NanoXplore - Page 4

NanoXplore recently shared updates on its new graphene production facility in Quebec, currently housed within an existing 70,000 square foot building. The Company said that all major equipment has been delivered and secured in their physical location within the facility. Mechanical and electrical connections of the equipment are ongoing and are expected to be completed by early February.

Hydro-Québec has provided all power requirements for the commercial production of the 4,000 metric tons/year capability graphene production facility. The new graphene facility will be a fully automated production plant that will enable a connected and flexible manufacturing system. The facility will also become NanoXplore’s new Corporate Headquarters.

Mason Graphite has announced the sale of its investment in NanoXplore - the Company sold 22,188,333 common shares for a total net consideration of CAD$28.2 million (around USD$21.5 million). These common shares, representing 18.3% of NanoXplore, were acquired through various private placements by NanoXplore at a total cost of $4.5 million. After this sale, Mason Graphite no longer holds any common shares of NanoXplore.

The shares were sold to a group of buyers that included Martinrea International, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, and Investissement Quebec. As of today, Martinrea holds 30,199,800 shares of NanoXplore which represents approximately 25% of the total outstanding shares of the Corporation.

NanoXplore has announced the completion of the previously announced bought deal private placement for total proceeds of $30,988,240 CAD (around $23.3 million USD). The Offering was conducted by a syndicate of underwriters led by National Bank Financial Inc. and including GMP Securities L.P., Paradigm Capital Inc., Echelon Wealth Partners Inc. and Beacon Securities Limited.

BDC, a bank devoted exclusively to entrepreneurs, had an involvement in this fund-raise as part of its $700-million CAD, five-year commitment to help high-potential Canadian cleantech firms with market-ready technology or products meet the capital-intensive needs of scaling and achieving timely growth. We believe that NanoXplore’s proprietary graphene production technology coupled with its vertically integrated business model is a unique and compelling value proposition to enable commercial graphene adoption, said Susan Rohac, Vice President, Cleantech Practice at BDC. NanoXplore’s proposed 10,000-tonnes-per-year graphene plant will give the company a sizable first-mover advantage by producing large quantities at prices well below current levels. The company maintains strong R&D partnerships with leading Canadian research institutions and the management team’s steady commercial focus will ensure that the innovations produced continue to meet market needs.

2018 was a busy year for the graphene industry, and here are our top companies for 2018 - ranked by the number of posts written about them on graphene-info.

1. Versarien
2. Haydale
3. First Graphene
4. Directa Plus
5. Talga
6. AGM
7. Zenyatta
8. Graphenea
9. NanoXplore
10. XG Sciences

While these figures are not of any official status, they do go a certain distance in assessing the market and its major players in 2018.

NanoXplore has announced its plans for a private placement for gross proceeds of approximately CAD$30 million (around USD $22.3 million).

NanoXplore has also announced that it has entered into an updated Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Martinrea International, which is expected to further develop the commercial relationships between the companies. The MOU provides for increased collaborations between NanoXplore and Martinrea, including commitments by NanoXplore to provide graphene to Martinrea and to assist in the development of graphene-related products and technologies. Martinrea will also assist NanoXplore in the future development of its operations. Furthermore, Martinrea will subscribe for approximately $15 million as part of the Equity Offering. After giving effect to the Equity Offering, Martinrea is expected to own approximately 16% of the issued and outstanding common shares of NanoXplore.

A new consortium (called the Graphene REACH registration consortium) was launched in 2017 to handle REACH graphene registration in the EU. The consortium members, The Sixth Element Material Technology, NanoXplore and Applied Graphene Materials announced that the joint registration dossiers for graphene and graphene oxide have been submitted to the ECHA.

The consortium is also preparing a JRD for reduced graphene oxide, and hopes to submit it before the end of 2018. The consortium issues a callout for companies (whether graphene producers or importers) to join the consortium or buy a letter of access to the new registrations.

Canada-based NanoXplore recently announced a positive feasibility study for its graphene production plant. The company said that the independent feasibility study highlighted several improvement as compared to the project’s preliminary economic assessment (PEA).

NanoXplore is planning to build a 10,000 metric ton/year graphene production plan, which is currently the largest in the world. NanoXplore plans to offer graphene for $10/kg (USD$8/kg) starting from Jan 2020 under the GrapheneBlack brand.

NanoXplore, manufacturer and supplier of high-volume graphene powder for use in industrial markets, has announced that it acquired Sigma Industries in a deal that included cash and stock components. The cash component is approximately CAD$9 million (around $6.8 million USD) and the stock value is approximately CAD$9.8 million (almost $7.5 million USD).

Sigma Industries is a manufacturing company specializing in the manufacture of composite products, with two operating subsidiaries and 275 employees. It operates in the markets for heavy trucks, buses, public transit, machinery and wind energy. Sigma sells its products to original equipment manufacturers and distributors in the United States, Canada and Europe.

NanoXplore has announced the completion of a bought deal private placement of $10,000,155 CAD (around $7.76 million USD). The Offering was conducted by a syndicate of underwriters co-led by Paradigm Capital Inc. and GMP Securities L.P. and including Echelon Wealth Partners Inc. and National Bank Financial Inc.

The net proceeds from this placement will be used for acquisitions, funding for development of a 10,000 tonne per year graphene production plant and general corporate and working capital purposes.

NanoXplore recently reported that Martinrea International has made an investment in the Company and has become a shareholder of NanoXplore following participation in the equity financing which closed on August 2nd, 2017. Both companies have been working on product development since.

Martinrea is an international auto parts manufacturer with more than 14,000 employees at over 50 manufacturing and engineering facilities in North America, South America, Europe and Asia. Martinrea produces parts and assemblies, modules, fluid-management systems and offers lightweighting solutions, primarily for the automotive sector.