Oxford Advanced Surfaces Group plc - Audited final results for the period ending 31 December 2007
30 Jun 2008
We are pleased to report on your Group's results following the reverse acquisition of Kanyon plc in December 2007 and readmission to AIM as Oxford Advanced Surfaces Group plc (OASG). The reverse acquisition was achieved by the issue of 77,539,907 ordinary shares of 1 pence each with a premium of 24 pence per share plus £50,000 in cash. Acquisition costs of £434,000 were incurred.
The Group has continued to build on the initial business
development work undertaken by
Oxford Advanced Surfaces Limited by turning a number of
relationships into joint development agreements. These are with
major companies across the UK, Europe and the USA. Employee numbers
have risen from 2 to 7, of which 6 are focused on research and
development. Since the period end staff numbers have continued to
grow following the appointment of a Chief Financial Officer and a
Business Development Director along with increasing the research
staff to 12.
These results have been prepared using reverse acquisition
accounting. The result is to
reflect the business combination as if Oxford Advanced Surfaces
Limited (OAS) had acquired Oxford Advanced Surfaces Group plc.
Although these results have been issued in the name of the legal
parent, the Group's activity is, in substance, a continuation of
the legal subsidiary, OAS. The comparative figures shown in these
results are those of OAS.
The shortened 5 month period ended 31 December 2007 delivered Group revenue of £65,000 compared to £77,000 for the prior period and a loss before tax of £615,000 compared to £142,000. Excluding share based payments the loss before tax for the period ended 31 December 2007 was £221,000 (period ended 31 July 2007: £141,000). Research and development costs increased from £44,000 to £82,000 driven by the volume of work in the development pipeline and the rapid expansion of the business.
We are engaging with an increasing number of partners and
potential customers and have
grown rapidly to meet the high level of demand for our technology,
the latest example of which was a joint development agreement
signed in April 2008 with DuPont Advanced Fibre Systems. This is
one of several agreements we have reached and we are discussing
different applications for our core technology with leading edge
global partners.
OASG develops and commercialises advanced materials and technology solutions leveraging a proprietary surface modification technology called OntoTM. The technology exploits and controls a reactive chemistry allowing the rapid and convenient modification of the surface properties of a wide range of materials with a high degree of control over processing parameters. OntoTM can be applied as a wet coating by spin, dip, roll or spray and cured with either heat or irradiation. By selective coating (screen, inkjet printing) or selective curing (photolithography) highly patterned surfaces can be formed. This delivers permanent, dramatic and highly valuable changes to surface functionality. The OntoTM coating technology is a versatile, effective, yet simple approach to deliver intelligent advanced materials.
Industry has an increasing need for novel and more complex advanced materials to deliver innovation, reduce costs or address environmental issues. Our surface modification technology can enable the use of existing materials in new ways or a combination of different materials for new effects, delivering highly tailored advanced materials. One example is that fluoropolymers, which are known for their hydrophobicity (water repulsion), also make useful dielectric materials. The downside is that they can be difficult to incorporate into electronic devices. By modifying the surface of a fluoropolymer making it hydrophilic some of these problems can be solved. This is one example in which OntoTM can deliver a valuable functionality enabling a new application for an existing material. Since OntoTM technology can also utilise existing industrial coating and curing processes, it is easy and quick to adopt and commercialise.
Initial applications include tailored wetting properties,
adhesion, metallization and bio-activity. The early target markets
include:-
* Electronics (PCB's, plastic electronics,
integrated circuits and flat screen displays);
* Industrial specialties (specialty fibres,
laminates, membranes and composites); * Life sciences / health
care (sterile surfaces,
separation media and microarrays, biomedical
materials), and; * Alternative energy and
low-carbon technologies (photovoltaics, solid
state lighting and fuel cells)
Kanyon plc, before it became OASG, acquired the entire share
capital of Solar Labs plc in April 2007. This was though the issue
of 433,841,307 0.1 pence shares (prior to the share consolidation)
with a 0.9 pence premium. £95,000 of acquisition costs were
incurred. Since the period end Solar Labs plc has been
renamed Oxford Energy Technologies Limited (OET). The change in
name reflects the broadening of OET's strategy to
encompass a wider range of energy and low carbon technologies.
OET will develop novel solutions for the fast growing and
increasingly important renewable energy markets using the Group's
OntoTM technology. Initial development projects will focus on
photovoltaics, where the target will be to improve the efficiency
of solar cells, and
solid state lighting where the technology is aimed at delivering
dramatic efficiency and lifetime improvements, along with improved
emission colour.
Financial resources continue to be managed prudently, with tight cost controls. Cash reserves at the period end were £6.8 million.
We are confident that 2007's strong performance will continue.
Future activities for 2008 include the negotiation and conclusion
of further joint development agreements with key industry players
in our main target markets. We will continue to expand our research
and
development resources to deal with the demands of our partners and
ensure that the company has access to the best people.
Whilst many of our projects are moving from proof of concept into application development there is more work and resource needed to take them through to full commercialisation. In order to maximise its opportunities, the Group intends to continue to expand its capability to carry out development work in-house and add to its intellectual property and expertise.
We are delighted with the progress made by the Group and anticipate further growth and development, building on our solid foundations in 2008. We would like to thank our employees and management for their dedication and hard work without which this significant progress would not have been possible.
J P Scudamore
Chairman
27 June 2008
For further information, please
contact:
Marcelo Bravo -
CEO
+44 (0) 1865 854 807
OxfordAdvanced Surfaces Group
PLC
Website
www.oxfordadvancedsurfaces.com
David Galan/Jonathan
Evans
+44 (0) 207 060 1760
Zimmerman Adams International
Ltd
The full text of this announcement is available on RNS.
