Investments

Like it or not, coal will remain an important resource for generating energy and heat over the coming decades. Countries such as China, Russia, Kazakhstan and even the EU member state Poland are increasing their coal production. It is therefore even more important to minimize environmental and health risks associated with coal. This is the mission of CoalTech Limited.

Clean Invest Africa Plc (NEX:CIA) and fund management company Creon Capital are pleased to announce the launch of CoalTech S.a.r.l. The joint company aims to expand towards Russia and CIS markets with innovation by CoalTech Limited. Recently acquired by the clean technology and renewable energy investment company CIA, CoalTech has developed an innovative agglomeration solution that converts coal fines waste deposits into combustible coal pellets via a proprietary technology.

CoalTech innovative solutions are required in Russia and CIS countries, which account for roughly two thirds of the coal production in Eurasia, excluding China. Creon Capital invests in the joint project with its clean-tech focused Creon Energy Fund (Sicav-SIF), aiming to develop multiple projects and scale up production in these markets. The Fund’s initiator Creon Energy (Moscow) will be responsible for the project implementation regionally, while adding value through its vast network in the region’s energy sector.

The technology used for upcoming projects is unique: With the help of patented binders, coal fine waste is being dried and processed into pellets, which show the same calorific values, composition and other characteristics as the coal of the respective mine itself.

CoalTech CEO Filippo Fantechi explains: “Our technology produces a valuable product made out of polluting and toxic waste. Tested successfully initially in South Africa, we are now ready to upscale globally. Russia and the CIS countries are attractive markets from an environmental and health perspective, as well as having an enormous industrial legacy. People in the region suffer from poor water and air quality, as residues of coal production and processing are often released into the environment. Drinking water is often contaminated by coal fine leaching. In winter times, carbon particles from coal fines in the air sometimes create what is known as ‘black snow’. These coal fines could relatively easily be cleaned-up and processed into combustible pellets with CoalTech’s green technology. We look forward to working with Creon to maximize this commercial clean–up opportunity”.

Dr. Fares Kilzie, Chairman and CEO of the Fund managing company Creon Capital, is confident that the new technology will be demanded in the region: “People in Russia and other former soviet countries care increasingly about how companies treat the environment, especially when phenomena such as ‘black snow’ highlight the problem of pollution. Companies have to take this into account, the industry and government authorities are seeking solutions, and the CoalTech green technology provides a commercially attractive solution whilst enabling the industry to effectively improve its environmental and social impacts.”

Creon Capital chairman Dr. Fares Kilzie and Shaikh Mohamed Abdulla Al Khalifa, main shareholder of Clean Invest Africa, signed the shareholder agreement in Forte dei Marmi (Italy). CoalTech S.a.r.l. has been established in Luxembourg, further updates shall be provided as the Russia and CIS opportunities develop.

UPDATE: CoalTech S.à.r.l. has been incorporated on October 4th, 2019.

You can DOWNLOAD the press-release here (EN/RU).

***

ABOUT US

Creon Capital S.a.r.l. manages the Luxembourg-based Creon Energy Fund (S.C.A. Sicav-SIF). The regulated Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) concentrates investments up to 100 Mio. Euro (targeted) on green technologies, logistics projects, value-adding midstream and downstream energy projects. The unlimited opportunity fund cooperates with partners such as the Investment Corporation of Dubai (ICD) and is focused on emerging markets and uprising new business segments in Eurasia and the Middle East. The Fund’s initiator and general partner is the Moscow-based independent consulting and management company Creon Energy, which brings add value on projects in Russia and CIS countries by using its vast network and market expertise in the region.

CoalTech Limited is registered in the UK and its parent company, Clean Invest Africa Plc is listed in London NEX Exchange (NEX:CIA). CoalTech has developed a revolutionary and innovative agglomeration solution that converts coal waste into combustible coal pellets via a proprietary technology using a specially formulated organic binder and a customized production process. CoalTech has developed its proprietary technology over almost a decade, has an operational producing and testing plant in Witbank, Province of Mpumalanga, South Africa. This plant started commercial operations in November 2018. The plant is expected to operate at full capacity soon, generating revenues on target margins based on a net monthly volume of 5,000 tons.

