CNIM (EPA:COM) SUNCNIM the new player in concentrated solar power

Transparency directive : regulatory news

24/06/2015 07:30

PRESS RELEASE
24 JUNE 2015

                                    SUNCNIM
                  The new player in concentrated solar power

Paris, 24 June 2015 - The SPI Fund (Société de projets industriels), financed
by the French government's Future Investments Program and operated by Bpifrance,
is pleased to announce its first investment, to be made in SUNCNIM alongside the
CNIM industrial group.

SUNCNIM, which will be majority-owned by CNIM, will develop and build turnkey
concentrated solar power plants for export. As the first investment to be made
by the SPI Fund, it will serve to accelerate the industrial development of
thermal solar energy generation, an emerging technology with the potential to be
a global market leader, and thus is fully in line with the Fund's investment
objectives.

A total of EUR55M, including contributions in kind of technology, will be
invested in SUNCNIM, of which EUR25M will be provided by the SPI Fund. The
venture will enable a strong industrial base to be created and aims ultimately
to create 500 direct jobs in France, as well as generating considerable indirect
employment.

As a renewable energy producer using non-polluting energy storage technology,
SUNCNIM will also make a direct contribution to environmental and energy
transition.

CNIM is an industrial company founded in 1856 which designs and builds turnkey
industrial solutions with high technological content and provides research and
consultancy services. CNIM is currently France's market leader in
waste-to-energy and biomass-to-energy conversion.

With its expertise in mechanical and thermal engineering, CNIM has a long
history of pioneering investments in research into solar energy production.
During the 1980s, CNIM was involved in the construction of the molten salt-
based solar receptor at the Thémis power plant at Font-Romeu in the Eastern
Pyrenees. In 2010, CNIM brought into service a functioning demonstrator unit at
La Seyne-sur-Mer based on proprietary technology using Fresnel mirrors. This
highly promising solar thermal technology, which provides thermal storage
capacity over a period of several hours, will be at the heart of SUNCNIM's
market offering.

The SPI-CNIM partnership will in particular enable SUNCNIM to build a
nine-megawatt power station with three hours of energy storage capacity in
France. This will provide the new company with a significant reference point
which will be essential for expanding successfully into markets abroad.

As the core activities of CNIM and Bpifrance exceed the revenue limits set under
European antitrust rules, their joint investment in SUNCNIM will be subject to
the receipt of approval from the appropriate European body.

Nicolas Dmitrieff, Chairman of the Management Board at CNIM: "CNIM has been
enthusiastic about developing this highly promising technology which complements
our historical skills in thermal and mechanical engineering. We were looking for
a way to speed up our expansion into the fast-growing international market for
thermodynamic solar power with an ambitious partner who respects our traditions
and our technological and industrial expertise. We are therefore especially
happy that we can draw on the support of the SPI Fund to develop this joint
venture."

Magali Joessel, SPI Fund Director at Bpifrance: The SPI Fund is pleased to be
making this investment alongside CNIM, a respected industrial player. This
measure taken by the Future Investments Program opens up new prospects for
industry in the renewable energy field and thus makes a contribution toward
sustainable development. The business plan and the technology employed present a
major opportunity to create jobs at the La Seyne-sur-Mer site and open up
significant prospects for export sales.

About CNIM
CNIM designs and builds turnkey industrial facilities with high technological
content and delivers expertise, services and plant operation in the
environmental, energy, defense and industrial fields. CNIM acts as a project
leader and sells and markets equipment worldwide.
CNIM has a stable family shareholder base that guarantees its future
development. The Group has 2,900 employees in 15 countries and achieved revenues
of EUR 790.8 million in 2014, of which 67.5% were from exports. CNIM is listed
on Euronext Paris.
For more information, go to: www.cnim.com - Twitter: @CNIM_Group

About the SPI Fund - Société de projets industriels
Managed by Bpifrance on behalf of the French government as part of the
government's Future Investments Program, the SPI Fund aims to provide
development support to industrial projects that offer the best prospects for
business and employment in their industries.
The Fund acts as an equity investor in special-purpose project companies for
industrial development projects selected on the basis of their growth potential,
the current status of the industry and their contribution to ecological and
energy transition. It thus constitutes one of the financial levers of the New
Industrial France strategy.

About Bpifrance
Bpifrance, a subsidiary of the state-owned Caisse des Dépôts, is a trusted
partner of business and provides loans, guarantees and equity funding to assist
companies from start-up to stock market listing. Bpifrance also provides
assistance and support services to underpin innovation, external growth and
exports in partnership with Business France and Coface.
Bpifrance offers businesses a continuum of finance provision at each key stage
of their development, with services catered to specific regional
circumstances.
With 42 regional offices (90% of decisions are taken regionally), Bpifrance is a
key instrument for economic competitiveness that works in service of business.
Bpifrance acts in support of government and regional policies toward the
achievement of three objectives:
  * Supporting business growth;
  * Laying the ground for future competitiveness;
  * Contributing to the development of a pro-business environment.
With Bpifrance, businesses benefit from a capable, efficient and close contact
which responds to all of their financing, innovation and investment needs.

For more information, go to: www.bpifrance.fr -
http://investissementsdavenir.bpifrance.fr/ - Twitter: @bpifrance

Press contacts:

Bpifrance
Nathalie Police
Tel.: +33 (0) 1 41 79 95 26
Mob : 06 07 58 65 19
nathalie.police@bpifrance.fr

CNIM
Nathalie Feld, Image 7
Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 70 94 23
nfeld@image7.fr

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