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FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO
SELL OR ISSUE OR SOLICITATION TO BUY, SUBSCRIBE FOR OR OTHERWISE
ACQUIRE SHARES IN QUADRISE PLC IN ANY JURISDICTION IN WHICH ANY
SUCH OFFER OR SOLICITATION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.
THE SECURITIES DISCUSSED HEREIN ARE
NOT AND WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE US SECURITIES ACT OF 1933,
AS AMENDED (THE "SECURITIES ACT"), AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD
IN THE UNITED STATES, UNLESS REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT,
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INFORMATION WILL BE CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC
DOMAIN.
18 March 2024
Quadrise
Plc
(the
"Company" and together with
its subsidiaries the "Group" or "Quadrise")
Proposed Placing, Subscription and Open
Offer
Quadrise Plc (AIM:QED), the supplier
of innovative energy solutions for a cleaner planet, today
announces its intention to conduct a placing (the
"Placing") and
subscription (the "Subscription") of new ordinary shares
of £0.01 each in the capital of the Company ("Ordinary Shares") at a price of 1.25
pence per share (the "Issue
Price") to institutional and other investors to raise gross
proceeds of £1.5 million.
In addition, and in
recognition of the continuing support from
long-term shareholders, the Company also announces that it will be
providing existing Qualifying Shareholders with the opportunity to
participate in an open offer of new Ordinary Shares in the capital
of the Company ("Open Offer
Shares") at the Issue Price to raise additional gross
proceeds of up to a maximum of approximately £1.0 million (the
"Open Offer") (together
with the Placing and Subscription, the "Fundraise"). The Open Offer will be launched on conclusion of the Placing
and for such an amount as, together with the gross proceeds of the
Placing and the Subscription, will see the Company raise gross
proceeds of an aggregate of up to £2.5 million. The Placing Shares
and the Subscription Shares (as defined below) are not subject to
clawback and will not be part of the Open Offer.
The Placing will be conducted through an accelerated
bookbuild (the "Bookbuild")
which will be launched immediately following this Announcement. The
Placing is subject to the terms and conditions set out in Appendix
1 to this Announcement.
Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited
("Shore Capital")
and VSA Capital Limited ("VSA
Capital") (together, the "Bookrunners") are
acting as joint bookrunners and placing agents in connection with the Placing. Cavendish Capital Markets
Limited ("Cavendish") is
acting as nominated adviser to the Company.
The Placing and the Subscription are
conditional on, inter
alia, (i) the Placing Agreement becoming unconditional in
all respects in relation to the Placing and not having been
terminated in accordance with its terms and (ii) First Admission.
The Open Offer is conditional upon, inter alia, the Placing
Agreement being unconditional in all respects in relation to the
Open Offer and not having been terminated in accordance with its
terms and Second Admission becoming effective.
The new Ordinary Shares to be issued
in the Fundraise will be issued and allotted under the Company's
existing authorities obtained at the Company's last annual general
meeting held on 27 November 2023.
For further information, please contact:
Quadrise
Plc
|
|
+44 (0)20 7031 7321
|
Andy Morrison, Chairman
Jason Miles, Chief Executive Officer
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nominated
Adviser
|
|
|
Cavendish Capital
Markets Limited
|
|
+44 (0)20 7220 0500
|
Ben Jeynes
|
|
|
Katy Birkin
George Lawson
|
|
|
Joint
Brokers
Shore Capital
Stockbrokers Limited
|
|
+44 (0)20 7408 4090
|
Toby Gibbs, Rachel Goldstein (Corporate Advisory)
|
|
|
Fiona Conroy (Corporate Broking)
|
|
|
|
|
|
VSA Capital
Limited
Andrew Raca, Simba Khatai (Corporate Finance)
Andrew Monk (Corporate broking)
|
|
+44 (0)20 3005 5000
|
|
|
|
Public
& Investor Relations
|
|
|
Vigo
Consulting
Patrick D'Ancona
Finlay Thomson
|
|
+44 (0)20 7390 0230
|
|
Details of the Placing and
Subscription
The Placing will be effected through
the issue of up to 119 million new Ordinary Shares (the "Placing Shares") to new and existing
investors. In addition to the Placing, the Company proposes
to raise approximately £13,474 from a direct subscription by
certain Directors of the Company ("Subscribers") for a total of 1,077,893
new Ordinary Shares ("Subscription
Shares") at the Issue Price.
The Placing is subject to the terms
and conditions set out in Appendix 1 to this Announcement. The
Bookrunners will commence the Bookbuild in respect of the Placing
immediately following the release of this Announcement. The number
of Placing Shares will be determined at the close of the
Bookbuild and will be
announced as soon as practicable after the close of the
Bookbuild.
The timing of the closing of the
Bookbuild, pricing and allocations of the Placing Shares are at the
absolute discretion of the Bookrunners, in consultation with
Cavendish and the Company.
The Directors have indicated an intention to
participate in the Placing and/or Subscription (the latter by way
of a direct subscription with the Company for Subscription Shares)
as follows:
Director
|
Intended
Subscription
|
Number of
Subscription Shares
|
Intended Placing
participation
|
Number of Placing
Shares
|
Total intended
Fundraise
participation
|
Total Fundraise
shares
|
Andy Morrison
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
£12,500
|
1,000,000
|
£12,500
|
1,000,000
|
Jason Miles
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
£15,000
|
1,200,000
|
£15,000
|
1,200,000
|
Laurie Mutch
|
£1,473.66
|
117,893
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
£1,473.66
|
117,893
|
Vicky Boiten-Lee
|
£10,000
|
800,000
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
£10,000
|
800,000
|
Dilip Shah
|
£2,000
|
160,000
|
N/A
|
N/A
|
£2,000
|
160,000
|
The Placing Shares and Subscription
Shares, when issued, will be credited as fully paid and will
rank pari
passu in all respects with each other, with the Open
Offer Shares and with the Existing Ordinary Shares, including,
without limitation, the right to receive all dividends and other
distributions declared, made or paid after the date of the relevant
Admission.
Application will be made to the
London Stock Exchange for the Placing Shares, Subscription Shares
and Open Offer Shares to be admitted to trading on AIM. Settlement
of the Placing Shares and Subscription Shares is expected to take
place on or around 8.00 a.m. on 26 March
2024 ("First Admission")
(or such later date as may be agreed between the
Bookrunners, Cavendish and the Company being no later than 8.00
a.m. GMT on 31 May 2024).
The Placing and Subscription are
conditional upon, inter
alia, (i) the Placing Agreement not being terminated in
accordance with its terms and (ii) First Admission becoming
effective.
Appendix 1 to this Announcement sets
out further information relating to the Bookbuild and the terms and
conditions of the Placing.
|
|
Background to
and Rationale for the Fundraise
At the recent COP 28 climate conference in
Dubai, representatives from nearly 200 countries reached a historic
agreement to 'transition away from fossil fuels'. This agreement
adds to the momentum already underway in global energy markets, as
policy makers, companies and investors worldwide work to accelerate
the adoption of decarbonisation technologies to avert the worst
impacts of climate change and achieve net zero by 2050. The
shipping industry, in particular, has seen significant progress as
ship owners, cargo owners and governments collaborate to reduce
emissions from international traded goods.
Quadrise has positioned itself as a provider of
lower cost decarbonisation solutions for the shipping industry and
other consumers of heavy fuel oil. The progress demonstrated in
2023 and early 2024 underlines the Board's confidence in
both the quality of our solutions and the
commercial opportunities that they provide to shipping and
other major energy-consuming sectors.
The Company's near-term
strategy remains unchanged. We
continue to focus on our key projects with
MSC Shipmanagement Limited ("MSC"), Valkor Technologies LLC
("Valkor") and with our
client in Morocco, as these represent the most efficient use of our financial resources
and provide the fastest and most material pathway to
commercialisation for MSAR® and
bioMSAR™. Important milestones have been reached in each of these
key projects, with an agreement recently signed with Cargill
NV ("Cargill") and
MAC2 Solutions NV ("MAC2")
with regard to the production of fuel for the MSC
trials, successful completion of the trial
in Morocco with further agreements expected to follow, and the Company expecting commercial licence
revenues in 2024 from Valkor following the
approval of drilling permits and expected financing for
their projects. This continued progress
is critical in attracting new customers, investors
and strategic partners.
The net proceeds of the Placing and
Subscription are expected to provide Quadrise with the necessary
working capital resources to 31 March 2025, by which time projects
in Morocco and Utah are expected to be generating commercial
revenues, and the trial with MSC will be near completion, should
active project milestones be delivered on currently anticipated
timelines.
The Open Offer to Qualifying
Shareholders of up to 80 million Open Offer Shares at the Issue
Price of 1.25 pence per Open Offer Share is
expected to raise additional funds of up to
approximately £1.0 million (before expenses), assuming the Open
Offer is fully subscribed. The net proceeds of the Open
Offer are expected to provide Quadrise with the resources to progress opportunities
in Central America and Southeast Asia, thereby creating a presence
in the marine bunkering hubs of Panama and Singapore, enable
progress with bioMSAR development and provide a clear pathway
to profitability.
Views of the
Board
The Board believes that the net
proceeds of the Fundraise will strengthen the Company's balance
sheet and secure the Company's financial position in the immediate
future. The Board believes that the net
proceeds of the Placing and Subscription are expected to
provide Quadrise with the necessary working capital resources to 31
March 2025, by which time projects in Morocco and Utah are expected
to be generating commercial revenues, and the trial with MSC will
be near completion, should active project milestones be delivered
on currently anticipated timelines.
Should the Open Offer be fully
subscribed, the net proceeds of the Open Offer are expected to
provide Quadrise with a
clear pathway to profitability and the resources to progress
opportunities in Central America and Southeast Asia, thereby
creating a presence in the marine bunkering hubs of Panama and
Singapore.
The Board therefore considers the Fundraise to
be in the best interests of the Company and its Shareholders as a
whole.
The Company's Directors and certain
PDMRs intend to participate in the Placing, Subscription or Open
Offer in respect of an aggregate of up to 3,437,893 new Ordinary
Shares in the Company.
Key Project Delivery
The Group's strategy is to generate
demand primarily amongst the shipping industry and to stimulate
supply of our fuels around global marine bunkering hubs.
Our projects are designed to fulfil this strategy,
with each now nearing a major milestone. Our focus is on the
completion of the trials and agreements that will demonstrate
MSAR® and bioMSAR™ technology at commercial
scale.
Decarbonisation of shipping: MSC
Our project with MSC is seen by the Board as an
important first step in demonstrating the role that
MSAR® and bioMSAR™ technology can play in the
decarbonisation of the shipping sector.
On 6 February 2024, Quadrise announced the
signature of a Collaboration Agreement with Cargill and
MAC2 in respect of the production of MSAR® and bioMSAR™
fuels for the Company's forthcoming vessel trials on board the MSC
Leandra. The signature of a binding agreement between Quadrise, MSC
and Cargill is expected by end of Q1 2024, along with associated
binding agreements for toll manufacture and fuel supply during the
same period.
Upon conclusion of these agreements, the trials
will be carried out following the installation and commissioning of
an MMU and associated equipment at the MAC2 bunker
facility in Antwerp, Belgium. MSAR® and bioMSAR™ fuels
will then be produced at the MAC2 site using feedstocks
supplied by Cargill, who will also be responsible for bunkering
operations to supply the fuels to the MSC Leandra.
The MMU and associated equipment is expected to
be installed and commissioned at the MAC2 site later in
Q2 2024 with the vessel trials then commencing in Q3 2024, subject
to the receipt of permits by MAC2. The trial will
comprise initial Proof of Concept ("POC") tests using MSAR® and
bioMSAR™ followed by 4,000 hours of operation on bioMSAR™ in order
to obtain a Letter of No Objection ("LONO") from Wärtsilä, the original
equipment manufacturer. The bioMSAR™ LONO trial is expected to
conclude approximately 6-8 months following completion of the 1-2
month long POC tests.