Creon Capital chairman Dr. Fares Kilzie (on the left) and Shaikh Mohamed Abdulla Al Khalifa, main shareholder of Clean Invest Afrika Plc. signed the shareholder agreement, based on which the Luxembourg-based Joint Venture CoalTech S.a.r.l. will be established.

The team of CoalTech Ltd, Creon Capital and Creon Energy after the signing ceremony (from the left): Yuri Ratnikov and Vladimir Voloshin (Creon Energy), Abdulla M. A. Al Khalifa (CoalTech Ltd.), Dr. Fares Kilzie (Creon Capital), Shaikh Mohamed Abdulla Al Khalifa (Clean Invest Africa), Sandjar Turgunov (Creon Group), Florian Willershausen (Creon Capital).

Press Contact:

Maria Dymenko,
Creon Group
Head of Corporate Communications
E-Mail: md@creon-group.com
Phone: +7-985-1351009

Since political relations between Russia and the West deteriorated, the bilateral partnership between Moscow and Beijing has gained importance. At least since 2014, politicians from both countries have increasingly and resolutely proclaimed a closer alliance of the major powers. Consequently, a more comprehensive cooperation between the countries, was also claimed at the major bilateral China-Russia Conference, which took place on May 29 and 30 in Beijing. As a partner of the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC), CREON Group supported the summit in China’s capital. Almost 300 delegates participated in the event, which was organized by the China Strategic Cooperation Council with Russia and the Institute for Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Both organizations belong to China’s Academy of Social Sciences (CASS).

The title of the top-class conference promised optimism: “China and Russia: cooperation on the way to a new era.” Dai Bingguo, a former deputy of the People’s Republic of China and co-chairman of the Chinese-Russian Committee for Friendship, Peace and Development, praised the common strategic interests of both countries. Igor Ivanov, Russia’s former foreign minister (1998-2004) and current chairman of the RIAC, was pleased with the intensification of the relationship in recent years, the importance of which should not be underestimated in an increasingly unstable world. Politically, according to the quintessential high-level discussions, China and Russia became recently closer than ever before.

And economically? There is still room for improvement, as representatives of both countries openly explained. Li Sin, senior academic researcher at the academy and Director of the Center for Russian and Central Asian Studies at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, noted “an absolutely insufficient level of direct investment” from the Chinese side in Russia and vice versa. The reason for this: “There is a lack of mutual trust and understanding.”

Yevgeniy Nadorshin, Chief Economist of the investment company “FK Capital” said, he was missing “equal relations”, so he came to a similar conclusion. Chinese were wrong if they try to explain their low investments in Russia with existent investment barriers: “China has already overcome much larger investment hurdles in Africa years ago.” Instead, it should be time to admit: “We do not trust each other, that is not a question of customs barriers.” Andrey Klepach, Chief Economist and Vice-President of Vneshekonombank (VEB), found reasons for the mutually low level of foreign direct investments (FDI) also in Russia: “We must allow investments in the extraction and processing of natural resources and large-scale infrastructure projects”, the former Vice Minister of Economic Development demanded. It appears to him that China’s investment activity in Russia is too limited to the role of a creditor.

CREON had already systematically collected information about the FDI-influx for the conference one year ago: $ 62 billion, the total amount invested by Chinese financial institutions in the Russia’s energy sector. This rough figure has not changed significantly for a year. And it continues to apply that 98 percent of China’s FDI flow into the commodity and energy sectors.

China, it seems, still considers Russia as a pure raw material supplier. For Fares Kilzie, the founder of the Creon Group, this is a dangerous perception: “If the oil price moves up or down harshly, there will be conflicts between supplier and customer. Investors should swiftly diversify their economic relations with Russia.” However, this does not necessarily mean to invest in completely different industries instead: “Diversification can be achieved easily by just processing raw materials into products in Russia in order to export them to China, ” Kilzie suggested. Projects dedicated to the processing of gas to methanol or agrochemicals, for instance, would be completely free of sanctions while being economically very attractive. The Creon Group offers Chinese as well as European partners to accompany such projects as a co-investor. There are a lot of projects to be realized.

Creon and CoalTech create JV to provide green technology for a cleaner coal industry

Kilzie: Investors from China should consider feedstock processing