Mercia Technologies PLC New Direct Investment in Faradion Limited (4106U)
18 January 2017 - 6:00PM
UK Regulatory
TIDMMERC
RNS Number : 4106U
Mercia Technologies PLC
18 January 2017
For Immediate Release 18 January 2017
Mercia Technologies PLC
("Mercia", "the Company" or "the Group")
New Direct Investment in Faradion Limited
Mercia Technologies PLC (AIM: MERC), a national investment group
focused on the creation, funding and scaling of innovative
technology businesses with high growth potential from the UK
regions, is pleased to announce a new direct investment of up to
GBP1.9million in Faradion Limited ("Faradion"), a company focused
on the development and commercialisation of advanced, low-cost
battery materials. Mercia's investment is part of a syndicated
investment round of up to GBP3.2million alongside existing
shareholders which include Finance Yorkshire Seedcorn Fund and
industry partner, Haldor Topsoe A/S, a leading producer of
heterogeneous catalysts focused on optimising natural resources and
energy efficiency. Faradion has been identified by Mercia as an
'Emerging Star' from Enterprise Ventures' ("EV") managed funds
portfolio. EV was acquired by Mercia in March 2016 and Faradion is
now the third new Emerging Star to have emanated from these
funds.
Mercia has invested an initial tranche of GBP1.3million which
represents an equity holding of 13.6%. Dependent on the completion
of specific performance related milestones, a second tranche of
GBP600,000 will be invested within the next 18 months. The current
investment round will be used to commercialise Faradion's lead
product, a novel, low-cost sodium-ion battery technology from which
Mercia believes significant value will be derived over time.
Established in 2010 and based in Sheffield, Faradion already has
a number of patent families granted or pending and Mercia believes
that the technology offers comparable or superior performance to
lithium-ion batteries, improved safety and is approximately 25%
cheaper to manufacture (due to the ready availability of sodium)
than existing alternatives. By bringing lower-cost, sodium-ion
technologies to market, Faradion is accelerating the introduction
of emerging applications such as home storage (on and off-grid) and
electric vehicles (or E-mobility).
Francis Massin, Chief Executive Officer of Faradion,
commented:
"This new investment by Mercia comes at a particularly crucial
stage for Faradion as we look to move from the laboratory to large
scale prototype production.
"The benefits of sodium-ion battery technology have already been
established in a laboratory setting; however this financial support
will allow us to demonstrate that the technology can be
manufactured at scale. We look forward to developing our new
partnership with Mercia, which has shown great confidence in our
technology."
Mark Payton, Chief Executive Officer of Mercia Technologies,
said:
"We are delighted to make our first direct investment into
Faradion, adding another exciting technology company to Mercia's
portfolio of Emerging Stars. Faradion is the third company to have
been sourced by the excellent team at Enterprise Ventures and added
to the Group's direct investment portfolio, once again
demonstrating the potential of disruptive technology businesses,
sourced from the UK regions. It is another example of Mercia
supporting truly innovative UK businesses, from early development
through our managed funds, followed by the deployment of direct
capital to scale the commercial potential of the investee
company."
For further information, please contact:
Mercia Technologies PLC
Mark Payton, Chief Executive Officer
Martin Glanfield, Chief Financial Officer
www.merciatechnologies.com +44 (0)330 223 1430
Cenkos Securities plc
Ivonne Cantu / Mark Connelly (NOMAD) +44 (0)20 7397 8900
Buchanan
Sophie McNulty, Victoria Hayns, Stephanie Watson
www.buchanan.uk.com +44 (0)20 7466 5000
About Mercia Technologies PLC
Mercia is a national investment group focused on the creation,
funding and scaling of innovative businesses with high growth
potential from the UK regions. Mercia benefits from 18 university
partnerships and six offices across the Midlands, the North of
England and Scotland providing it with access to high quality,
regional deal flow. Mercia Technologies PLC is quoted on AIM with
the epic "MERC".
Mercia's 'Complete Capital Solution' initially nurtures
businesses via its third party funds (with more than
GBP228.0million under management) and then over time Mercia can
provide further funding to its 'Emerging Stars' by deploying direct
investment follow-on capital from its own balance sheet.
Since its IPO in December 2014, the Company has invested over
GBP30.0million directly across its portfolio of 'Emerging
Stars'.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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