Upon successful LONO trial completion, the
parties then expect to conclude a commercial supply agreement and
seek to secure MSAR® and bioMSAR™ bunker supply
operations to the marine sector by Cargill from MAC2
facilities in Antwerp and Bruges on a permanent basis.
In addition to progressing this opportunity
with MSC, the Company continues to assess strategic options and
partnerships with the intention of accelerating the
commercialisation of both bioMSAR™ and MSAR® for marine
applications.
Supporting
projects
In line with our strategy to decarbonise
shipping, the Group's other projects all support demand and supply
around major marine bunker hubs.
Morocco
The Group's project with the industrial client
in Morocco is intended to stimulate supply of MSAR® in the Mediterranean, a significant
region for maritime trade and bunkering due to its strategic
location connecting Europe, Asia, and Africa.
In November 2023, Quadrise
successfully completed an industrial demonstration
test of trial quantities of MSAR® and bioMSAR™ at the
'Site-B' facility of its client
in Morocco, a major chemicals company. The
industrial unit in question was successfully operated at varying
loads of up to 100%, equivalent to 33MW of energy that is supplied
by a single burner. This is similar to the energy consumption of a
medium-sized container ship. This was the first demonstration of
bioMSAR™ in a commercial application. Following completion,
Quadrise submitted a technical report on the test results to
the client.
The parties have now entered
discussions for long-term commercial supply with a view to signing
a fuel supply agreement in H1 2024. Additionally, the parties are
seeking to reach an agreement to increase
commercial applications for MSAR®, and in the
future, bioMSAR™ fuels more broadly across
other client locations. As a key part of this exercise,
Quadrise have completed a technical and
economic feasibility study for a
potential additional industrial demonstration test at a second site
of the client ('Site A'), at the client's cost.
Utah
The project with Valkor in Utah, USA, targets
the supply of low sulphur MSAR® and bioMSAR™ to the
marine and power sectors, with the fuels produced on site then
transported to major ports and power stations.
In June 2023, QIL signed a Site License and Supply Agreement ("SLS") with Valkor, under which
QIL granted Valkor the exclusive right and
license to use our technology at a central processing facility
located at the Primary Project Site ("PPS") at Asphalt Ridge in
Utah, USA and to market the fuel on a
non-exclusive basis from Utah.
In exchange, Valkor will pay
QIL a US$1.0 million licence fee subject to receipt
by Valkor of project financing of at
least US$15 million at the PPS.
Valkor will pay QIL a further US$0.5
million upon delivery of an MMU to the PPS.
Following Valkor's receipt of the
MMU, QIL will provide engineering, project development
and support services for a minimum of two years, for which Valkor
will pay QIL a quarterly retainer of US$75,000 under
the SLS. Valkor may then choose to
purchase QIL's technology and MMU for US$1.0 million.
A non-binding Heads of Agreement has
also been entered into between the parties which sets out the basis
on which QIL and Valkor will seek to agree a
conditionally exclusive Sub-License Agreement to be granted to
Valkor covering the state of Utah, as well as the terms on
which the resulting net profit generated will be shared
between QIL and Valkor.
The oil sands reserves at Asphalt Ridge
comprise billions of barrels, with Valkor having interests in
several projects at this location. Oil samples supplied by Valkor
were successfully converted to both MSAR® and bioMSAR™
by our RDI team at QRF in 2022.
Valkor is leading operations and development
activities across several projects that could utilise the MMU at
the PPS, including:
·
Drilling operations in conjunction with project partners
Heavy Sweet Oil LLC ("HSO")
who are awaiting final technical approval from the Utah Division of
Oil, Gas and Mining (the "Division"). Once received, Valkor plans
to commence pilot drilling at the PPS as soon as weather permits
and in parallel submit Underground Injection Control permit
applications for the subsequent injection of steam for enhanced
heavy oil recovery. In January 2024, Trio Petroleum Corp (NYSE:
TRIO) acquired a 20% option in this project upon payment of $2
million to support HSO's pilot drilling plans and unitisation
application, in advance of raising project finance.
· An
oil sands project with Greenfield Energy LLC ("Greenfield"), a wholly owned subsidiary
of TomCo Energy plc (LSE: TOM) ("TomCo"). Greenfield Energy owns a
10% Membership Interest in Tar Sands Holdings II (TSHII) with an
exclusive option, at its sole discretion, to acquire the remaining
90% of the Membership Interests for an additional cash
consideration. TSHII owns approximately 760 acres of land in Uintah
County, Utah, USA. Subject to securing the requisite funding,
Greenfield plans to use this site for the future mining of oil
sands and construction of a commercial scale processing plant of
5,000 barrels of oil per day. TomCo also owns AC Oil LLC who own
sub-surface heavy oil leases on the TSHII land and are involved in
an exploration drilling program in conjunction with Valkor for
which approval is awaited by the Division and the Greenfield
project.
· An
oil sands project with Ecoteq Energy ASA of Norway who are working
with Valkor to implement their Clean Oil Sands
Extraction Technology ("COSET") at the PPS to enable efficient
and sustainable oil extraction from oil sands. In December
2023, Ecoteq and Valkor signed long term production agreements,
with civil works scheduled to commence in April 2024 and completion
of their first production unit by Q2 2025, pending finalisation of
project financing.
Initial volumes of produced heavy oil from the
drilling operations at the PPS are expected to be available for
conversion to bioMSAR™ and MSAR® under the SLS for
commercial trials by potential shipping, industrial and power
customers later in 2024 to develop the US market.
These commercial trials under the SLS would
then be expected to lead to commercial supply and a potential
profit-share from sales, subject to discussions with stakeholders
to finalise agreements. Through the application of CO2
sequestration and proprietary new enhanced oil recovery technology
in Utah, the extracted heavy oil is anticipated to have a lower
carbon intensity than conventional oils. In addition, the very low
sulphur content and properties of this heavy oil allow it to comply
with the International Maritime Organisation's regulations on
marine fuel once converted to MSAR® or bioMSAR™, without
the need for carbon-intensive oil refining. This heavy oil would
therefore constitute a low carbon, low sulphur MSAR® or
bioMSAR™.
Americas
The availability of MSAR® and
bioMSAR™ in major marine hubs such as the Panama Canal is seen by
the Board as being key to the Group's decarbonisation of shipping
strategy. The Company's intended project in Central America will
provide a base for supply with demand being initially led by local
power generators.
In 2023, QIL signed a Letter of Intent with
Sparkle Power, a power generator in Panama, which outlined mutual
intent for a commercial test of MSAR® and bioMSAR™ at
Sparkle Power's power plant, with conclusion of a Test Agreement
and site trial being the precursors for entry into a Fuel Supply
Agreement.
Due to prolonged drought conditions in Panama,
which have reduced Panama's hydroelectric power supply, Sparkle
Power have been running at full capacity, and thus not been able to
progress trial preparations. As environmental conditions improve,
the Company expects agreements to be finalised during H1 2024.
Together with our local agents, we continue to explore other
opportunities in the region to create demand and stimulate supply
in and around Panama and Honduras, the latter being a large
consumer of fuel oil for power generation.
South East
Asia
The Board has a further supporting strategy of
establishing a presence in South East Asia, one of the world's key
marine hubs and another intended supply point for MSAR®
and bioMSAR™ to the marine and industrial sectors.
During 2023, QIL entered discussions with a
refinery in the region who are interested in conducting a trial
using MSAR® technology for internal thermal applications
in advance of a potential commercial agreement. The refinery is
well placed nearby future bulk oil storage and trading
opportunities.
Development of bioMSAR™ and bioMSAR™ Zero
Despite the immediate and
cost-effective carbon reductions that bioMSAR™ can offer we
recognise that the requirement for net-zero carbon fuel solutions
is becoming increasingly urgent. Our RDI strategy is now focused on
the delivery of a commercially viable net-zero 'bioMSAR Zero'
solution.
The Company has investigated
alternative feedstocks to glycerine for bioMSAR™ including water-
and oil-soluble biofuels that would allow the development of a
commercially competitive net-zero version of our fuel, 'bioMSAR™
Zero', and we are currently well ahead of our target to launch in
2030.
bioMSAR™ blends
containing Vertoro's Crude Sugar Oil ("CSO™") reduced carbon dioxide
("CO2")
emissions by over 30% when considering increased engine efficiency
of up to 7%, and significantly reduced emissions of Nitrogen
Oxides ("NOx") and Carbon
Monoxide ("CO") when
compared with diesel.
New bioMSAR™ formulations incorporating
biofuels containing waste-based methyl esters were shown to reduce
CO2 emissions by over 45%, increase engine
efficiency by up to 7%, and reduce NOx and CO emissions
significantly when compared with diesel, providing a new potential
pathway for bioMSAR™ Zero.
In June 2023 Quadrise signed a Joint
Development Agreement with BTG Bioliquids BV ("BTL") to investigate their proprietary
Fast Pyrolysis Bio-oils ("FPBO")
and sugars as a potential cost-effective renewable feedstock
for bioMSAR™. Following positive results from this work,
Quadrise have recently signed a Project Development Agreement
("PDA") with BTL and
Euthenia Energy Group Limited ("Euthenia") under which a programme of
lab and pilot testing, followed by diesel engine testing, is
planned leading to a third-party commercial marine vessel
trial.
Outlook: 2024 and beyond
At the recent COP28, nations
approved a roadmap for transitioning away from fossil fuels to
achieve net zero by 2050. The need for practical and cost-efficient
transition solutions such as MSAR® and bioMSAR™ has
therefore never been more vital, as energy consumers in the
shipping, power and industrial sectors now seek to reduce their
carbon emissions whilst simultaneously reducing costs.
There is now a concerted industry effort to
accelerate decarbonisation in the shipping sector, which is
responsible for nearly 3% of global GHG emissions. This effort is
being driven by both shipping operators and their customers. A
joint declaration by major shipping company CEOs
at COP 28 called for an end date for
fossil-fuel only powered newbuild vessels and urged the IMO to
create the regulatory conditions to accelerate the transition to
green fuels. Marine freight buyers including Amazon, Philips
and Nike have joined the Zero Emission Maritime
Buyers Alliance ("ZEMBA"),
a group with the mission to accelerate commercial deployment of
zero-emission shipping. The Request for Proposal launched in
September 2023 by ZEMBA seeks bids with sufficient capacity to move
600,000 containers over 3 years on ships that offer 90% reduction
in GHG emissions compared to traditional fossil fuels.
The introduction and implementation of
environmental regulations, particularly in Europe, is expected to
increase biofuel use in our target sectors. Shipping is now
included in the EU ETS and Fit-for-55 regulations that came into
force on 1 January 2024. These are expected to increase the use of
marine biofuels for most vessels operating within or near EU
waters. Revenues raised via the EU ETS are to be reinvested into an
Innovation Fund reserved for sustainable shipping, the protection
of maritime habitats and for funding programmes to decarbonise the
maritime sector. Conventional biofuels such as FAME and renewable
diesel used by the marine industry today are also in demand from
road-based and aviation transportation sectors. As a result,
non-conventional biofuels are expected to be used by the marine
sector. Subsidies are still available for renewable waste-based
biofuel feedstocks such as glycerine and biomass derivatives that
should enhance the attractiveness of bioMSAR™ against competing
biofuels in major bunker locations. Market conditions and trends
therefore provide a favourable environment for Quadrise to progress
its contract discussions and business development activities on all
fronts.
