MARKET OPPORTUNITY

The ability to store thermal energy is a significant breakthrough in the renewable energy market. There is no comparable known chemical thermal storage solution that exists on the market today, and ADI Solar Corps transformative breakthrough technology will have a tremendous impact (long term) to the nation’s ability to store energy from solar, nuclear and other high-temperature heat producing elements. ADI Solar Corp.’s Chemical thermal storage solution is critical to the future success of alternative energy because it

1. enables continuous uninterrupted power production from cyclical renewable energy sources;
2. adds load following capability to steady base load power plants; and
3. it provides a low cost (competitive) efficient way to store energy compared to the expensive solutions that occupy the market today.

Electro-chemical batteries are the primary method of energy storage to-date, but have high-cost and limited lifespan. The product lifespan of the ADI Solars thermal-chemical storage system is 20x longer than that of conventional batteries and storage cost is approximately 10x less. Although other thermal storage options exist, such as liquid salt storage systems, ADI Solar Corp.’s thermal storage system is 1/20 the size, relating directly to the cost savings of its competitive solutions.

The ADI Solar Corp. chemical thermal storage solution provides 24/7 power, that can be used as a base-load power production or for load following during peak production time periods. This system is a revolutionary breakthrough as it allows you to take energy created at one time in the day and use it any time you need to produce more energy; with a thermal storage efficiency of 95% for the 100 kW system and 98% for the 10 MW system. With the solar application, you can absorb the sun during the day and use it at night for true 24/7 base-load power production from solar. It transforms solar power generation from a disruptive technology (where power delivery is regularly interrupted) into a continuous one that can compete on the market today. This will not only provide energy production in off-the-grid locations that are in great need of electricity, but there is also significant cost savings as you can store heat when the price of electricity is low (low demand), and convert that to electricity generation during more expensive (peak demand) times of the day. Note that as this technology becomes mainstream, competition may even lower peak demand rates.

ADI Solars thermal storage also has a strong application to nuclear power generation as well. Power generation from nuclear plants is characterized by steady power output. They are well suited to supplying base load power, but their usefulness relies on additional power generation from load following power plants that can vary their power output to match power demand. ADI Solar adds a new attractive option. Nuclear power plants can achieve load following capability by attaching thermal storage capacity to their reactors with auxiliary generation capability (ADI Solars patented system). Under low power demand, the nuclear power plant can reduce output by storing heat with reduced output and no auxiliary power output. Under high power demand, full power output from nuclear can be augmented with heat retrieved from storage to drive the auxiliary power unit. ADI Solars power generation system fills the role of the nuclear powers load following plant and adds useful cooling capacity to the nuclear reactor at the same time.

COMMERCIALIZATION STRATEGY

In preface, the ADI Solar Corp. Chemical Thermal Storage solution may be used in a variety of applications. Solar and distributed power represents a potential $20B/year market. In the U.S. alone, there is a reported 2M kW of distributed energy generation per year. At a price of only $.10/kW-hr, this equates to almost $2B energy production per year. Currently, costs for electricity production range from $.08-.30/kW-hr, which demonstrates the significance in developing technologies that will drastically reduce costs, while maintaining a positive impact to the environment. ADI Solar Corp. projects 100-500 unit sales in the first year of production, with that scaling up to over 5,000 units within the first 4 years. There is no lack of demand for this product. The company has customers lined up who are eager to leverage this technology and replace currently non-existent, or high-cost systems, that require frequent maintenance or are not adequate for the current client needs. Customers range from large-scale overseas distribution channels looking to incorporate the ADI system into solutions to increase efficiency; to those looking to provide electric power sources for rural and other industrial and consumer needs, (nuclear applications as well). Full financial backing for product prove-out and commercialization will spur a landslide of pending sales once product trials are complete.

The financial estimates contained herein are preliminary and are based on the best available information at the time of publication. The base information has been obtained from a variety of sources inclusive of: detailed costing of materials and components, benchmark data (e.g. comparative system cost data), expenses incurred to date (e.g. fabrication) and other published or quoted costs. ADI continues to improve the quality of the financial basis as we extend our testing and continue to enhance the functionality and economic performance of the final design. At every opportunity the design team is investigating opportunities to reduce the engineered cost base through design simplification, rapid deployment ability, construction design, the use of non-exotic materials, sourcing, and scale benefits.


Thermal storage

 Increase production runs will allow for 55% reduction in production costs (economies of scale)
 Offshore manufacture may be considered for off-shore markets

The first commercial objective is to execute on the first purchase order for 1000 units in Australia. ADI has partners in Australia who are experienced licensed integrators. These teams previously owned the largest solar PhotoVoltaic (PV) integrator in Australia. When the Australian government stopped offering subsidies for solar panels, the solar PV business dropped off tremendously. Australia strongly supports renewable energy production of higher quality solutions (than PV) and backs this interest by offering a 50% cost sharing for building out renewable energy plants. The Australian company is in a position to order 1000 units over the next 5 years as part of a total CSP package being built by the company. The company would be an exclusive integrator for the ADI technology throughout Australia and the Pacific Rim Islands surrounding Australia. All key technology is owned 100% by ADI and will be manufactured in the United States, for distribution to partners such as those in Australia.

The initial objective secured revenue stream will provide the resources necessary to ensure production rates and costs are ramped up at volumes to provide the greatest benefit and discounts for subsequent sales within the United States; to remote or emerging homes and communities looking for self-sustaining renewable energy sources. We also have requests for immediate units and opportunities for thousands of unit sales within the islands of Hawaii and the Middle East. Energy costs within these locations are currently as high as $.30/kwh and costs are only increasing. Current commercialization funding will provide the necessary hardware validation and full-scale prototype to enable additional funding streams through these interested customers, who are primarily looking for remote energy sources. We have been working with the Hawaii department of energy to identify specific needs and where the early stage program can provide the most assistance in decreasing energy costs, and helping to meet their goal of providing a greater focus on renewable energy resources across the state.

LCGE - CAPEX composition

The table below illustrates the evolution of the respective cost drivers for the initial systems, and the decrease in costs during mass production. A solar field is representative of 6 heliostats in a configuration to always follow the sun throughout the day.

ADI has identified in its development plans the core costs drivers - [construction cost, thermal efficiency (capacity factor), deployment costs and O&M costs] - and the opportunities that will allow the LCOE to be progressively engineered downward. The commercialization strategy supports an initial product release at a higher LCOE for accelerated commercial deployment (first mover advantage) for which customers have already been identified.