Alter NRG Corp. announces three strategic agreements that expand its product
base and operational execution capability in the geoexchange market
TSX - NRG OTCQX - ANRGF
CALGARY, March 10 /CNW/ - (TSX: NRG; OTCQX: ANRGF) Following the acquisition of CleanEnergy Developments Corp. ("CleanEnergy") in October 2009, a leading solutions provider in the growing geoexchange market, Alter NRG Corp. ("Alter NRG" or the "Company") is pleased to announce three further initiatives aimed at increasing its presence in the geoexchange market, expanding capacity and consolidating its position in key market sectors. First, CleanEnergy has executed an agreement with WaterFurnace Renewable Energy, Inc. ("WaterFurnace") that has expanded the Company's exclusive region of distribution of WaterFurnace's Geostar branded product. Second, CleanEnergy has expanded its access to drilling equipment through a strategic arrangement with a leading geoexchange provider in Western Canada. Third, CleanEnergy has obtained access to industry leading geoexchange equipment through which CleanEnergy has exclusive access for the majority of Canada for the production of ice for hockey or curling rinks. Improving and expanding the product offering as well as operational execution capability are key milestones in achieving revenue growth in CleanEnergy.
The Company has executed an agreement with WaterFurnace that provides CleanEnergy exclusive distribution rights for the Geostar branded product in British Columbia, Northwest Territories, Yukon, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and the vast majority of Ontario. The agreement provides CleanEnergy as the exclusive distributor of the GeoStar product line for heat pump systems suitable for residential homes and most types of commercial installations. This new agreement provides a much broader product offering for CleanEnergy and also its approximately 55 dealers within these territories.
Mark Montemurro, President and CEO of Alter NRG states "We believe WaterFurnace is the leading brand of geoexchange product within North America and we are pleased to expand our geographic coverage with their product. The GeoStar heat pumps are amongst the best in the market and will provide our dealer network, residential customers and commercial customers with a consistent high quality product across a broad geographic region."
Tom Huntington, CEO of WaterFurnace confirmed "We are pleased to be working with Alter NRG to expand geoexchange sales throughout Canada. Canada is a critical market for WaterFurnace and by making a commitment to accelerate the adoption and growth of geoexchange within Canada, Alter NRG will play a key role in WaterFurnace's success in Canada. We look forward to supporting them as a key distributor in the Canadian market"
CleanEnergy has also executed an exclusive agreement with Ice Kube Systems Ltd. ("Ice Kube") which manufactures specialized low temperature geoexchange heat pumps. The agreement provides exclusive distribution rights for hockey rinks, curling arenas, and leisure centres in British Columbia, Alberta, and Atlantic Canada and non-exclusive rights in Ontario. Hockey rinks and leisure centres require a significant amount of energy for both heating and cooling and geoexchange removes the energy from the ices portion (providing cooling) and transfers it into the building to provide the heat. This results in approximately 60% less energy consumption and related savings on energy costs and reduced carbon emissions. Installing a geoexchange system into a single twin pad rink would also be equivalent to planting 130 acres of trees or permanently removing 125 cars from the road from an environmental perspective. CleanEnergy has a list of customers which it is actively pursuing in this market segment with potential geoexchange revenues of $100,000 to $1,000,000 per project depending on size.
CleanEnergy has expanded its operational capacity in Western Canada through a strategic agreement with Geowest Drilling Services Ltd. ("Geowest"), a drilling company located in Calgary, Alberta. Under the agreement Geowest will provide dedicated service for CleanEnergy geoexchange projects using its drilling rig as well as drilling supervision. This agreement expands the execution capability and ability to provide turnkey solutions in Western Canada which is an important part of the CleanEnergy growth strategy. Currently, this equipment is being fully utilized on CleanEnergy geoexchange projects.
Alter NRG acquired CleanEnergy on October 2, 2009 and believes that the Geoexchange market in Canada is poised for significant growth. Geoexchange is the industry's term to describe using heat from the ground to provide an environmentally friendly means for heating and air conditioning using renewable geothermal energy. Geoexchange systems have lower energy consumption compared to conventional building heating and cooling equipment, and adoption of this technology has experienced rapid market growth worldwide in recent years as consumers are able to reduce their cost of energy by up to 80%. According to industry analysts the primary barriers to significant growth are that the industry is highly fragmented and also lacks the capital and business expertise to support the market growth potential. These strategic agreements illustrate Alter NRG's commitment to provide the market leading product, supported by leading sales and distribution systems and strategic joint ventures to provide for leadership and growth in this fragmented market.