In March 2023, the Company changed its name to
Quadrise Plc and its TIDM to 'QED'. The renaming of the Company was
part of the Board's initiative to emphasise our position in the
energy decarbonisation space amongst customers and investors and to
acknowledge the material contribution that the Company's technology
solutions can make to reducing carbon intensity in marine, power
and industrial applications. The move sets the tone for the future
direction of the Company as it continues to implement its strategy
towards net-zero carbon energy solutions and carbon
mitigations.
The Company launched its second
Sustainability Report in November 2023. This report is designed to
place the Company in the broader environmental context and serve as
an accessible reference point for decision-makers in the marine,
energy and industrial sectors looking to decarbonise their
businesses rapidly, practically and economically, as well as
providing important information on the Company's positioning for
investors. The report includes an overview
of the environmental and economic benefits of the Company's
technology as well as its scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions, alignment
to the UN Sustainability Goals and ambitions to create a net-zero
fuel by 2030.
The positioning of Quadrise to
decarbonise shipping and other sectors is an important statement of
intent to progress licence agreements and commercial-scale trials
which are expected to lead to supply contracts and commercial
revenues from MSAR® and bioMSAR™. Looking ahead, our
continued development of bioMSAR™ and net-zero solutions opens up
exciting opportunities to deploy our unique proven emulsion
technology platform in new applications, helping to secure a
cleaner future for our clients.
Quadrise has a small, highly
motivated and capable team and our continued progress is only
possible through the significant contribution of everyone working
within the business and our shareholders for their loyal
support.
Use of
proceeds
During the 2023-4 financial year,
the Company has continued to build momentum in implementing its
strategy of reaching cash breakeven by focusing on a limited number
of active projects and developing net zero carbon Heavy Fuel Oil
liquid drop-in alternatives for its customers, principally in the
intercontinental shipping and power generation sectors. Once cash
breakeven is achieved, further scaling of the business to achieve
its vast potential is expected to be conducted with industry
partners. The Company's active projects are intended to act as "use
cases" to demonstrate traction and to help drive partnership
programmes.
The net proceeds of the Placing and
Subscription are expected to provide Quadrise with the necessary
working capital resources to 31 March 2025, by which time projects
in Morocco and Utah are expected to be generating commercial
revenues, and the trial with MSC will be near completion, should
active project milestones be delivered on currently anticipated
timelines.
Should the Open Offer be fully
subscribed, the net proceeds of the Open Offer will provide the
Company with a clear pathway to profitability and the
resources to progress opportunities in Central
America and Southeast Asia, thereby creating a presence in the
marine bunkering hubs of Panama and Singapore and enable progress
with bioMSAR development.
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IMPORTANT NOTICES
This Announcement, and the
information contained herein is not for release, publication or
distribution, directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, in or
into or from the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, New
Zealand or the Republic of South Africa, or any other jurisdiction
where to do so might constitute a violation of the relevant laws or
regulations of such jurisdiction (the "Restricted
Jurisdictions").
The New Ordinary Shares referred to
herein have not been and will not be registered under the US
Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), or under
any securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the
United States and may not be offered, sold, resold, transferred or
delivered, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States
except in transactions exempt from, or not subject to, the
registration requirements of the Securities Act and in compliance
with the securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the
United States. The New Ordinary Shares are being offered and sold
solely outside the United States in "offshore transactions" as
defined in and pursuant to Regulation S under the Securities Act.
No public offering of New Ordinary Shares is being made in the
United States.
This Announcement does not
constitute or form part of an offer to sell or issue or a
solicitation of an offer to buy, subscribe for or otherwise acquire
any securities in any jurisdiction including, without limitation,
the Restricted Jurisdictions or any other jurisdiction in which
such offer or solicitation would be unlawful. This Announcement and
the information contained in it is not for publication or
distribution, directly or indirectly, to persons in a Restricted
Jurisdiction, unless permitted pursuant to an exemption under the
relevant local law or regulation in any such
jurisdiction.
No action has been taken by the
Company, Bookrunners or Cavendish or any of their respective
directors, officers, partners, agents, employees or affiliates that
would permit an offer of the New Ordinary Shares or possession or
distribution of this Announcement or any other publicity material
relating to such New Ordinary Shares in any jurisdiction where
action for that purpose is required. Persons receiving this
Announcement are required to inform themselves about and to observe
any restrictions contained in this Announcement.
This Announcement is directed only
at: (a) persons in member states of the European Economic Area who
are "qualified investors", as defined in article 2 (e) of the
Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 (together with its delegated and
implementing regulations) (the "EU Prospectus Regulation"), (b) in
the United Kingdom, persons who (i) have professional experience in
matters relating to investments who fall within the definition of
"investment professionals" in Article 19(5) of the Financial
Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, as
amended (the "Order"), or are high net worth companies,
unincorporated associations or partnerships or trustees of high
value trusts as described in Article 49(2) of the Order and (ii)
are "qualified investors", as defined in Article 2 (e) of the
Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 as it forms part of domestic law by
virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (as amended)
(the "UK Prospectus Regulation"), and (c) persons to whom it may
otherwise lawfully be communicated (each such person being a
"Relevant Person"). No other person should act on or rely on this
Announcement and persons distributing this Announcement must
satisfy themselves that it is lawful to do so. By accepting the
terms of this announcement, investors represent and agree that they
are a Relevant Person.
This Announcement must not be acted
on or relied on by persons who are not Relevant Persons. Any
investment or investment activity to which this Announcement or the
Placing relate is available only to Relevant Persons and will be
engaged in only with Relevant Persons. As regards all persons other
than Relevant Persons, the details of the Placing set out in this
Announcement are for information purposes only.
Persons (including, without
limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual or other
legal obligation to forward a copy of this Announcement should seek
appropriate advice before taking any action.
This Announcement is not being
distributed by, nor has it been approved for the purposes of
section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (as
amended) ("FSMA") by Cavendish, the Bookrunners or any other person
authorised under FSMA. This Announcement is being distributed and
communicated to persons in the United Kingdom only in circumstances
in which section 21(1) of FSMA does not apply.
No prospectus or offering document
will be made available in connection with the matters contained in
this Announcement and no such prospectus is required (in accordance
with the UK Prospectus Regulation) to be published.
Certain statements in this
Announcement are forward-looking statements which are based on the
Company's expectations, intentions and projections regarding its
future performance, anticipated events or trends and other matters
that are not historical facts. These forward-looking statements,
which may use words such as "aim", "anticipate", "believe",
"could", "intend", "estimate", "expect" and words of similar
meaning, include all matters that are not historical facts. These
forward-looking statements involve risks, assumptions and
uncertainties that could cause the actual results of operations,
financial condition, liquidity and dividend policy and the
development of the industries in which the Group's businesses
operate to differ materially from the impression created by the
forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of
future performance and are subject to known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements. Given those risks and uncertainties,
prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only
as of the date of such statements and, except as required by the
Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom ("FCA"), the
London Stock Exchange or applicable law, the Company undertakes no
obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise.
Any indication in this Announcement
of the price at which the Company's shares have been bought or sold
in the past cannot be relied upon as a guide to future performance.
Persons needing advice should consult an independent financial
adviser. No statement in this Announcement is intended to be a
profit forecast and no statement in this Announcement should be
interpreted to mean that earnings per share of the Company for the
current or future financial years would necessarily match or exceed
the historical published earnings per share of the
Group.
Cavendish, which is authorised and
regulated in the United Kingdom by the FCA, is acting as nominated
adviser exclusively for the Company and no one else in connection
with the Fundraise and will not regard any other person (whether or
not a recipient of this Announcement) as a client in relation to
the Open Offer and will not be responsible to anyone other than the
Company for providing the protections afforded to its clients, nor
for providing advice, in relation to the Fundraise or any other
matter referred to in this Announcement. Cavendish's
responsibilities as the Company's nominated adviser under the AIM
Rules for Companies and the AIM Rules for Nominated Advisers are
owed to the London Stock Exchange and the Company and not to any
other person.
Shore Capital and VSA Capital, who
are authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the FCA, are
acting exclusively for the Company as joints bookrunners and
brokers and no one else in connection with the Fundraise and will
not regard any other person (whether or not a recipient of this
Announcement) as their client in relation to the Fundraise and will
not be responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing
the protections afforded to its clients, nor for providing advice,
in relation to the Fundraise or any other
matter referred to in this Announcement. The responsibilities of
Shore Capital and VSA Capital as the Company's joint brokers are
owed to the London Stock Exchange and not to any other
person.
No representation or warranty,
express or implied, is or will be made as to, or in relation to,
and no responsibility or liability is or will be accepted by or on
behalf of the Company, Cavendish, Shore Capital or VSA Capital or
by their affiliates or their respective agents, directors, officers
and employees as to, or in relation to, the accuracy or
completeness of this Announcement or any other written or oral
information made available to or publicly available to any
interested party or its advisers, and any liability therefor is
expressly disclaimed.
The Placing Shares to be issued
pursuant to the Placing will not be admitted to trading on any
stock exchange other than to trading on AIM.
Appendix 1 to this Announcement sets
out the terms and conditions of the Placing. By participating in
the Placing, each person who is invited to and who chooses to
participate in the Placing by making or accepting an oral and
legally binding offer to acquire Placing Shares will be deemed to
have read and understood this Announcement in its entirety and to
be making such offer on the terms and subject to the conditions set
out in this Announcement and to be providing the representations,
warranties, undertakings and acknowledgements contained in Appendix
1.
Members of the public are not
eligible to take part in the Placing and no public offering of
Placing Shares is being or will be made.
Neither the content of the Company's
website (or any other website) nor the content of any website
accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website (or any other
website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this
Announcement.
APPENDIX
1
TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE
PLACING
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ON THE
PLACING FOR INVITED PLACEES ONLY
MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE NOT
ELIGIBLE TO TAKE PART IN THE PLACING. THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, INCLUDING THIS
APPENDIX 1 AND THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET
OUT HEREIN (TOGETHER, THIS "ANNOUNCEMENT") (WHICH IS FOR
INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY) ARE DIRECTED ONLY AT
PERSONS WHOSE ORDINARY ACTIVITIES INVOLVE THEM IN ACQUIRING,
HOLDING, MANAGING AND DISPOSING OF INVESTMENTS (AS PRINCIPAL OR
AGENT) FOR THE PURPOSES OF THEIR BUSINESS AND WHO HAVE PROFESSIONAL
EXPERIENCE IN MATTERS RELATING TO INVESTMENTS AND ARE: (A) IF IN
THE UNITED KINGDOM, QUALIFIED INVESTORS WHO FALL WITHIN ARTICLE
19(5) OF THE FINANCIAL SERVICES AND MARKETS ACT 2000 (FINANCIAL
PROMOTION) ORDER 2005, AS AMENDED (THE "ORDER") ("INVESTMENT
PROFESSIONALS") OR FALL WITHIN ARTICLE 49(2)(a) TO (d) (HIGH NET
WORTH COMPANIES, UNINCORPORATED ASSOCIATIONS, ETC.) OF THE ORDER;
OR (B) PERSONS TO WHOM THEY MAY OTHERWISE LAWFULLY BE COMMUNICATED
(ALL SUCH PERSONS, INCLUDING INVESTMENT PROFESSIONALS, TOGETHER
BEING REFERRED TO AS "RELEVANT PERSONS").
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE
INFORMATION IN IT MUST NOT BE ACTED ON OR
RELIED ON BY PERSONS WHO ARE NOT RELEVANT PERSONS. PERSONS
DISTRIBUTING THIS ANNOUNCEMENT MUST SATISFY THEMSELVES THAT IT IS LAWFUL TO DO SO. ANY INVESTMENT OR
INVESTMENT ACTIVITY TO WHICH THIS ANNOUNCEMENT RELATES IS
AVAILABLE ONLY TO RELEVANT PERSONS AND WILL
BE ENGAGED IN ONLY WITH RELEVANT PERSONS.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT DOES NOT ITSELF CONSTITUTE AN OFFER FOR THE SALE
OR SUBSCRIPTION OR A SOLICITATION OF AN
OFFER TO BUY OR ACQUIRE ANY SECURITIES IN THE
COMPANY.
