Hugh Simon · Wed, 09/28/2011 - 14:06
Business
Business Overview:
Two waste to energy projects in Argentine seek funding of $254 million. Technology owner is investing an additional 30%. Fully approved by local and national governments, they will use plasma gas technology to transform waste into energy to generate electricity for local grids. Enjoying strong public and government support, the Argentine clean energy sector is growth-oriented and profitable.
Project Type:
Industry:
Project Location:
Buenos Aires, B, 1066Argentina
Project Website:
http://www.simoninternational.com What are your future milestones, and how much capital will you need to achieve each of the milestones outlined?:
Capital required: $254 million
Both projects, one in Buenos Aires Province and the other in Santiago del Estero Province, have full permission and support from governments
What is your total and operating cash burn (the amount you're spending) per month? :
N/A proforma available
How many future rounds of financing do you project? :
None
Who is the Customer?:
Argentine government, who gets rid of waste and buys the power
What is the Customer Pain that you are solving?:
Waste disposal and carbon pollution
What is the Target Market?:
Argentine government PPA
How big is the Target Market in terms of Annual Sales?:
$200M-$500M
Sales/Marketing Strategy:
Minimal, as this is a public utility operation
Competition:
None
One-line Pitch:
Two fully approved waste to energy projects in Argentina require $254 million, with excellent ROI
Business Model:
Privately-owned company whose revenues are exclusively from the Argentine Government wholesale power agency, CAMMESA.
Product/Services Overview (what does it do):
Receives industrial and residential waste, incinerates it, and generates electricity
Technology
What makes the technology/business unique and have a defendable competitive advantage?:
Uses the best plasma incinerator technology available, tied with excellent management
Describe in detail the technology used in the Project - Address the innovation in significant detail :
The core of Solena's solutions is its patented Solena Plasma Gasification Vitrification ('SPGV') technology which is capable of producing a synthetic fuel gas ("BioSynGas") from the thermal conversion of bio-based hydrocarbons with the highest energy conversion efficiencies in the industry. Solena's SPGV-produced BioSynGas can be used as a natural gas replacement to power combustion gas turbines (CGT) for power production ("biopower") or catalytically converted into synthetic liquid biofuels, such as biodiesel or biojetfuel.
What are the principles of the technology? :
The unique characteristic of the SPGV process is that it can handle a wide variety of feedstock and thus is completely "fuel flexible". The SPGV process utilizes a powerful and independent heat source (plasma torches. Operating at atmospheric pressure the SPGV system can achieve a 91% availability and up to 90% cold gas efficiency, allowing it to function on a "base-load" mode for both renewable power and biofuels production.
The SPGV reactor operates at a temperature around 5000° C and can effectively cause the complete disassociation of all hydrocarbon and organic materials into its elemental compounds, which in turn is converted via the patented SPGV process into a valuable fuel mainly comprised of H2 and CO, commonly referred to as "BioSynGas".
What, if anything, has been proven (and how far is this from a commercial scale)? :
It is commercial scale
What challenges/risk does the technology face for commercialization?:
Only the standard business challenges
Team
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Hugh Simon | President |
| Luis Ruvira | CEO |
Financials
Amount Sought:
$254,000,000 If raising funds, what shall the funds be used for?:
Plant construction and initial operating costs
Pre-Money Valuation:
$363,000,000
Funding Received to Date:
$0
Amount invested by Founders:
$111,000,000
Funding Stage:
Early/Seed
Internal Rate of Return (IRR):
22% Testimonials
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