Message #33 From:
Stock News Bot Date: January 3, 2007 05:00:00 AM
RZ News Raser Secures 50-Year Geothermal Lease
PROVO, Utah--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Raser Technologies, Inc. (NYSE Arca: RZ) “Raser”,
a publicly traded technology licensing company focused on improving the
efficiency of rotating electromagnetic and heat transfer applications
within the Transportation, Industrial and Power Generation markets,
today reported that it has secured geothermal rights to certain Nevada
properties owned by Truckee River Ranches, LLC, under the terms of a
50-year lease agreement.
In exchange for $25,000 in cash and 25,000 shares of restricted Raser
common stock, Raser may begin development and construction of geothermal
power plants on Truckee’s three major ranches
north of Las Vegas. Upon completion of the first such plant, Truckee
will receive an additional 25,000 restricted shares. Also, Truckee will
receive a $50,000 advance against undisclosed total royalties in
projects developed on these properties. The agreement allows for Raser
to develop approximately 11,600 acres of fee simple lands and pledges
cooperation and priority in any geothermal rights of Truckee that may
exist on the remaining ranch acreage. These ranches contain
approximately 3 million acres of owned and leased properties, much of
which lies within the US Geological Survey’s “known
geothermal resources area” (KGRA). KGRAs are
either areas of obvious geothermal activity such as hot springs
designated by the US Geological Survey (USGS), or areas where
applications to lease overlap to such a degree as to indicate strong
geothermal potential.
Dr. Carl F. Austin, a consulting geologist to Raser with 40 years’
experience in the geothermal energy business, said, “Some
of the largest known geothermal sites are found in Nevada and
California. The area being studied for Raser holds the potential to be a
truly significant geothermal resource. Many people have tried to get
their hands on these properties over many years. I’m
pleased to be working with Raser Technologies on such an exciting
opportunity.”
Austin pointed to the many hot springs, hot wells and even the
well-known “Diana’s
Punch Bowl” (Devil’s
Punch Bowl) a currently active hot spring, located within the deeded
portions of the ranches.
Brent M. Cook, CEO of Raser, stated, “This
lease offers Raser an excellent starting point to launch into the
geothermal power generation spaces utilizing our recently acquired
heat-transfer technologies. We expect to move rapidly into the
development phases of this exciting resource during 2007. We believe
that developing geothermal power projects will be a significant addition
to Raser’s business.”
The recently secured heat-transfer technology involves binary cycle
generation, in which the steam or water from the geothermal reservoir
never comes into direct contact with the blades of the turbine
generator. This method has a competitive advantage when used for
water-based geothermal resources of generally low temperature, ranging
from approximately 93 to 183 degrees C, but it works at higher
temperatures as well. In a binary system, warm geothermal fluid is
pumped to the surface and channeled into heat transfer equipment. The
geothermal water is then used as a source to heat a “working
fluid,” which then vaporizes to turn the
turbine generator. After the heat transfer process is complete, the now
cooler water is returned to the reservoir. The primary technical
advantage of the binary method is its ability to efficiently convert
more commonly found low temperature water resources into power through
the use of working fluids that have a low boiling point. It also has the
tremendous advantage of producing zero emissions, making it a renewable “non-polluting”
energy source.
Geothermal energy, generated using the heat from the Earth’s
interior, is a renewable source of energy that does not rely on any type
of fossil fuel. The heat comes from molten rock (known as “magma”)
deep below the geothermal resource. Over thousands of years, rainwater
seeps through the cracks in the Earth’s
surface and collects in vast underground reservoirs. The magma’s
heat raises the temperature of the water in these reservoirs until it
becomes super heated. Wells are drilled to reach this hot water, often
to depths of 500 to 10,000 feet. These “production
wells” bring up the hot water where it can be
used either directly or indirectly (via a working fluid) to spin turbine
blades, which in turn spin a shaft directly connected to an electrical
generator. The water is then injected back into the Earth to help insure
that the water isn’t taken out of the
geothermal resource faster than it is replaced. When properly managed, a
geothermal resource is sustainable and renewable.
