2018 was an excellent year for the global coal industry – a year that saw increased prices, increased production and, most importantly increased global demand, and it was, in many ways, a very good year for CCTI.
After performing initial tests successfully, 2018 saw the Test Plant relocated from Oklahoma to it’s permanent location in the heart of the Powder River Basin, ground zero in Coal Country, and a site where CCTI will have total jurisdiction over the plant and all future testing which will include coals from all over the world. This is a very important and fundamental step in the development and roll-out of our Pristine technology. While the plant was in Oklahoma we were able to perform many critical proof-of-concept stages to our development, however, we were restricted to testing only PRB Coal and were subject to all the rules and regulations imposed by the Power Station where we operated. This severely restricted what CCTI could do with the plant and the testing which consistently added time and costs to our progress.
In 2018 we cemented the very important relationship with the Energy Research Division of Wyoming University, one of the most highly regarded Energy Research Teams in the global coal industry. The University is committed to ensuring that CCTI’s technologies reach that global coal industry with the most comprehensive capabilities and credibility possible. They have and continue to invest substantial amounts of time and money to support our technology. Their team has spent the better part of 2018 coordinating closely with the engineers at Kiewit to perfect and enhance the design and engineering for the second-generation test plant to be reassembled very near where they are located in Wyoming. The University’s process engineers created extensive simulated (ASPEN) models so that the Kiewit team can assess the new design improvements and technology capabilities in real time and recommend what additional parts are needed for the necessary additional stages to complete the upgraded reassembly.
One of the most exciting developments coming from our collaboration with the University’s team is the confirmation that our technologies have the capabilities of extracting a wide-range of valuable by-products from coal, thus, in essence, creating a coal refinery very similar to what we have in the oil industry. Just as with petroleum, the by-products from coal can, in fact, be far more valuable than the heat value, and this capability from our technology is attracting attention from around the world. In conjunction with University recommendations and Kiewit’s engineering team we are spending time and resources incorporating design improvements into the second-generation plant so that we can offer our global clients the option of creating a very valuable alternative use for their coal reserves which will also create significant value for CCTI. The redesigned facility is expected to further improve on the BTU increase we achieved with the original test facility in Oklahoma and provide an automated extraction of by-products.
Examples of products that can be extracted from coal are:
Carbon ( all types~)
Asphalt.
Chemicals
Rare earth mineral
Oil and oil products
Sulfur
Water
The possibility that our technology could eventually extract, in an economically viable way, rare earth minerals, is of great interest to the Department of Defense and Department of Energy, here in the USA. We are jointly (with the University) exploring opportunities with these Government agencies for utilizing our technology in this field.
International Developments:
The company made significant progress in the continuing education of the global coal markets about the potential for our suite of technologies not only for coal beneficiation but also for the extraction of all the valuable by products: Countries that we are focusing on include:
India
India has been a primary focus for Clean Coal Technologies Inc. For many years, we have received investment dollars and also entered our first licensing transaction with Indian power and coal companies. We have had three meetings with senior officials from the Indian Government, the latest being in November 2018. Along with Coal India, the government of India are exploring a range of application options for our technologies.
We are fortunate to have one of the most prominent and knowledgeable coal experts in India (a former Coal India chairman) as our in-country representative who is keeping us and our technology front and center with the Government and all the major coal and power companies. Three of the major coal and power companies have agreed in principle to ship 500 ton cargos of their coal to our site in Wyoming for testing as a prelude to negotiating ongoing commercial licenses. This coal is expected to be shipped immediately once we commence re-assembly of the facility.
Indonesia:
Indonesia is the largest thermal coal exporter in the world. We have received over $4 million in investments from the Indonesian coal industry over the last six years. Two of our BOD directors are based in Jakarta and we are closely watching the presidential elections in April 2019.
