LUDWIGSHAFEN, Germany and
NORTHBOROUGH, Mass., June 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- BASF SE
("BASF") and Aspen Aerogels, Inc. ("Aspen") (NYSE: ASPN) announced today the
expansion of their strategic partnership with the signing of an
exclusive supply agreement and a joint development agreement. The
agreements are designed to increase market penetration, enhance
product profitability and facilitate the development of next
generation materials.
As part of the supply agreement, Aspen will commit to the exclusive supply of
its Spaceloft® A2 product for incorporation within BASF's aerogel
enhanced Slentex® wall system for the building materials market. In
turn, BASF will make a low double-digit million investment in the
construction of Aspen's new
manufacturing plant and BASF will become a base load customer for
Aspen's capacity expansion. In
addition, BASF will provide technical support to Aspen targeting manufacturing productivity,
product cost and profit margins.
Initially, the supply agreement will support BASF's efforts to
drive growth in the global building materials market of its
Slentex® wall system incorporating Aspen's patented technology. BASF may also
directly sell or incorporate Spaceloft® A2 into other systems for
applications in certain building, transportation, consumer and
industrial markets worldwide. The agreement will run through
2027.
"We chose to partner with Aspen
because of their superior aerogel technology platform, which we can
enhance as partners in various ways," said Raimar Jahn, President of BASF's Performance
Materials division. "The new agreements will accelerate adoption of
aerogel technology as an eco-efficient insulation material
globally."
The Joint Development Agreement establishes a framework to
develop new aerogel products and technologies. The agreement will
give BASF targeted access to Aspen's world leading technology platform
while Aspen will gain access to
BASF's technical expertise, sales channels and financial resources.
The partnership will both further Aspen's market diversification and growth
strategy and support BASF's objective to provide innovative
solutions to meet current and future customer needs.
"BASF has played an important role in our development as a
company and this next phase of our relationship will support us
technically, commercially and financially and will accelerate our
diversification into the building materials market," said
Don Young, President and CEO of
Aspen. "As our track record in the
energy infrastructure and subsea markets has demonstrated, our
preferred model is to partner with industry leaders to benefit from
their technical, commercial, and financial resources. BASF is a
world class company dedicated to promoting energy efficiency by
delivering next generation products to the global marketplace. For
these reasons, BASF is a perfect partner for Aspen Aerogels."
The origin of the partnership dates to 2010 when BASF Venture
Capital made an equity investment in Aspen and the two companies began to explore
technology development and commercialization opportunities within
the building materials market. This work led to the development of
Aspen's Spaceloft® A2 insulation
product.
About BASF
At BASF, we create chemistry for a
sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental
protection and social responsibility. The approximately 112,000
employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of
our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the
world. Our portfolio is organized into five segments: Chemicals,
Performance Products, Functional Materials & Solutions,
Agricultural Solutions and Oil & Gas. BASF generated sales of
more than €70 billion in 2015. BASF shares are traded on the stock
exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS),
London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information at
www.basf.com.
About Aspen Aerogels, Inc.
Aspen Aerogels is an
aerogel technology company that designs, develops and manufactures
innovative, high-performance aerogel insulation used primarily in
the energy infrastructure and building materials markets where
thermal energy efficiency is at a premium and Aspen's products offer unique value.
Headquartered in Northborough,
Mass., Aspen Aerogels manufactures its Cryogel®, Pyrogel®
and Spaceloft® products at its East
Providence, R.I. facility.
Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking and Cautionary
Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking
statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to be materially different from historical
results or from any future results expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. These statements are not historical
facts but rather are based on Aspen Aerogels' current expectations,
estimates and projections regarding Aspen Aerogels' business,
operations and other factors relating thereto. Words such as "may,"
"will," "could," "would," "should," "anticipate," "predict,"
"potential," "continue," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects,"
"believes," "estimates," "outlook," and similar expressions are
used to identify these forward-looking statements. Such
forward-looking statements include statements regarding, among
other things: (i) Aspen Aerogels' strategic partnership with BASF
and the potential benefits of such a relationship, including the
potential for it to create new product and market opportunities;
(ii) Aspen Aerogels' supply agreement with BASF ("SA"), Aspen
Aerogels' exclusive supply to BASF of its Spaceloft® A2 product,
the potential for future cash advances from BASF under the SA
(payment of which are subject to certain conditions) to provide a
source of financing for some portion of the cost of the planned
construction of Aspen's Aerogels'
proposed manufacturing plant expected to be located in Statesboro, Georgia (the "Proposed Plant
Two"), and the potential for BASF to become a significant customer
for Aspen Aerogel's products, including with respect to the
additional product to be produced as a result of the expected
capacity expansion at the Proposed Plant Two; and (iii) Aspen
Aerogels' joint development agreement with BASF ("JDA"), the
potential for it to support the development of new aerogel products
and technologies, and the potential for it to assist Aspen
Aerogels' market diversification and growth strategy. All such
forward-looking statements are based on management's present
expectations and are subject to certain factors, risks and
uncertainties that may cause actual results, outcome of events,
timing and performance to differ materially from those expressed or
implied by such statements. These risks and uncertainties include,
but are not limited to, the following: (i) the fact that BASF has
not yet placed any orders for product under the SA, that there can
be no assurance that BASF will ever do so, and that even if BASF
were to place orders, there can be no assurance that BASF will ever
be a significant customer for Aspen Aerogels' products; (ii) any
inability by Aspen Aerogels' to meet the conditions to which the
potential future cash advances by BASF under the SA are subject,
including with respect to the finalization of certain aspects of
the product specification and the progress of the financing and
construction of the Proposed Plant Two, including securing a debt
commitment from a third party lender for at least $30 million; and (iii) the potential for any of
the following risks and uncertainties to impact negatively Aspen
Aerogels' relationship with BASF, Aspen Aerogels' and BASF's
ability to perform under the SA or the JDA, and Aspen Aerogels'
ability to achieve its goals with respect to its relationship with
BASF, the SA and the JDA, including creating new product and market
opportunities (including in the building and construction market)
and developing a potential source of financing: any sustained
downturn in the energy industry and/or energy prices; any
disruption or inability to achieve expected capacity levels in any
of our three production lines or the manufacturing facility in
which they are located; any failure to achieve an increase in
production capacity that Aspen Aerogels' growth plan requires in a
timely manner; any failure of demand for Aspen Aerogels' products;
any failure to achieve expected average selling prices for Aspen
Aerogels' products; the failure to obtain significant additional
capital to pursue Aspen Aerogels' growth strategy; the failure of
our products to become widely adopted; the competition Aspen
Aerogels faces in its business; the failure to manage Aspen
Aerogels' growth, and the demands that growth places on Aspen
Aerogels' management systems and infrastructure; any failure of
Aspen Aerogels' products to meet applicable specifications and
other performance, safety, technical and delivery requirements; the
failure of Aspen Aerogels to achieve anticipated improvement in
profit margins; the general economic conditions and cyclical
demands in the markets that Aspen Aerogels serves; the economic,
operational and political risks associated with sales and expansion
of operations in foreign countries; the loss of any direct
customer, including distributors, contractors and OEMs; compliance
with health and safety laws and regulations; shortages of raw
materials; the maintenance and development of distribution
channels; and the other risk factors discussed under the heading
"Risk Factors" contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended December 31, 2015 and
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on
March 4, 2016, as well as any updates
to those risk factors filed from time to time in our subsequent
periodic and current reports filed with the SEC. In addition, this
press release is qualified in its entirety by the Form 8-K filed by
Aspen Aerogels with the SEC on the date hereof and the descriptions
of the SA and JDA contained therein. All statements contained in
this press release are made only as of the date of this press
release, and Aspen Aerogels does not intend to update this
information unless required by law.
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SOURCE Aspen Aerogels, Inc.