The government has recognized the potential in developing this form of
electricity generation and has created incentives within the tax code to
encourage its propagation. Tax credits and various other tax benefits
are available for activities involved in geothermal power plant
development and electricity generation. Many of these tax benefits are
permanent parts of the US tax code. Additionally, section 45 of the
Internal Revenue Code provides for a renewable electricity production
tax credit that historically has been renewed by a vote of Congress
before it expires. Raser Technologies intends to develop geothermal
power plants in order to reap the financial benefits of both the revenue
derived from the generation of the electricity as well as from the
monetization of these tax credits.”
Cook continued, “We have been working hard
over the past year to enter this exciting market. With the combination
of our recently secured geothermal technology license, our newly
acquired geothermal property assets and the expertise of Raser’s
board of directors in the field, we are poised to become a leader in
global geothermal markets.”
Cook concluded, “At the same time, we will
continue our ongoing efforts to develop our business in the
Transportation and Industrial sectors. Indeed, they will combine with
our Power Generation business to create a long-term, stable base for our
business.”
Underlying Raser’s contribution in these
sectors is its Symetron™ motor and drive
technology, which is designed to take electric motor technology closer
to its theoretical limit. This technology is designed to more
efficiently harness one of nature’s most
useful forms of energy and deliver it in a low cost, lightweight
electric drive system for industry, home, and electric vehicles. In the
future, Symetron motor technology may help power the geothermal stations
that the company builds.
About Raser Technologies
Raser is a publicly traded technology licensing company focused on
improving the efficiency of rotating electromagnetic and heat transfer
applications within the Transportation, Industrial and Power Generation
markets. Raser's breakthrough Symetron™ motor
technology is designed to take electric motor technology closer to its
theoretical limit. This revolutionary motor technology works under a set
of proprietary design innovations. Application of this technology
requires a few simple changes to conventional motors, but yields
significant increases in power, performance and efficiency without the
use of exotic materials. The company is also expanding its interest in
power generation to include the construction of geothermal electricity
generating plants, deriving revenues from both the sale of the
electricity as well as through monetizing the tax credits tax attributes
that such plants possess. Further information on Raser may be found at: www.rasertech.com.
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within
the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including, but not limited to,
statements regarding the following: our beliefs about the performance
and market applicability of our products, including our heat recovery
technology; our beliefs about the status and enforceability of the
Company’s intellectual property; our beliefs
about the strength of our existing and potential business relations in
both the motor industry and the geothermal industry; our beliefs about
the strength and enforceability of our agreements with Truckee and other
third parties; our beliefs about the potential for geothermal power
generation on the Truckee properties; our belief about the Company’s
ability to exploit the available geothermal resources; our beliefs about
the performance capabilities of our technology; our beliefs regarding
the time needed to develop and bring into service geothermal power
plants; our beliefs about the geothermal market; our beliefs about
potential financing opportunities; our understanding and investigation
into tax credits and potential benefits for renewable energy projects;
our beliefs about the funding requirements for follow-on development
work; our ability to commercially license our technology; our ability to
hire employees sufficient to accelerate engineering and testing; our
ability to raise sufficient financing to take advantage of our
intellectual property and leased properties; our understanding of
heat-transfer technology and our beliefs regarding our research and
development efforts.
These forward-looking statements involve certain risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ, including,
without limitation, the competitive environment and our ability to
compete in the industry; our inability to adapt our technology for
geothermal applications; our inability to adapt our technology for
specific applications; our inability to achieve commercial acceptance of
our technology; the strength of our patent and pending patents and other
intellectual property and those of our competitors; our inability to
protect our intellectual property; our inability to attract, train and
retain key personnel; and such other risks as identified in our
quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2006,
as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and all subsequent
filings, which contain and identify important factors that could cause
the actual results to differ materially from those contained in our
projections or forward-looking statements.
All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on
information available to us as of the date hereof, and we undertake no
obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or
circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.