Alter NRG, through CleanEnergy intends to provide turnkey geoexchange services in various markets throughout Canada. Geoexchange is commonly used throughout the world with many Northern European countries with similar climates to Canada having penetration rates of over 20% and up to 80% for new homes as well as other commercial and government buildings. CleanEnergy intends to continue to develop the industry leading turnkey solution by providing leading equipment and strengthened execution capability as illustrated by these strategic agreements.
"We are confident that these recently signed agreements will help our Company meet its aggressive revenue growth targets in the coming years," stated Mark Montemurro, President and CEO of Alter NRG.
Going forward, a 2% market share of the new build market alone in Canada would result in over $100 million in potential revenues. CleanEnergy intends to grow to this level of revenue over the next 3 to 5 years by having the industry leading product and execution capability and also through strategic alliances. CleanEnergy is actively in negotiations with a variety of developers and utilities across Canada that are interested in a broad application of geoexchange services going forward to achieve increased market share.
ABOUT ALTER NRG
Alter NRG is pursuing alternative energy solutions to meet the growing demand for environmentally responsible energy in world markets. The Company's vision is to commercialize growth technologies through environmentally sustainable and economically viable alternative energy projects. The Company's objectives are twofold; First, is to further commercialize the Westinghouse Plasma Gasification Technology, a wholly owned subsidiary, to provide renewable and clean energy solutions from a wide variety of feedstocks, and providing a wide variety of energy outputs - including liquid fuels like ethanol and diesel, electrical power, and syngas; Second, to capitalize on the rapidly growing geoexchange residential and commercial heating and cooling market through a wholly owned subsidiary CleanEnergy that enables consumers to reduce their carbon footprint and reduce the cost and volatility of energy bills using the energy from the earth.
The Toronto Stock Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Advisory Respecting Forward-Looking Statements:
This news release contains certain "forward-looking information and statements" within the meaning of specific securities laws. In particular, this new release contains forward looking statements pertaining to capital expenditures, schedules and commencement of operations of existing projects and projects under development; availability of project financing; timing of sales; industry trends; factors influencing capital investments and development activities; the Corporation's reputation and market position within the industries in which it operates and the Corporation's strategy and competitive advantages.
Forward-looking statements require management to make estimates and assumptions with respect to the outcome of future events. These estimates and assumptions could, in the future, turn out to be inaccurate and materially affect the final outcome. The significant estimates and assumptions within the Corporation's forward looking statements include: availability and cost of key materials and labour and availability of funds with respect to the amount of capital expenditures and scheduled commencement of operations; timing of regulatory approval including various permits from federal, provincial, and local authorities; the assessment of capital markets including the availability of debt and equity in current market conditions; commodity prices for electricity, natural gas, coal and other resources that impact the Corporation's operations directly and indirectly; extent of investment by government authorities in infrastructure projects; the financial and operational health of key partners in various projects; the continued development of the Corporation's technology and its use in various applications, and consumer demand for geoexchange solutions.
Forward-looking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "expect", "project", "propose", "target", "intend", "believe", "should", "anticipate", "estimate" or other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. Forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts but rather on the expectations of management of the Corporation regarding, among other things, the Corporation's future plans and intentions, results of operations, levels of activity, future capital and other expenditures (including the amount, nature and sources of funding thereof), competitive advantages, business prospects and opportunities.
Forward-looking statements reflect management's current beliefs and assumptions, based on information currently available to management. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements, many of which are beyond the control of the Corporation. Among the material factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements are: that the information is of a preliminary nature and may be subject to further adjustment; the completion of strategic partner's projects; arrangements with key suppliers; potential product liability and other claims; other business risks outlined in this news release, including risks associated with the proprietary technology; the possible unavailability of financing at competitive rates and the related effect on development activities; the effect of energy price fluctuations; changes in government regulation, including changes to environmental regulations; the effects of competition; the dependence on senior management and key personnel, and fluctuations in currency exchange rates and interest rates.
The Company cautions that the foregoing list of assumptions, risks and uncertainties is not exhaustive. The forward-looking information and statements contained in this news release speak only as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required pursuant to applicable securities laws.
For further information: Mark Montemurro, President and Chief Executive Officer, (403) 806-3877, [email protected]; Daniel Hay, Chief Financial Officer, (403) 244-0111 Ext 235, [email protected]
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