THE PLACING SHARES HAVE NOT BEEN AND WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE US
SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE "US SECURITIES ACT") OR WITH ANY
SECURITIES REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF ANY
STATE OR JURISDICTION OF THE UNITED
STATES OR UNDER ANY SECURITIES LAWS OF ANY
STATE OR OTHER JURISDICTION OF THE UNITED
STATES AND MAY NOT
BE OFFERED, SOLD, RESOLD, PLEDGED, TRANSFERRED OR DELIVERED,
DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO THE
UNITED STATES EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN
APPLICABLE EXEMPTION FROM, OR IN A TRANSACTION NOT SUBJECT TO, THE
REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS OF THE US SECURITIES ACT, IN EACH CASE, AND IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE
SECURITIES LAWS OF ANY STATE OR OTHER
JURISDICTION OF THE UNITED STATES. THE
PLACING SHARES ARE BEING OFFERED AND SOLD ONLY OUTSIDE THE UNITED
STATES IN "OFFSHORE TRANSACTIONS" WITHIN THE MEANING OF, AND IN
ACCORDANCE WITH, REGULATION S UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT AND
OTHERWISE IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAWS. NO PUBLIC OFFERING OF
THE PLACING SHARES IS BEING MADE IN THE UNITED STATES, THE UNITED KINGDOM OR ELSEWHERE WHERE SUCH
OFFERING WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE
INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR RELEASE,
PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY,
IN OR INTO OR FROM THE UNITED STATES,
AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, NEW ZEALAND, THE
REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER
JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH RELEASE PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION
WOULD BE UNLAWFUL (THE "RESTRICTED
JURISDICTIONS").
EACH PLACEE SHOULD CONSULT WITH ITS
OWN ADVISORS AS TO LEGAL, TAX OR BUSINESS
CONSEQUENCES AND RELATED ASPECTS OF A PURCHASE OF PLACING
SHARES.
The Placing Shares have not been
approved or disapproved by the US Securities and Exchange
Commission, any state securities commission or other regulatory
authority in the United States nor have any of the foregoing
authorities passed upon or endorsed the merits of the Placing or
the accuracy or adequacy of this Announcement. Any representation
to the contrary is a criminal offence in the United States. The
relevant clearances have not been, nor will they be, obtained from
the securities commission of any province or territory of Canada,
no prospectus has been lodged with, or registered by, the Australian Securities and Investments
Commission or the Japanese Ministry of Finance; the relevant
clearances have not been, and will not be, obtained for the South
Africa Reserve Bank or any other applicable body in the Republic of
South Africa in relation to the Placing Shares and the Placing
Shares have not been, nor will they be registered under or offered
in compliance with the securities laws of any state, province or
territory of Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South
Africa. Accordingly, the Placing Shares may not (unless an
exemption under the relevant securities laws is applicable) be
offered, sold, resold or delivered, directly or indirectly, in or
into Australia, Canada, Japan or the Republic of South Africa.
Persons (including without
limitation, nominees and trustees) who have a contractual right
or other legal obligations to forward a
copy of this Announcement should seek appropriate advice before
taking any action.
This Announcement (including this
Appendix 1) should be read in its entirety. In particular, any
Placee should read and understand the information provided in the
"Important Notices" section of this Announcement.
By participating in the Bookbuild
(as defined below) and the Placing, each Placee will be deemed (i)
to have read and understood this Announcement in its entirety, (ii)
to be participating, making an offer to acquire and acquiring
Placing Shares on the terms and conditions contained herein and
(iii) to be providing the representations, warranties, indemnities,
acknowledgements and undertakings contained in this Announcement
(including for the avoidance of doubt this Appendix 1).
In particular, each such Placee
represents, warrants, undertakes, agrees and acknowledges (amongst
other things) that:
1.
it is a Relevant Person and undertakes that it will acquire, hold,
manage or dispose of any Placing Shares that are allocated to it
for the purposes of its business;
2.
it is acquiring the Placing Shares for its own account or is
acquiring the Placing Shares for an account with respect to which
it exercises sole investment discretion and has the authority to
make and does make the representations, warranties, indemnities,
acknowledgements, undertakings and agreements contained in this
Announcement (including for the avoidance of doubt this Appendix
1;
3.
it understands (or if acting for the account of another person,
such person has confirmed that such person understands) the resale
and transfer restrictions set out in this Appendix 1; and
4.
except as otherwise permitted by the Company and subject to any
available exemptions from applicable securities laws, it (and any
account referred to in paragraph 2 above) is outside the United
States acquiring the Placing Shares in offshore transactions as
defined in, and in accordance with, Regulation S under the US
Securities Act.
No prospectus
The Placing Shares are being offered
to a limited number of specifically invited persons only and will
not be offered in such a way as to require any prospectus or other
offering document to be published. No
prospectus or other offering document has been or will be submitted
to be approved by the FCA in relation to the Placing or the Placing
Shares and Placees' commitments will be made solely on the basis of
their own assessment of the Company, the Placing Shares and the
Placing, based on the information contained in this Announcement,
the announcement of the pricing of the Placing (the "Result of Placing Announcement")
(together, the "Placing
Documents") and any information publicly announced through a
regulatory information service ("RIS") by or on behalf of the Company
on or prior to the date of this Announcement (the "Publicly Available Information") and
subject to any further terms set forth in the Form of Confirmation
sent to Placees by Shore Capital or VSA Capital to confirm their
acquisition of Placing Shares.
Each Placee, by participating in the
Placing, agrees that the content of the Placing Documents is
exclusively the responsibility of the Company and confirms that it
has neither received nor relied on any information (other than the
Publicly Available Information), representation, warranty or
statement made by or on behalf of Shore Capital, VSA Capital or the
Company or any other person and none of Shore Capital, VSA Capital
the Company nor any other person acting on such person's behalf nor
any of their respective affiliates has or shall have any
responsibility or liability for any Placee's decision to
participate in the Placing based on any other information,
representation, warranty or statement (regardless of whether or not
such information, representation, warranty or statement was given
or made by or on behalf of any such persons). Each Placee
acknowledges and agrees that it has relied on its own investigation
of the business, financial or other position of the Company
in accepting a participation in the
Placing. No Placee should consider any information in this
Announcement to be legal, tax or business advice. Each Placee
should consult its own attorney, tax advisor and business advisor
for legal, tax and business advice regarding an investment in the
Placing Shares. Nothing in this paragraph shall exclude the
liability of any person for fraudulent
misrepresentation.
Details of the Placing Agreement and the
Placing Shares
Shore Capital and VSA Capital are
acting as bookrunners and placing agent in connection with the
Placing and have entered into the Placing Agreement with the
Company and Cavendish under which, on the terms and subject to the
conditions set out in the Placing Agreement, Shore Capital and VSA
Capital, as agent for and on behalf of the Company, have agreed to
use their reasonable endeavours to procure placees for the Placing
Shares. The Placing is not being
underwritten by Shore Capital, VSA Capital or any other
person.
The price per Ordinary Share at
which the Placing Shares are to be placed is 1.25 pence per Placing
Share (the "Issue Price")
and the final number of Placing Shares will be decided at the close
of the Bookbuild following the execution of the placing terms by
the Company, Shore Capital and VSA Capital (the "Placing Results Agreement"). The timing
of the closing of the book and allocations
are at the discretion of the Company, Shore Capital and VSA
Capital. Details of the number of Placing Shares will be announced
as soon as practicable after the close of the Bookbuild.
The Placing Shares will be duly
authorised and will, when issued, be credited as fully paid up and will be issued subject to the
Company's articles of association in place at the time and rank
pari
passu in all respects with the Existing Adjusted Ordinary
Shares, including the right to receive all dividends and other
distributions declared, made or paid on or in respect of the
Ordinary Shares after the date of issue of the Placing Shares, and
will on issue be free of all pre-emption rights, claims, liens,
charges, encumbrances and equities.
Application for admission to trading on
AIM
Application will be made to the
London Stock Exchange plc (the "London Stock Exchange") for admission
to trading of the Placing Shares on AIM.
It is expected that Admission of the
Placing Shares will occur at or before 8.00 a.m. BST on 26 March
2024 (or such later time or date as Shore Capital, VSA Capital
and Cavendish may agree with the Company,
being no later than 8.00 a.m. BST on 31 May 2024) and that dealings
in the Placing Shares will commence at that time.
Bookbuild
Shore Capital and VSA Capital will
today commence the accelerated bookbuilding process to determine
demand for participation in the Placing by
Placees at the Issue Price (the "Bookbuild"). This Announcement gives
details of the terms and conditions of, and the mechanics of
participation in, the Placing. No commissions will be paid to
Placees or by Placees in respect of any Placing Shares.
Shore Capital, VSA Capital and the
Company shall be entitled to effect the Placing by such alternative
method to the Bookbuild as they may, in their sole discretion,
determine.
Participation in, and principal terms of, the
Placing
1.
Shore Capital and VSA Capital are arranging the Placing as
bookrunners and placing agents of the Company.
2.
Participation in the Placing will only be available to persons who
may lawfully be, and are, invited to participate by Shore Capital
and/or VSA Capital. Shore Capital and VSA Capital may themselves
agree to be a Placee in respect of all or some of the Placing
Shares or may nominate any member of their group to do so.
3.
The number of Placing Shares to be issued at the Issue Price will
be agreed by Shore Capital and VSA Capital (in consultation with
the Company) following completion of the Bookbuild. Subject to the
execution of the Placing Results Agreement, the Issue Price and the
number of Placing Shares to be issued will be announced on an RIS
following the completion of the Bookbuild via the Result of Placing
Announcement.
4.
To bid in the Bookbuild, prospective Placees should communicate
their bid orally by telephone or in writing to their usual sales
contact at Shore Capital or VSA Capital. Each bid should state the
number of Placing Shares which the prospective Placee wishes to
subscribe for at the Issue Price. Bids may be scaled down by Shore
Capital and VSA Capital on the basis referred to in paragraph 6
below. Shore Capital and VSA Capital reserve the right not to
accept bids or to accept bids in part rather than in whole. The
acceptance of bids shall be at the absolute discretion of Shore
Capital and VSA Capital, subject to agreement with the Company.
5.
The Bookbuild is expected to close no later than 6.30 p.m. (BST)
today (18 March 2024) but may be closed earlier or later at the
discretion of Shore Capital and VSA Capital subject to agreement
with the Company. Shore Capital and VSA Capital may, subject to
agreement with the Company, accept bids that are received after the
Bookbuild has closed. The Company reserves the right (subject to
the agreement of Shore Capital and VSA Capital) to reduce the
number of shares to be issued pursuant to the Placing, in its
absolute discretion.
6.
Allocations of the Placing Shares will be determined by Shore
Capital and VSA Capital after consultation with the Company (the
proposed allocations having been supplied by Shore Capital and VSA
Capital to the Company in advance of such consultation).
Allocations will be confirmed orally by Shore Capital or VSA
Capital and a Form of Confirmation will be despatched as soon as
possible thereafter. Shore Capital or VSA Capital oral
confirmation, as applicable, to such Placee constitutes an
irrevocable legally binding commitment upon such person (who will
at that point become a Placee), in favour of Shore Capital, VSA
Capital and the Company, to acquire the number of Placing Shares
allocated to it and to pay the Issue Price in respect of such
Placing Shares on the terms and conditions set out in this Appendix
1 and in accordance with the Company's articles of association. A
bid in the Bookbuild will be made on the terms and subject to the
conditions in this Announcement (including this Appendix 1) and
will be legally binding on the Placee on behalf of which it is made
and except with Shore Capital and VSA Capital consent, such
commitment will not be capable of variation or revocation after the
time at which it is submitted.
