CASA are available at: http://
www.coaltechenergy.com/
CoalTech's principal focus lies in cleaning up the toxic and environmentally
damaging waste generated by coal mining. The process delivers a high quality
saleable energy source, the properties of which allow it to be easily handled
and transported to customers around the world. Coal fines or tailings are a
wasteful by-product of the coal mining process that have a low market value,
are generally expensive to dispose of, and are left in stockpiles or slurry
ponds at or near mining sites. At present, vast amounts of coal discards lie in
open-air lagoons as wasted by-products. It is estimated that over 30 billion
metric tonnes of coal tailings are available in the top 10 coal producing
countries (Source: International Energy Association).
In 2012, CoalTech started a programme intended to develop a financially viable
technology solution that would enable the agglomeration of a large quantity of
waste coal fines, which are currently being produced and stored as waste, into
commercially viable products to be sold to domestic and export markets. A test
pelletizer plant was developed in South Africa, which was later converted into
a pilot plant in March 2014. Following successful independent testing,
undertaken by Bureau Veritas, the shareholders took the decision to further
invest in research and development, and fabricate a modular industrial-size
pelletizer plant. This plant has been tested and is now operating commercially
in South Africa.
Through extensive research and development, CoalTech has devised a method of
converting coal fines into cost efficient, durable pellets by which the coal
fines are bound together in the pelletizer plant using a proprietary
chemically-formulated organic binder. Overcoming problems experienced by
traditional processes, their heat-resistant binder can be used on a large
commercial and industrial scale, with significant cost benefits resulting from
the avoidance of storage and handling costs, and by producing usable coal
pellets from waste materials with equal calorific value as the coal it came
from.
CoalTech has also engaged Sedgmans, a leading engineering company in minerals
processing and service provider to the resources sector, to develop phase two
of the pelletising plants which are now at the pre-production phase with
completion expected in quarter four, 2018.
CoalTech's ambition is to become established as the world's pre-eminent clean
technology solution of waste coal fines which can provide coal mines and coal
utilisation sites, such as power stations, with on-site remediation of a
long-term and challenging environmental issue within the industry.
Sam Preece, Executive Director of CIA commented:
"We are very pleased to announce our first investment into CoalTech and CASA.
CoalTech's investment case and proprietary technology offers a novel solution
to environmentally damaging waste coal fines that has wide potential across
coal producing countries within Africa and beyond. The demonstrated ability to
create a saleable and transportable energy product from waste is exciting.
Engaging this technology in a commercially sustainable model will maximise the
positive environmental impact and address a wide-spread waste and legacy
contamination issue. We look forward to providing shareholders with regular
news updates as CoalTech and CASA progress in this exciting area of clean
technology."
The directors of the Company accept responsibility for the contents of this
announcement.
Contacts:
Clean Invest Africa plc info@cleaninvestafrica.com
Sam Preece, Executive Director
Peterhouse Corporate Finance LLP Tel: 0207 469 0930
Guy Miller
END
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