Orbite Announces 10M$ Equity Investment by the Government of Quebec
posted on
Mar 03, 2014 08:58PM
Unique technologies enable the extraction of metallurgical-grade alumina, high-purity alumina and high-value elements, including rare earths, from locally sourced aluminous clay, in an environmentally sustainable manner.
Press release from Marketwire
Monday, March 03, 2014
CAP-CHAT, QUEBEC--(Marketwired - March 3, 2014) - Orbite Aluminae Inc. (TSX:ORT)(OTCQX:EORBF) ("Orbite" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Government of Québec formally approved a 10M$ equity investment in Orbite by Investissement Québec ("IQ"), a mandatory of the Québec Government. The announcement was made at Orbite's High Purity Alumina ("HPA") production facility in Cap-Chat, Québec, in the presence of Mr. Gaétan Lelièvre, Member of the National Assembly of Québec for Gaspé, Minister for Regions and Minister responsible for the Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine region and the Bas-St-Laurent region.
"We have the privilege, in Québec, to benefit from dynamic and innovative businesses like Orbite Aluminae, to insure our competitiveness and reinforce our expertise in the sector of transformation of mining products", said Mrs. Élaine Zakaïb, the Québec Minister for Industrial Policy and the Banque de développement économique du Québec. "This structuring project positions Québec as a provider of a niche product used for high-tech applications, in addition to maintaining the economic vitality of the Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine region ».
The investment decision followed a comprehensive technical and financial due diligence of the HPA facility carried out by a third party engineering firm. "The significant contribution from the government of Québec, following a stringent independent review, is a testament to the work carried out by our new management and engineering team during the last six months", said Glenn Kelly, Orbite's President and CEO. "We are honoured to have the government of Québec as a major shareholder in Orbite and their investment will be used towards the completion of our HPA production facility."
Terms and condition of the investment, including timing and pricing, are expected to be settled within the next few weeks.
About Orbite
Orbite Aluminae Inc. is a Canadian cleantech company who's innovative and proprietary processes are expected to produce alumina and other high-value by-products, such as rare earth and rare metal oxides, at one of the lowest costs in the industry, and in a sustainable fashion, using feedstocks that include aluminous clay, kaolin, nepheline, bauxite, red mud and fly ash. Orbite is currently finalizing its first commercial high-purity alumina (HPA) production plant in Cap-Chat, Québec and has completed the basic engineering for a proposed smelter-grade alumina (SGA) production plant, which would use clay mined from its Grande-Vallée deposit. The Corporation's intellectual property portfolio contains 15 intellectual property families, and the Corporation owns the intellectual property rights to 11 patents and 57 pending patent applications in 10 different countries and regions. The first intellectual property family is patented in Canada, USA, Australia, China, and Russia. The Company also operates a state of the art technology development center in Laval, Québec, where its technologies are developed and validated.
Forward-looking statements
Certain information contained in this document may include "forward-looking information". Without limiting the foregoing, forward-looking information may include statements regarding projects, costs, objectives and future returns of the Corporation or hypotheses underlying these items. In this document, words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "likely", "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "intend", "plan", "estimate" and similar words and the negative form thereof are used to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether, or the times at or by which, such future performance will be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information are based on information available at the time and/or the Corporation management's good-faith beliefs with respect to future events and are subject to known or unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other unpredictable factors, many of which are beyond the Corporation's control. These risks uncertainties and assumptions include, but are not limited to, those described in the section of the Management's Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) entitled "Risk and Uncertainties" as filed on November 14, 2013 on www.sedar.com.
The Corporation does not intend, nor does it undertake, any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information or statements contained in this document to reflect subsequent information, events or circumstances or otherwise, except as required by applicable laws.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Contact Information:
TMX EQUICOM
Mark Lakmaaker
External Investor Relations Consultant
1-800-385-5451 ext. 248
mlakmaaker@tmxequicom.com