7.
Each Placee's allocation and commitment will be evidenced by a Form
of Confirmation issued to such Placee by Shore Capital or VSA
Capital. The terms of this Appendix 1 will be deemed incorporated
in that Form of Confirmation.
8.
Irrespective of the time at which a Placee's allocation pursuant to
the Placing is confirmed, settlement for all Placing Shares to be
subscribed for pursuant to the Placing will be required to be made
at the same time, on the basis explained below under "Registration
and Settlement".
9.
All obligations under the Bookbuild and the Placing will be subject
to fulfilment or (where applicable) waiver of the conditions
referred to below under "Conditions of the Placing" and to the
Placing not being terminated on the basis referred to below under
"Right to terminate under the Placing Agreement".
10.
By participating in the Placing, each Placee agrees that its rights
and obligations in respect of the Placing will terminate only in
the circumstances described below and will not be capable of
rescission or termination by the Placee.
11.
To the fullest extent permissible by law, neither Shore Capital,
nor VSA Capital nor the Company, nor any of their respective
affiliates, agents, directors, officers or employees shall have any
responsibility or liability to Placees (or to any other person
whether acting on behalf of a Placee or otherwise). In particular,
none of Shore Capital, VSA Capital, the Company, nor any of their
respective affiliates, agents, directors, officers or employees
shall have any responsibility or liability (including to the extent
permissible by law, any fiduciary duties) in respect of Shore
Capital or VSA Capital conduct of the Placing.
12.
The Placing Shares will be issued subject to the terms and
conditions of this Announcement and each Placee's commitment to
subscribe for Placing Shares on the terms set out herein will
continue notwithstanding any amendment that may in future be made
to the terms and conditions of the Placing and Placees will have no
right to be consulted or require that their consent be obtained
with respect to the Company's, Shore Capital's or VSA Capital's
conduct of the Placing.
13.
All times and dates in this Announcement may be subject to
amendment. Shore Capital or VSA Capital, as applicable, shall
notify the Placees and any person acting on behalf of the Placees
of any changes.
Conditions of the Placing
The Placing is conditional
upon, inter alia, (i) the
conditions in the Placing Agreement relating to the Placing being
fulfilled and (ii) the Placing Agreement not having been terminated
in accordance with its terms. The obligations of Shore Capital and
VSA Capital under the Placing Agreement are conditional on
customary conditions, including (amongst others) (the "Conditions"):
1.
the London Stock Exchange agreeing to admit the Placing Shares and
Subscription Shares to trading on AIM (subject only to
allotment);
2.
the Placing Results Agreement having been executed by the Company
and the Bookrunners no later than 6.00 p.m. BST on 18 March 2024
(or such later time or date as Shore Capital and VSA Capital may
otherwise agree with the Company);
3.
the delivery by the Company to Shore Capital and VSA Capital of a
warranty confirmation certificate signed by a Director for and on
behalf of the Company not later than 5.00 p.m. BST on the Business
Day immediately prior to the date on which First Admission is
expected to occur (and dated as of such date);
4.
the Company having complied in all material respects with its
obligations which fall to be performed on or prior to First
Admission under the Placing Agreement;
5.
the Subscription having become unconditional in accordance with its
terms, save for any condition as to First Admission; and
6.
First Admission occurring no later than 8.00 a.m. BST on 26 March
2024 (or such later time or date as Shore Capital and VSA Capital
may otherwise agree with the Company, being no later than 8.00 a.m.
BST on 31 May 2024) (the "Closing Date").
Shore Capital and VSA Capital
may, at their discretion and upon such
terms as they think fit, waive compliance by the Company with the
whole or in part of any of the Company's obligations in relation to
the Conditions or extend the time or date
provided for fulfilment of any such Conditions in respect of all or
any part of the performance thereof. Any such extension or waiver
will not affect Placees' commitments as set out in this
Announcement.
If (i) any of the Conditions
are not fulfilled or (where permitted) waived by Shore Capital and
VSA Capital by the relevant time or date specified (or such later
time or date as Shore Capital and VSA Capital may agree with the
Company, being no later than 8.00 a.m. BST on 31 May 2024) or (ii)
the Placing Agreement is terminated in the circumstances specified
below under "Right to terminate
under the Placing Agreement", the
Placing will not proceed and the Placees' rights and obligations
hereunder in relation to the Placing Shares shall cease and
terminate at such time and each Placee agrees that no claim
can be made by it or on its behalf (or any
person on whose behalf the Placee is acting) in respect thereof.
Neither Shore Capital, VSA Capital
nor the Company, nor any of their respective affiliates, agents,
directors, officers or employees shall have any liability to any
Placee (or to any other person whether acting on behalf of a Placee
or otherwise) in respect of any decision they may make as to
whether or not to waive or to extend the time and/or date for the
satisfaction of any Condition to the Placing, nor for any decision
they may make as to the satisfaction of any Condition or in respect
of the Placing generally, and by participating in the Placing each
Placee agrees that any such decision is within the absolute
discretion of Shore Capital and VSA Capital.
Right to terminate under the Placing
Agreement
Each of Shore Capital and VSA
Capital is entitled, but after prior consultation with Cavendish,
at any time before First Admission or Second Admission (as the case
may be), to terminate the Placing Agreement in accordance with its terms in certain circumstances,
including (amongst other things):
1.
Shore Capital or VSA Capital becomes aware of any fact, matter or
circumstance which constitutes or might reasonably be expected to
constitute a breach of the warranties in the Placing Agreement or
which indicates that any of such warranties has become or might
reasonably be expected to become untrue, inaccurate or misleading
by reference to the facts and circumstances then subsisting; or
2.
the Company fails to comply in any material respect with any of its
obligations under the Placing Agreement, or with the requirements
of any laws or regulations in relation to the Placing, the
Subscription and/or Open Offer or it comes to the attention
of Shore Capital or VSA Capital that the Company has failed, in any
material respect, to comply with any of its obligations under the
Placing Agreement; or
3.
it comes to the attention of Shore Capital or VSA Capital that any
statement contained in the Placing Documents is untrue, inaccurate
or misleading which Shore Capital or VSA Capital (acting
reasonably) considers to be material in the context of the
Fundraise or that matters have arisen which would, if the Placing
Documents were issued at that time, constitute an omission
therefrom which Shore Capital or VSA Capital (acting reasonably)
considers to be material in the context of the Placing, the
Subscription and/or Open Offer; or
4.
there has occurred a force majeure event, or any material adverse
change has occurred in the financial position or prospects or
business of the Company and its subsidiary undertakings (taken as
whole) which, in the opinion of Shore Capital or VSA Capital
(acting reasonably), will or is likely to be prejudicial to the
Placing, the Subscription and/or the Open Offer.
If either Shore Capital or VSA Capital (the
"Withdrawing Bookrunner")
elects to terminate the Placing Agreement in accordance with its
terms but the other Bookrunner (the "Continuing Bookrunner") elects
not to do so, then the Continuing Bookrunner has the right to elect
to continue to act as the sole placing agent of the Company in
connection with the Placing (the "Step-in Right") and in those
circumstances the Placing Agreement will continue, the Continuing
Bookrunner will assume all rights of the Withdrawing Bookrunner
under the Placing Agreement and all obligations of the Withdrawing
Bookrunner will cease and determine, subject to certain
exceptions.
Assuming the Step-in Right is not exercised and the
Placing Agreement is terminated, upon termination, the parties to
the Placing Agreement shall be released and discharged (except for
any liability arising before or in relation to such termination)
from their respective obligations under or pursuant to the Placing
Agreement, subject to certain exceptions.
By participating in the Placing,
each Placee agrees that (i) the exercise by Shore Capital or VSA
Capital of any right of termination or of any other discretion
under the Placing Agreement shall be within the absolute discretion
of Shore Capital or VSA Capital and that it need not make any
reference to, or consult with, Placees and that it shall have no
liability to Placees whatsoever in connection with any such
exercise or failure to so exercise and (ii) its rights and
obligations terminate only in the circumstances described above
under "Right to terminate under
the Placing Agreement" and "Conditions of the Placing", and its
participation will not be capable of rescission or termination by
it after oral confirmation by Shore Capital or VSA Capital of the
allocation and commitments following the close of the
Bookbuild.
Restriction on Further Issue of
Shares
The Company has undertaken to Shore
Capital and VSA Capital that, between the date of the Placing
Agreement and 90 days after the date of First Admission (the
"Restricted Period"), it
will not, without the prior written consent of Shore Capital and
VSA Capital directly or indirectly offer,
issue, lend, sell or contract to sell, issue options in respect of
or otherwise dispose of or announce an offering or issue of any
Ordinary Shares (or any interest therein or in respect thereof) or
any other securities exchangeable for or convertible into, or
substantially similar to, Ordinary Shares or enter into any
transaction with the same economic effect as, or agree to do, any
of the foregoing (whether or not legally or contractually obliged
to do so) provided that the foregoing
restrictions shall not restrict the ability of the Company or any
other member of the Group during the Restricted Period to grant of
options under, or the allotment and issue of shares pursuant to
options under, any employee or non-executive share or option
schemes or long term incentive plans of the Company (in accordance
with its normal practice), or the allotment
and issue of the Open Offer Shares pursuant to the provisions of
the Open Offer.
By participating in the Placing,
Placees agree that the exercise by Shore Capital and VSA Capital of
any power to grant consent to the undertaking by the Company of a
transaction which would otherwise be subject to the restrictive provisions on further issuance under
the Placing Agreement shall be within the
absolute discretion of Shore Capital and VSA Capital and that it
need not make any reference to, or consult with, Placees and that
it shall have no liability to Placees whatsoever in connection with
any such exercise of the power to grant consent.
Registration and Settlement
Settlement of transactions in the
Placing Shares (ISIN: GB00B11DDB67) following First Admission will
take place within the system administered by Euroclear
("CREST"), subject to
certain exceptions. Shore Capital and VSA Capital reserve the right
to require settlement for, and delivery of,
the Placing Shares (or any part thereof) to Placees by such other
means that they may deem necessary if delivery or settlement is not
possible or practicable within the CREST system or would not be consistent with the regulatory
requirements in the Placee's jurisdiction.
Shore Capital and VSA Capital are
acting as settlement banks. Following the close of the Bookbuild,
each Placee to be allocated Placing Shares in the Placing will be
sent a Form of Confirmation stating the number of Placing Shares
allocated to them at the Issue Price, the aggregate amount owed by
such Placee to Shore Capital or VSA Capital (as the case may be)
and settlement instructions. Each Placee agrees that it will do all
things necessary to ensure that delivery and payment is completed
in accordance with the standing CREST or certificated settlement
instructions in respect of the Placing Shares that it has in place
with Shore Capital or VSA Capital.
The Company will deliver the Placing
Shares to CREST accounts operated by Shore Capital and VSA Capital
as agent for the Company and Shore Capital and VSA Capital will
enter their respective delivery instructions into the CREST system.
The input to CREST by a Placee of a matching or acceptance
instruction will then allow delivery of the relevant Placing Shares
to that Placee against payment.
It is expected that settlement in
respect of the Placing Shares will take place on 26 March 2024 on a
delivery versus payment basis.
Interest is chargeable daily on
payments not received from Placees on the due date in accordance with the arrangements set out above at
the rate of two percentage points above LIBOR as determined by
Shore Capital or VSA Capital (as the case may be).
