 AIM New Issue: Vycon by Denis Gross First published in Cleantech magazine. March 2007 © Cleantech Investor Ltd. 2007Vycon, a California-based company, has developed an advanced flywheel energy storage system which can absorb and store energy and subsequently release it as electrical energy when needed. It has patented products and technology in both low and high cycling applications, with the high cycling technology placing Vycon in a unique position and strongly differentiating it from the competition. Vycon’s clean technology can lower electricity consumption, lower fuel consumption, reduce harmful emissions, lower operating costs, and provide higher reliability and availability of power.
There are immediate market opportunities for Vycon’s existing products in uninterruptible power supply (UPS) and dockyard crane markets, where there are strongindustry drivers supporting Vycon’s technology. In UPS markets Vycon’s flywheel technology can eliminate the need for batteries with their associated maintenance and environmental problems, and when fitted to dockyard cranes can make significant reductions in fuel consumption and in the emission of particulates and pollutants. Through 2006 Vycon ran extensive beta testing of its systems at healthcare companies, data centres and dockyards. By the close of 2006, Vycon had started commercial shipments of its power supply product and had received an order from dockyard cranes from the Port of Long Beach. This represents a significant step forward as the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are the busiest in theUS, accounting for over 40% of cargo traffic, and represent a significant local market for Vycon. Substantial order pipelines have been built up worldwide, and we expect to see an accelerating transition from quotes to orders from the current year onwards. Already in 2007 a further order for six crane units has been received from Korea. The company has raised US$18 million through an AIM listing to fund the development of higher capacity and high cycling products based on its existing patented technology. The new product would considerably extend the market opportunities into highly profitable areas, including rail systems. We believe that the company’s deep expertise in this and related fields mitigates the vast majority of the risk involved in scaling up the technology. |
