Brenmiller Energy, controlled by Avi Brenmiller, posted a loss of NIS 26 million for 2018, following a loss of NIS 30 million in 2017. At the end of the year the company had just NIS 3 million cash.
Brenmiler Energy still has no revenue. It became listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in August 2017, after raising NIS 45 million. Since then it has raised tens of millions more, including NIS 18 million in early March, but that did not prevent its auditors from stating in the company's report that "in the view of the company's management, at this time, the company's cash balance is not sufficient to complete the Rotem 1 project and/or to finance the company's day to day activity for twelve months."
The company states that it "is examining a number of possibilities and conducting negotiations with third parties on deals for investment in the company and/or obtaining finance, and is constantly examining options for strengthening its financial position."
Brenmiller Energy was founded six and a half years ago. At the beginning, it developed and constructed thermos-solar power plants. Its business model was based on setting up such plants for power producers. The company then decided to focus on heat energy storage systems. In effect, one of the components developed by the company became its claimed competitive advantage.
The company's system takes energy from various sources - wind farms, solar panels, the power grid, water, and more -stores it, and supplies power using steam. It faces competition from other energy storage solutions, such as pumped hydro-power, molten salt, and solutions in development.
The company is involved in the Rotem 1 and Rotem 2 1.5 megawatt power plant projects on the Rotem Plain near Dimona. The plants were due to become operational in 2019, but it now appears that they will start operating only in the first quarter of 2020. The investment in the projects is expected to total NIS 61 million, and average annual revenue from the plants is projected at NIS 6.4 million.
Since it became a public company, Brenmiller Energy's market cap has shrunk by about 80% to NIS 54 million.
Ten days ago, Michal Kaspi Shapira, an external director on Brenmiller Energy's board, announced her resignation from the board "because of differences of opinion between me and the company's management." Her resignation followed reports of differences between the company and Bank Leumi, which is financing the Rotem 1 project.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on April 2, 2019
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