Each Placee is deemed to agree that,
if it does not comply with these obligations, Shore Capital or VSA
Capital (as the case may be) may sell any or all of the Placing
Shares allocated to that Placee on such Placee's behalf and retain
from the proceeds, for Shore Capital or VSA Capital account and
benefit, an amount equal to the aggregate amount owed by the Placee
plus any interest due. The relevant Placee will, however, remain
liable for any shortfall below the aggregate amount owed by it and
will be required to bear any stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax or other taxes or duties (together
with any interest or penalties) imposed in any jurisdiction which
may arise upon the sale of such Placing Shares on such Placee's
behalf.
If Placing Shares are to be
delivered to a custodian or settlement agent, Placees should ensure
that the Form of Confirmation is copied and delivered immediately
to the relevant person within that organisation. Insofar as Placing
Shares are issued in a Placee's name or that of its nominee or in
the name of any person for whom a Placee is contracting as agent or
that of a nominee for such person, such
Placing Shares should, subject as provided below, be so registered
free from any liability to UK stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax.
If there are any circumstances in which any stamp duty or stamp
duty reserve tax or other similar taxes or duties (including any
interest and penalties relating thereto) is payable in respect of
the allocation, allotment, issue, sale,
transfer or delivery of the Placing Shares (or, for the avoidance of doubt, if any stamp duty or
stamp duty reserve tax is payable in connection with any subsequent
transfer of or agreement to transfer Placing Shares), neither Shore
Capital, VSA Capital nor the Company shall be responsible for
payment thereof.
Representations, warranties, undertakings and
acknowledgements
By participating in the Placing each
Placee (and any person acting on such Placee's behalf) irrevocably
acknowledges, confirms, undertakes, represents, warrants and agrees
(as the case may be) with Shore Capital and VSA Capital (in their
capacity as bookrunners and placing agents of the Company in
respect of the Placing) and the Company, in each case as a
fundamental term of their application for Placing Shares, the
following:
1.
it has read and understood this Announcement in its entirety and
its acquisition of Placing Shares is subject to and based upon all
the terms, conditions, representations, warranties,
acknowledgements, agreements and undertakings and other information
contained herein and it has not relied on, and will not rely on,
any information given or any representations, warranties or
statements made at any time by any person in connection with the
Placing, the Company, the Placing Shares or otherwise other than
the information contained in the Placing Documents and the Publicly
Available Information;
2.
the Ordinary Shares are admitted to trading on AIM and that the
Company is therefore required to publish certain business and
financial information in accordance with the rules and practices of
AIM, which includes a description of the Company's business and the
Company's financial information, including balance sheets and
income statements, and that it is able to obtain or has access to
such information without undue difficulty, and is able to obtain
access to such information or comparable information concerning any
other publicly traded companies, without undue difficulty;
3.
to be bound by the terms of the articles of association of the
Company;
4.
the person whom it specifies for registration as holder of the
Placing Shares will be (a) itself or (b) its nominee, as the case
may be. Neither Shore Capital, VSA Capital nor the Company will be
responsible for any liability to stamp duty or stamp duty reserve
tax or other similar taxes or duties imposed in any jurisdiction
(including interest and penalties relating thereto) ("Indemnified Taxes"). Each Placee and
any person acting on behalf of such Placee agrees to indemnify the
Company, VSA Capital and Shore Capital on an after-tax basis in
respect of any Indemnified Taxes;
5.
neither Shore Capital, VSA Capital, nor any of their affiliates
agents, directors, officers and employees accepts any
responsibility for any acts or omissions of the Company or any of
the directors of the Company or any other person in connection with
the Placing;
6.
time is of the essence as regards its obligations under this
Announcement;
7.
any document that is to be sent to it in connection with the
Placing will be sent at its risk and may be sent to it at any
address provided by it to Shore Capital or VSA Capital;
8.
it will not redistribute, forward, transfer, duplicate or otherwise
transmit this Announcement or any part of it, or any other
presentational or other material concerning the Placing (including
electronic copies thereof) to any person and represents that it has
not redistributed, forwarded, transferred, duplicated, or otherwise
transmitted any such documents to any person;
9.
no prospectus or other offering document is required under the UK
Prospectus Regulation or the EU Prospectus Regulation, nor will one
be prepared in connection with the Bookbuild, the Placing or the
Placing Shares and it has not received and will not receive a
prospectus or other offering document in connection with the
Bookbuild, the Placing or the Placing Shares;
10.
in connection with the Placing, Shore Capital, VSA Capital and any
of their affiliates acting as an investor for its own account may
subscribe for Placing Shares in the Company and in that capacity
may retain, purchase or sell for its own account such Placing
Shares in the Company and any securities of the Company or related
investments and may offer or sell such securities or other
investments otherwise than in connection with the Placing.
Accordingly, references in this Announcement to the Placing Shares
being issued, offered or placed should be read as including any
issue, offering or placement of such shares in the Company to Shore
Capital, VSA Capital or any of their affiliates acting in such
capacity;
11.
Shore Capital, VSA Capital and their affiliates may enter into
financing arrangements and swaps with investors in connection with
which Shore Capital, VSA Capital and any of their affiliates may
from time to time acquire, hold or dispose of such securities of
the Company, including the Placing Shares;
12.
Shore Capital and VSA Capital do not intend to disclose the extent
of any investment or transactions referred to in paragraphs 10 and
11 above otherwise than in accordance with any legal or regulatory
obligation to do so;
13.
Shore Capital and VSA Capital do not owe any fiduciary or other
duties to any Placee in respect of any representations, warranties,
undertakings or indemnities in the Placing Agreement;
14.
its participation in the Placing is on the basis that it is not and
will not be a client of any of Shore Capital or VSA Capital in
connection with its participation in the Placing and that neither
Shore Capital nor VSA Capital have any duties or responsibilities
to it for providing the protections afforded to its clients or
customers or for providing advice in relation to the Placing nor in
respect of any representations, warranties, undertakings or
indemnities contained in the Placing Agreement nor for the exercise
or performance of any of its rights and obligations thereunder
including any rights to waive or vary any conditions or exercise
any termination right;
15.
the content of the Placing Documents and the Publicly Available
Information has been prepared by and is exclusively the
responsibility of the Company and neither Shore Capital, VSA
Capital nor any of their affiliates agents, directors, officers or
employees nor any person acting on behalf of any of them is
responsible for or has or shall have any responsibility or
liability for any information, representation or statement
contained in, or omission from, this Announcement, the Publicly
Available Information or otherwise nor will they be liable for any
Placee's decision to participate in the Placing based on any
information, representation, warranty or statement contained in
this Announcement, the Publicly Available Information or otherwise,
provided that nothing in this paragraph excludes the liability of
any person for fraudulent misrepresentation made by such
person;
16.
the only information on which it is entitled to rely and on which
such Placee has relied in committing itself to subscribe for
Placing Shares is contained in the Placing Documents or any
Publicly Available Information (save that in the case of Publicly
Available Information, a Placee's right to rely on that information
is limited to the right that such Placee would have as a matter of
law in the absence of this paragraph 16), such information being
all that such Placee deems necessary or appropriate and sufficient
to make an investment decision in respect of the Placing
Shares;
17.
it has neither received nor relied on any other information given,
or representations, warranties or statements, express or implied,
made, by Shore Capital, VSA Capital or the Company nor any of their
respective affiliates, agents, directors, officers or employees
acting on behalf of any of them (including in any management
presentation delivered in respect of the Bookbuild) with respect to
the Company, the Placing or the Placing Shares or the accuracy,
completeness or adequacy of any information contained in the
Placing Documents, or the Publicly Available Information or
otherwise;
18.
neither Shore Capital, VSA Capital nor the Company, nor any of
their respective affiliates, agents, directors, officers or
employees or any person acting on behalf of any of them has
provided, nor will provide, it with any material or information
regarding the Placing Shares or the Company or any other person
other than the information in the Placing Documents or the Publicly
Available Information; nor has it requested any of Shore Capital,
VSA Capital, the Company, any of their respective affiliates or any
person acting on behalf of any of them to provide it with any such
material or information;
19.
neither Shore Capital, VSA Capital nor the Company will be liable
for any Placee's decision to participate in the Placing based on
any other information, representation, warranty or statement,
provided that nothing in this paragraph excludes the liability of
any person for fraudulent misrepresentation made by that
person;
20.
it may not rely, and has not relied, on any investigation that
Shore Capital, VSA Capital, any of their affiliates or any person
acting on its behalf, may have conducted with respect to the
Placing Shares, the terms of the Placing or the Company, and none
of such persons has made any representation, express or implied,
with respect to the Company, the Placing, the Placing Shares or the
accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information in the
Placing Documents, the Publicly Available Information or any other
information;
21.
in making any decision to subscribe for Placing Shares it:
(a)
has such knowledge and experience in financial and business matters
to be capable of evaluating the merits and risks of subscribing for
the Placing Shares;
(b)
will not look to Shore Capital or VSA Capital for all or part of
any such loss it may suffer;
(c)
is experienced in investing in securities of this nature in this
sector and is aware that it may be required to bear, and is able to
bear, the economic risk of an investment in the Placing Shares;
(d)
is able to sustain a complete loss of an investment in the Placing
Shares;
(e)
has no need for liquidity with respect to its investment in the
Placing Shares;
(f)
has made its own assessment and has satisfied itself concerning the
relevant tax, legal, currency and other economic considerations
relevant to its investment in the Placing Shares; and
(g)
has conducted its own due diligence, examination, investigation and
assessment of the Company, the Placing Shares and the terms of the
Placing and has satisfied itself that the information resulting
from such investigation is still current and relied on that
investigation for the purposes of its decision to participate in
the Placing;
22.
it is subscribing for the Placing Shares for its own account or for
an account with respect to which it exercises sole investment
discretion and has the authority to make and does make the
acknowledgements, representations and agreements contained in this
Announcement;
23.
it is acting as principal only in respect of the Placing or, if it
is acting for any other person, it is:
(a)
duly authorised to do so and has full power to make the
acknowledgments, representations and agreements herein on behalf of
each such person; and
(b)
will remain liable to the Company and/or Shore Capital or VSA
Capital for the performance of all its obligations as a Placee in
respect of the Placing (regardless of the fact that it is acting
for another person);
24.
it and any person acting on its behalf is entitled to subscribe for
the Placing Shares under the laws and regulations of all relevant
jurisdictions that apply to it and that it has fully observed such
laws and regulations, has capacity and authority and is entitled to
enter into and perform its obligations as a subscriber of Placing
Shares and will honour such obligations, and has obtained all such
governmental and other guarantees, permits, authorisations,
approvals and consents which may be required thereunder and
complied with all necessary formalities to enable it to commit to
this participation in the Placing and to perform its obligations in
relation thereto (including, without limitation, in the case of any
person on whose behalf it is acting, all necessary consents and
authorities to agree to the terms set out or referred to in this
Announcement) and will honour such obligations and that it has not
taken any action or omitted to take any action which will or may
result in Shore Capital, VSA Capital the Company or any of their
respective directors, officers, agents, employees or advisers
acting in breach of the legal or regulatory requirements of any
jurisdiction in connection with the Placing;
25.
where it is subscribing for Placing Shares for one or more managed
accounts, it is authorised in writing by each managed account to
subscribe for the Placing Shares for each managed account;
26.
it irrevocably appoints any duly authorised officers of Shore
Capital or VSA Capital as its agent for the purpose of executing
and delivering to the Company and/or its registrars any documents
on its behalf necessary to enable it to be registered as the holder
of any of the Placing Shares for which it agrees to subscribe for
upon the terms of this Announcement;
27.