We are extremely well positioned to capitalize on the new administration and will be scheduling meetings in Jakarta with the new administration. We are extremely confident that our technology will be a huge asset for both the Indonesian domestic and export markets. We expect to be negotiating commercial transactions during this calendar year.
Australia:
During late 2017 and as a direct result of all the positive attention we were receiving, especially as related to our collaboration with the University of Wyoming, we were approached by the Australian Governments over-seas Trading Division, AUSTRADE.
On multiple occasions CCTI management met at the Australian Consulate in New York and had a series of video conference calls with coal groups and top coal-based research universities in Australia. We have formed three associations with research universities in Australia similar to the model that we have with the University of Wyoming with the intention that the universities commence research into the deployment of our technology throughout the very robust Australian coal industry. As a follow up we also have been invited to Australia at some point in 2019 to meet industry leaders and present at a major conference.
We are very interested in the potential for our technology in Australia and will start research for a local partner once our second-generation plant is under construction
Japan and Taiwan:
The State of Wyoming and the University of Wyoming have very close ties to both Japan’s and Taiwan’s power and energy production sector and have formed both financial and commercial partnerships to explore possibilities for an increase in the use of PRB coal in both countries. Our technology is anticipated to play a prominent role in upgrading the coal to meet the eventual specifications that both countries require going forward.
Our main investor, The Black Diamond Group, has close ties with one of the major Japanese conglomerates along with one of their main Investment banks – both of whom are exploring direct investments into Clean Coal Technologies in 2019.
Russia, Kazakhstan, etc…
CCTI management is also continuing advanced discussions with representatives in both Russia and Kazakhstan (and other territories) where our technology has multiple possible applications and has attracted interest. We will continue to explore opportunities with companies and territorial representatives in all areas of the world where our technology may be beneficial and applicable.
Patents:
Our patent attorneys continued to secure our technology around the world in preparation for our global roll out. As we continue to enhance the process we continue to add on to the existing patents globally.
During 2018 we added full patent protection in:
Australia
Colombia
Russia
Eurasia
Permits:
In May CCTI was granted full permits by the State of Wyoming to reassemble the plant in the PRB and test domestic and International coals.
Board of Directors
Management appointed Mr. Bob Liscouski to the Board replacing Edward Jennings who retired because of ill health.
Bob will be an invaluable member of the Board and brings strong and relevant experience in the workings of Washington DC. Bob was appointed by George W. Bush as the first Assistant Secretary for infrastructure protection when the US Department of Homeland Security was founded in 2003.
Lawsuits:
During 2018, the company closed the final two outstanding legacy lawsuits. In both cases judgment was made in favor of CCTI and it now leaves the company in a good position for our eventual up listing to a national exchange. This is a major milestone for the company and will also make raising any additional capital that much easier.
Funding:
It must be kept in mind and recognized that this is a new, first-of-its-kind technology which we believe will have a significant, game-changing influence on the global coal industry. There is international interest in the development of this technology and the heightened scrutiny makes it critical that every stage is completed properly, recorded accurately and independently verified. This has resulted in our earlier completion and costing predictions being revised but only because the technology has greater potential than initially anticipated due to changes in geo-politics and macro demand. It is our responsibility to ensure that maximum potential is successfully achieved with the reassembled facility. This is in the best interests of our technology, our customers and our shareholders.
We remain pre-revenue, and therefore it’s a continuing challenge to forecast our financial requirements as we must successfully reach one stage before we know exactly what will be needed to successfully reach subsequent stages. Our investors want to see the company successfully reaching and concluding each stage before committing to any subsequent investments.
As the real potential of the technology becomes apparent, it is both exciting and financially challenging but we are fortunate to have our partners and their investors who share our belief and vision together with the University of Wyoming’s belief that our technology is unique and special – and valuable.
Conclusion:
We enter 2019 optimistic, with positive momentum both domestically and internationally that, providing we continue to successfully meet our operational goals should soon be reflected in how the market values the company.
Signed:
Robin Eves
Chief Executive Officer
