REG - ATOME PLC - Completion of Front End Engineering Design study

AtomeAnnouncement

05/06/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 1289R  ATOME PLC  05 June 2024

5 June 2024

 

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ATOME PLC

("ATOME", "the Company", or "the Group")

 

Major milestone delivered at Villeta Project

 

Completion of Front End Engineering Design ("FEED") study

 

Final Investment Decision ("FID") and start of construction targeted by end
year

 

ATOME (AIM: ATOM), the leading international developer of green fertiliser
projects, is pleased to announce the completion of the FEED study for its
145MW green fertiliser facility at Villeta, Paraguay (the "Villeta Project").
This is a major milestone, providing the foundational engineering for the
Villeta Project which keeps it on track to commence construction by the end of
2024.

 

Highlights

 

· Successful completion of FEED study for the Villeta Project representing
the first known announced completion of FEED for a large-scale green dedicated
fertiliser project worldwide

·   Marks a major milestone in the delivery of the Villeta Project with
offtake and Engineering, Procurement and Construction ("EPC") negotiations now
at an advanced stage

·   FID and start of construction expected by end of year

 

Olivier Mussat, CEO, commented: "ATOME continues to follow its strategy and
systematically deliver major milestones on the road to starting construction
at Villeta by the end of this year.

 

"Completion of this complex and detailed FEED study, which we believe is the
first for an industrial scale, fully-green, fertiliser facility, provides the
necessary foundational engineering not only for our first Villeta Project, but
for ATOME to apply elsewhere, consolidating our position as an international
leader in green fertiliser production. Our immediate attention now turns to
offtake and EPC, both of which will allow us to move towards the delivery of
FID this year.

 

"We would like to thank Casale and Urbas Energy, our FEED contractors, as well
as AECOM, our Owner's Engineer, for their combined efforts over the past 18
months in bringing the FEED study to completion as we now focus on the next
key deliverables of offtake and EPC in order to reach production start-up in
2027."

 

Jennifer Obertino, Global Energy Practice Lead, of AECOM, commented: "We are
pleased to confirm the completion of the Front End Engineering Design study
for the 145MW green fertiliser project at Villeta, Paraguay, having worked
alongside ATOME, Casale and Urbas Energy over the last 18 months.

 

"The Villeta Project has grown into one of the most advanced of its kind in
the world. We have worked with ATOME on its unique journey in delivering
zero-carbon fertiliser from 2027, bringing in our expertise in accelerating
the decarbonisation of hard-to-abate sectors and partnering with clients to
bring innovative solutions to the market."

 

Next Steps

 

ATOME is now progressing EPC contract discussions and anticipates that these
discussions will lead to the appointment of principal EPC contractors by the
end of June 2024 with the definitive contract expected to be signed at the
time of FID anticipated later this year.

 

ATOME is highly encouraged by the status of discussions on offtake and hopes
to be able to announce a successful conclusion by the end of Q2 2024. Offtake
is the last significant milestone before proceeding to the final phases of the
ongoing project funding process.

 

Completion of FEED Study

 

ATOME announces the successful completion of the FEED study for the 145MW
Villeta Project. The completion of FEED, which includes approximately 100,000
hours of engineering and comprises some 619 individual documents and reports,
represents the first announced completion of FEED for any large-scale green
fertiliser facility worldwide.

 

The FEED study confirms the Villeta Project's design, processes, timelines and
production capacity of 264,000 tonnes per year of green Calcium Ammonium
Nitrate ("CAN") fertiliser which has the potential to displace up to an
estimated 15 million tonnes/CO(2)e over the life of the project.

 

The completion of FEED concludes the foundational engineering for the Villeta
Project ahead of EPC. The study will now serve as a blueprint for ATOME's next
projects as the Company leverages on the significant expertise, learnings and
know-how accumulated from this process.

 

The FEED study was performed by Spanish engineering firm, Urbas Energy, in
cooperation with world-renowned Casale, the Swiss-based OEM and licensor for
ammonia and fertiliser technologies. AECOM, the multinational Fortune-500
engineering consulting company, Owner's Engineer for ATOME, advised and
signed-off on the study together with the Company.

 

For more information, please visit https://www.atomeplc.com
(https://www.atomeplc.com) or contact:

 

 ATOME PLC                                      +44 (0) 113 337 2210
 Nikita Levine, Investor Relations
info@atomeplc.com
 Beaumont Cornish (Nominated Adviser)           +44 (0) 20 7628 3396
 Roland Cornish, Michael Cornish
 SP Angel (Joint Broker)                        +44 (0) 20 3490 0470
 Richard Hail, Caroline Rowe
 Cavendish Capital Markets Limited (Broker)     +44 (0) 20 7220 0500
 Simon Hicks, George Dollemore
 Tavistock (Financial PR and IR)                +44 (0) 20 7920 3150
 Simon Hudson, Rebecca Hislaire, Saskia Sizen   atome@tavistock.co.uk

 

About ATOME

ATOME PLC is an AIM listed company targeting green fertiliser production with
445-megawatt of projects in Paraguay and a further pipeline of potential
projects in Central America.

 

Since its admission to AIM in December 2021 ATOME signed a 145MW power
purchase agreement with ANDE, the state energy company in Paraguay for
acquired 30 hectares of land in Villeta, Paraguay for that facility, mandated
Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking and the multilateral IDB Invest to
lead the project funding and with Front End Engineering and Design studies
currently underway with the international companies Urbas and Casale. ANDE has
also allocated a further 300MW for ATOME's second project subject to
studies.

 

In Costa Rica, The National Ammonia Corporation S.A. was formed in 2022 with
local partner Cavendish S.A. based in Costa Rica to develop green fertiliser
projects for the region. As well as straddling the Pacific and Atlantic
Oceans, Costa Rica is a democratic Central American country. In agriculture,
Costa Rica is the second largest supplier of pineapples in the world and is in
the top ten banana growers.

 

ATOME is in the process of operational planning, sourcing and negotiations
with green electricity suppliers, equipment providers and offtake partners,
including signed memoranda of understanding and cooperation agreements in
place with key parties, to produce green fertiliser at an industrial scale
using electricity generated from hydroelectric power in Paraguay and Costa
Rica. All chosen sites are located close to the power and water sources and
export facilities to serve significant domestic and then international demand.

 

The Company has a green-focused Board which is supported by major shareholders
including Peter Levine, Schroders, a leading fund manager, and since May 2023,
Baker Hughes, a global energy technology company operating in the energy and
industry sectors.

 

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