the Placing Shares have not been and will not be registered or
otherwise qualified and that a prospectus will not be cleared in
respect of any of the Placing Shares under the securities laws or
legislation of the Restricted Jurisdictions, or any state,
province, territory or jurisdiction thereof;
28.
the Placing Shares may not be offered, sold, or delivered or
transferred, directly or indirectly, in or into the above
jurisdictions or any jurisdiction (subject to certain exceptions)
in which it would be unlawful to do so and no action has been or
will be taken by any of the Company, Shore Capital, VSA Capital or
any person acting on behalf of the Company, VSA Capital or Shore
Capital that would, or is intended to, permit a public offer of the
Placing Shares in the Restricted Jurisdictions or any country or
jurisdiction, or any state, province, territory or jurisdiction
thereof, where any such action for that purpose is required;
29.
no action has been or will be taken by any of the Company, Shore
Capital, VSA Capital or any person acting on behalf of the Company
or Shore Capital or VSA Capital that would, or is intended to,
permit a public offer of the Placing Shares in the United States or
in any country or jurisdiction where any such action for that
purpose is required;
30.
unless otherwise specifically agreed with Shore Capital and VSA
Capital, it is not and at the time the Placing Shares are
subscribed for, neither it nor the beneficial owner of the Placing
Shares will be, a resident of, nor have an address in, Australia,
New Zealand, Japan, the Republic of South Africa or any province or
territory of Canada;
31.
it may be asked to disclose in writing or orally to Shore Capital
or VSA Capital, as applicable:
(a)
if he or she is an individual, his or her nationality; or
(b)
if he or she is a discretionary fund manager, the jurisdiction in
which the funds are managed or owned;
32.
it is and the prospective beneficial owner of the Placing Shares
is, and at the time the Placing Shares are subscribed for will be
(i) outside the United States and is acquiring the Placing Shares
in an "offshore transaction" as defined in, and in accordance with,
Regulation S under the US Securities Act or (ii) a QIB and will
duly execute a US investor letter and deliver the same to Shore
Capital, VSA Capital or their affiliates;
33.
it has not been offered to purchase or subscribe for Placing Shares
by means of any "directed selling efforts" as defined in Regulation
S under the US Securities Act or by means of any "general
solicitation" or "general advertising" within the meaning of
Regulation D under the US Securities Act;
34.
it understands that the Placing Shares have not been, and will not
be, registered under the US Securities Act and may not be offered,
sold or resold, pledged or delivered in or into or from the United
States except pursuant to (i) an effective registration statement
under the US Securities Act; or (ii) pursuant to an exemption from
the registration requirements of the US Securities Act and, in each
case, in accordance with applicable United States state securities
laws and regulations;
35.
it (and any account for which it is purchasing) is not acquiring
the Placing Shares with a view to any offer, sale or distribution
thereof within the meaning of the US Securities Act;
36.
it will not distribute, forward, transfer or otherwise transmit
this Announcement or any part of it, or any other presentational or
other materials concerning the Placing in or into or from the
United States (including electronic copies thereof) to any person,
and it has not distributed, forwarded, transferred or otherwise
transmitted any such materials to any person;
37.
it understands that there may be certain consequences under United
States and other tax laws resulting from an investment in the
Placing and it has made such investigation and has consulted its
own independent advisers or otherwise has satisfied itself
concerning, without limitation, the effects of United States
federal, state and local income tax laws and foreign tax laws
generally;
38.
it understands that the Company has not undertaken to determine
whether it will be treated as a passive foreign investment company
("PFIC") for US federal
income tax purposes for the current year, or whether it is likely
to be so treated for future years and neither the Company, VSA
Capital nor Shore Capital make any representation or warranty with
respect to the same. Accordingly, neither the Company nor Shore
Capital or VSA Capital can provide any advice to United States
investors as to whether the Company is or is not a PFIC for the
current tax year, or whether it will be in future tax years.
Accordingly, neither the Company nor Shore Capital and VSA Capital
undertakes to provide to United States investors or shareholders
any information necessary or desirable to facilitate their filing
of annual information returns, and United States investors and
shareholders should not assume that this information will be made
available to them;
39.
if in a member state of the EEA, unless otherwise specifically
agreed with Shore Capital and VSA Capital in writing, it is a
qualified investor as defined in article 2 (e) of the EU Prospectus
Regulation ("Qualified
Investors");
40.
it has not offered or sold and will not offer or sell any Placing
Shares to persons in the EEA except to Qualified Investors or
otherwise in circumstances which have not resulted in and which
will not result in an offer to the public in any member state of
the EEA within the meaning of the EU Prospectus Regulation;
41.
if a financial intermediary, as that term is used in Article 5(1)
of the UK Prospectus Regulation, the Placing Shares subscribed for
or acquired by it in the Placing will not be acquired on a
non-discretionary basis on behalf of, nor will they be acquired
with a view to their offer or resale to, persons in the United
Kingdom other than Qualified Investors (as defined in Article 2(e)
of the UK Prospectus Regulation), or in circumstances in which the
prior consent of Shore Capital and VSA Capital has been given to
each proposed offer or resale;
42.
if in the United Kingdom, that it is a person (i) having
professional experience in matters relating to investments who
falls within the definition of "investment professionals" in
Article 19(5) of the Order or (ii) who falls within Article 49(2)
(a) to (d) ("High Net Worth
Companies, Unincorporated Associations, etc") of the Order,
or (iii) to whom it may otherwise lawfully be communicated;
43.
it has not offered or sold and will not offer or sell any Placing
Shares to persons in the United Kingdom, except to persons whose
ordinary activities involve them in acquiring, holding, managing or
disposing of investments (as principal or agent) for the purposes
of their business or otherwise in circumstances which have not
resulted and which will not result in an offer to the public in the
United Kingdom within the meaning of section 85(1) of the Financial
Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended ("FSMA");
44.
it has only communicated or caused to be communicated and will only
communicate or cause to be communicated any invitation or
inducement to engage in investment activity (within the meaning of
section 21 of FSMA) relating to the Placing Shares in circumstances
in which section 21(1) of FSMA does not require approval of the
communication by an authorised person and it acknowledges and
agrees that the Placing Documents have not and will not have been
approved by Shore Capital and VSA Capital in their capacity as an
authorised person under section 21 of the FSMA and it may not
therefore be subject to the controls which would apply if it was
made or approved as a financial promotion by an authorised
person;
45.
it has complied and will comply with all applicable laws with
respect to anything done by it or on its behalf in relation to the
Placing Shares (including all applicable provisions in FSMA and
MAR) in respect of anything done in, from or otherwise involving,
the United Kingdom);
46.
if it is a pension fund or investment company, its subscription for
Placing Shares is in full compliance with applicable laws and
regulations;
47.
it has complied with its obligations under the Criminal Justice Act
1993 and Articles 8, 10 and 12 of MAR and in connection with money
laundering and terrorist financing under the Proceeds of Crime Act
2002 (as amended), the Terrorism Act 2000 (as amended), the
Terrorism Act 2006 and the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing
and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017
(as amended) and any related or similar rules, regulations or
guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any government
agency having jurisdiction in respect thereof and the Money
Laundering Sourcebook of the FCA (together the "Regulations") and,
if making payment on behalf of a third party, that satisfactory
evidence has been obtained and recorded by it to verify the
identity of the third party as required by the Regulations;
48.
in order to ensure compliance with the Regulations, Shore Capital
and VSA Capital (for themselves and as agents on behalf of the
Company) or the Company's registrars may, in their absolute
discretion, require verification of its identity. Pending the
provision to Shore Capital, VSA Capital or the Company's
registrars, as applicable, of evidence of identity, definitive
certificates in respect of the Placing Shares may be retained at
Shore Capital and VSA Capital's absolute discretion or, where
appropriate, delivery of the Placing Shares to it in uncertificated
form may be delayed at Shore Capital, VSA Capital or the Company's
registrars', as the case may be, absolute discretion. If within a
reasonable time after a request for verification of identify Shore
Capital or VSA Capital (for themselves and as agents on behalf of
the Company) or the Company's registrars have not received evidence
satisfactory to them, either Shore Capital, VSA Capital and/or the
Company may, at its absolute discretion, terminate its commitment
in respect of the Placing, in which event the monies payable on
acceptance of allotment will, if already paid, be returned without
interest to the account of the drawee's bank from which they were
originally debited;
49.
the allocation, allotment, issue and delivery to it, or the person
specified by it for registration as holder, of Placing Shares will
not give rise to a stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax liability
under (or at a rate determined under) any of sections 67, 70, 93 or
96 of the Finance Act 1986 (depositary receipts and clearance
services) and that the Placing Shares are not being acquired in
connection with arrangements to issue depositary receipts or to
issue or transfer Placing Shares into a clearance service;
50.
it (and any person acting on its behalf) has the funds available to
pay for the Placing Shares for which it has agreed to subscribe and
acknowledges and agrees that it will make payment in respect of the
Placing Shares allocated to it in accordance with this Announcement
on the due time and date set out herein, failing which the relevant
Placing Shares may be placed with other subscribers or sold as
Shore Capital or VSA Capital may in its sole discretion determine
and without liability to such Placee, who will remain liable for
any amount by which the net proceeds of such sale falls short of
the product of the relevant Issue Price and the number of Placing
Shares allocated to it and will be required to bear any stamp duty,
stamp duty reserve tax or other taxes or duties (together with any
interest, fines or penalties) imposed in any jurisdiction which may
arise upon the sale of such Placee's Placing Shares;
51.
any money held in an account with Shore Capital or VSA Capital on
behalf of the Placee and/or any person acting on behalf of the
Placee and/or any person acting on behalf of the Placee will not be
treated as client money within the meaning of the relevant rules
and regulations of the FCA made under the FSMA. Each Placee
acknowledges that the money will not be subject to the protections
conferred by the client money rules; as a consequence this money
will not be segregated from Shore Capital or VSA Capital, as
appropriate, money in accordance with the client money rules and
will be held by it under a banking relationship and not as
trustee;
52.
its allocation (if any) of Placing Shares will represent a maximum
number of Placing Shares which it will be entitled, and required,
to subscribe for, and that Shore Capital, VSA Capital or the
Company may call upon it to subscribe for a lower number of Placing
Shares (if any), but in no event in aggregate more than the
aforementioned maximum;
53.
Shore Capital, VSA Capital nor any of their affiliates, nor any
person acting on behalf of them, is making any recommendations to
it, advising it regarding the suitability of any transactions it
may enter into in connection with the Placing;
54.
if it has received any 'inside information' (for the purposes of
MAR and section 56 of the Criminal Justice Act 1993 or other
applicable law) in relation to the Company and its securities in
advance of the Placing, it confirms that it has received such
information within the market soundings regime provided for in
article 11 of MAR and associated delegated regulations and it has
not:
(a)
used that inside information to acquire or dispose of securities of
the Company or financial instruments related thereto or cancel or
amend an order concerning the Company's securities or any such
financial instruments;
(b)
used that inside information to encourage, require, recommend or
induce another person to deal in the securities of the Company or
financial instruments related thereto or to cancel or amend an
order concerning the Company's securities or such financial
instruments; or
(c)
unlawfully disclosed such information to any person, prior to the
information being made publicly available;
55.
the rights and remedies of the Company, VSA Capital and Shore
Capital under the terms and conditions in this Announcement are in
addition to any rights and remedies which would otherwise be
available to each of them and the exercise or partial exercise of
one will not prevent the exercise of others; and
56.
these terms and conditions of the Placing and any agreements
entered into by it pursuant to the terms and conditions of the
Placing, and all non-contractual or other obligations arising out
of or in connection with them, shall be governed by and construed
in accordance with the laws of England and it submits (on behalf of
itself and on behalf of any person on whose behalf it is acting) to
the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts as regards any
claim, dispute or matter arising out of any such contract
(including any dispute regarding the existence, validity or
termination of such contract or relating to any non-contractual or
other obligation arising out of or in connection with such
contract), except that enforcement proceedings in respect of the
obligation to make payment for the Placing Shares (together with
any interest chargeable thereon) may be taken by either the Company
or Shore Capital or VSA Capital in any jurisdiction in which the
relevant Placee is incorporated or in which any of its securities
have a quotation on a recognised stock exchange.
The foregoing representations,
warranties, confirmations, acknowledgements, agreements and
undertakings are given for the benefit of the Company as well Shore
Capital and VSA Capital and are irrevocable. Shore Capital, VSA
Capital the Company and their respective affiliates and others will
rely upon the truth and accuracy of the foregoing representations,
warranties, confirmations, acknowledgements, agreements
and undertakings. Each prospective Placee,
and any person acting on behalf of such Placee, irrevocably
authorises the Company, VSA Capital and Shore Capital to produce
this Announcement, pursuant to, in connection with, or as may be
required by any applicable law or regulation, administrative or
legal proceeding or official inquiry with respect to the matters
set forth herein.
By participating in the Placing,
each Placee (and any person acting on such Placee's behalf) agrees
to indemnify on an after tax basis and hold the Company, Shore
Capital, VSA Capital and their respective affiliates, agents,
directors, officers and employees harmless from any and all costs,
claims, liabilities and expenses (including legal fees and
expenses) arising out of or in connection with any breach of the representations, warranties,
acknowledgements, agreements and undertakings given by the Placee
(and any person acting on such Placee's behalf) in this
Announcement or incurred by Shore Capital or VSA Capital, the
Company or any of their respective affiliates, agents, directors,
officers or employees arising from the performance of the Placees'
obligations as set out in this
Announcement, and further agrees that the provisions of this
Announcement shall survive after completion of the
Placing.
Taxation
The agreement to allot and issue
Placing Shares to Placees (and/or to persons for whom such Placee
is contracting as agent) free of stamp duty and stamp duty reserve
tax relates only to their allotment and issue to Placees, or such
persons as they nominate as their agents, direct from the Company
for the Placing Shares in question. Such agreement also assumes
that the Placing Shares are not being acquired in connection with
arrangements to issue depositary receipts or to issue or transfer
the Placing Shares into a clearance service. If there are any such
arrangements, or the settlement relates to any other dealing in the
Placing Shares, stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax or other
similar taxes or duties may be payable, for which neither the
Company nor Shore Capital nor VSA Capital will be responsible and
the Placees shall indemnify the Company, Shore Capital and VSA
Capital on an after- tax basis for any stamp duty or stamp duty
reserve tax or other similar taxes or duties (together with
interest, fines and penalties) in any jurisdiction paid by the
Company or Shore Capital or VSA Capital in respect of any such
arrangements or dealings. If this is the case, each Placee should
seek its own advice and notify Shore Capital or VSA Capital
accordingly. Placees are advised to consult with their own advisers
regarding the tax aspects of the subscription for Placing
Shares.
The Company, Shore Capital and VSA
Capital are not liable to bear any taxes that arise on a sale of
Placing Shares subsequent to their acquisition by Placees,
including any taxes arising otherwise than under the laws of any
country in the EEA. Each prospective Placee should, therefore, take
its own advice as to whether any such tax liability arises and
notify Shore Capital or VSA Capital and the Company accordingly.
Furthermore, each prospective Placee agrees to indemnify on an
after-tax basis and hold Shore Capital, VSA
Capital and/or the Company and their respective affiliates
harmless from any and all interest, fines or penalties in relation
to stamp duty, stamp duty reserve tax and
all other similar duties or taxes in any
jurisdiction to the extent that such interest, fines or penalties
arise from the unreasonable default or delay of that Placee or its
agent.
In addition, Placees should note
that they will be liable for any stamp duty and all other stamp,
issue, securities, transfer, registration, documentary or other
duties or taxes (including any interest, fines or penalties
relating thereto) payable, whether inside or outside the UK, by
them or any other person on the
subscription, acquisition, transfer or sale by them of any Placing
Shares or the agreement by them to subscribe for, acquire, transfer or sell any Placing
Shares.
No statement in the Placing
Documents is intended to be a profit forecast or estimate, and no
statement in the Placing Documents should be interpreted to mean
that earnings per share of the Company for the current or future
financial years would necessarily match or exceed the historical
published earnings per share of the Company. Past performance is no
guide to future performance and persons needing advice should
consult an independent financial adviser.
The price of shares and any income
expected from them may go down as well as up and investors may not
get back the full amount invested upon disposal of the shares.
Past performance is no guide to future
performance, and persons needing advice should consult an
independent financial adviser.
The Placing Shares to be issued
pursuant to the Placing will not be admitted to trading on any
stock exchange other than AIM, a market operated by the London
Stock Exchange.
Neither the content of the Company's
website nor any website accessible by hyperlinks on the Company's
website is incorporated in, or forms part of, the Placing
Documents.
DEFINITIONS
The following definitions apply in
Appendix 1 and, as the context shall admit, in the
Announcement:
"Admission"
|
means First Admission and/or Second
Admission, as the context requires
|
"AIM"
|
AIM, a market operated by the London
Stock Exchange
|
"AIM Rules"
|
the AIM Rules for Companies
published by the London Stock Exchange (as
updated from time to time)
|
"Application
Form"
|
the application form relating to the
Open Offer for use by Qualifying Non-CREST
Shareholders in connection with the Open Offer and, in certain
limited circumstances, Qualifying CREST Shareholders
|
"Bookbuild"
|
the bookbuilding process to be
conducted by Shore Capital and VSA Capital to arrange participation
by Placees in the Placing
|
"BST"
|
British Summer Time
|
"Cargill"
|
Cargill NV, a company organised and
existing under the laws of Belgium, having its registered office at
Bedrijvenlaan 9, 2800 Mechelen, Belgium
|
"Cavendish"
|
Cavendish Capital Markets
Limited
|
"Circular"
|
the circular to be published by the
Company in connection with, inter
alia, the Open Offer
|
"Company"
|
Quadrise plc
|
"CREST"
|
the relevant system (as defined in
the Uncertificated Securities Regulations 2001) in respect of which
Euroclear UK & Ireland Limited is the operator (as defined in
those regulations)
|
"CREST
Regulations"
|
the Uncertificated Securities
Regulations 2001 (S.I. 2001 No 3755) (as amended)
|
"EEA"
|
the European Economic
Area
|
"Euroclear"
|
Euroclear UK & International
Limited, the operator of CREST
|
"Excluded
Shareholders"
|
Shareholders with registered
addresses in, or who are located or resident in, citizens of, or
corporations, partnerships or other entities created or organised
under the applicable laws of any Restricted Jurisdiction and to
whom Application Forms are not to be sent or whose stock accounts
in CREST are not to be credited with Open Offer
Entitlements
|
"Existing Ordinary
Shares"
|
the 1,562,478,823 ordinary shares of
£0.01 each in issue in the capital of the Company at the date of
this Announcement, all of which are admitted to trading on
AIM
|
"FCA"
|
the Financial Conduct
Authority
|
"First
Admission"
|
admission of the Placing Shares and
Subscription Shares to trading on AIM
|
"Form of
Confirmation"
|
the form of confirmation or contract
note made between Shore Capital or VSA Capital (as
applicable) and the Placees which incorporate by reference
the terms and conditions of the Placing
contained in this Announcement
|
"FSMA"
|
the Financial Services and Markets
Act 2000, as amended
|
"Fundraise"
|
means the Placing, Subscription and
Open Offer
|
"Group"
|
the Company and its subsidiary
undertakings (and "Group Company" shall be
construed accordingly)
|
"Issue
Price"
|
1.25 pence per Ordinary
Share
|
"London Stock
Exchange"
|
London Stock Exchange plc
|
"MAC²"
|
MAC2 Solutions NV, a company
organised and existing under the laws of Belgium, having its
registered office at Blauwe Weg 7 - kaai 261 2030, Antwerp,
Belgium
|
"MAR"
|
the EU Market Abuse Regulation
(2014/596/EU) as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the
European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 and as modified by or under
the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 or other domestic
law
|
"MMU"
|
MSAR® Manufacturing Unit
|
"MSC"
|
MSC Shipmanagement Limited, a
limited company registered in Cyprus and located at 8 Spyrou
Kyprianou Avenue, Limassol, which is a 100% subsidiary of the MSC
Group, a global shipping company which provides worldwide seaborne
transportation solutions, including in the container
sector
|
"New Ordinary
Shares"
|
the new Ordinary Shares to be issued
in the capital of the Company pursuant to the Fundraise
|
"Open
Offer"
|
the conditional offer by the Company
to Qualifying Shareholders to subscribe for
the Open Offer Shares on and subject to the
terms and conditions set out in the Circular and, in the case of
Qualifying Non-CREST Shareholders only, in
the Application Form
|
"Open Offer
Entitlement"
|
entitlement to subscribe for Open
Offer Shares, allocated to a Qualifying Shareholder pursuant to the
Open Offer
|
"Open Offer
Shares"
|
the number of New Ordinary Shares to
be offered to Qualifying Shareholders pursuant to the Open Offer as
will be set out in the Circular;
|
"Ordinary
Shares"
|
means ordinary shares of £0.01 each
in the capital of the Company
|
"Placees"
|
persons who agree to subscribe for
Placing Shares at the Issue Price
|
"Placing"
|
the conditional placing of the
Placing Shares by Shore Capital on behalf of the Company at the
Issue Price, in accordance with the Placing
Agreement
|
"Placing
Agreement"
|
the conditional placing and open
offer agreement dated 18 March 2024
between the Company, Cavendish, Shore Capital and
VSA Capital in relation to the Placing
|
"Placing Results
Agreement"
|
the terms of the Placing setting out
the Issue Price and the number of Placing Shares to be issued in
the Placing, to be executed in accordance with the Placing
Agreement by the Company, Shore Capital and VSA Capital
|
"Placing
Shares"
|
118,922,107 New Ordinary Shares to be issued pursuant to the
Placing
|
"QIL"
|
Quadrise International Limited, a
wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company
|
"Qualifying CREST
Shareholders"
|
Qualifying Shareholders whose
Ordinary Shares on the register of members of the Company on the
Record Date are in uncertificated form
|
"Qualifying non-CREST
Shareholders"
|
Qualifying Shareholders whose
Ordinary Shares on the register of members of the Company on the
Record Date are in certificated form
|
"Qualifying
Shareholders"
|
Shareholders whose names appear in
the register of members of the Company at the close of business on
the Record Date, other than Excluded Shareholders
|
"Record
Date"
|
has the meaning given to it is the
Circular
|
"RIS"
|
shall have the same meaning as in
the AIM Rules
|
"Second
Admission"
|
admission of the Open Offer Shares
to trading on AIM
|
"Shareholder"
|
a holder of Ordinary Shares from
time to time
|
"Shore
Capital"
|
Shore Capital Stockbrokers Limited,
joint broker to the Company and placing agent in respect of the
Placing
|
"Subscribers"
|
means each subscriber for the
Subscription Shares
|
"Subscription
Letters"
|
the agreements between the Company
and each of the Subscribers dated on or around the date of this
Placing Agreement
|
"Subscription
Shares"
|
1,077,893 New Ordinary Shares as will be recorded in the Subscription
Letters from each of the Subscribers to the Company pursuant to the
Subscription at the Issue Price, and "Subscription Share" shall be
construed accordingly
|
"Valkor"
|
means Valkor Technologies LLC, a
Delaware limited liability company
|
"VSA
Capital"
|
VSA Capital Limited, joint broker to
the Company and placing agent in respect of the Placing
|