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AFC Energy (LON:AFC) said it will deliver the two final milestones of strategy in line with “earlier timeframes” as it told investors it continues to develop its “commercial pipeline of opportunities”.
The industrial fuel cell company said its dialogue was with “current and prospective partners internationally”.
AFC successfully commissioned its breakthrough KORE system, based in Stade, Germany, in July with the plan to have it ready for commercial scale production later this year.
Left to complete are steps 10 and 11 of its POWER-UP strategy, which involves getting the plant to its nameplate capacity of 240 kilowatts and selling electricity into the local grid.
“The company's staff and subcontractors are currently on site in Stade finalising works necessary to deliver milestone 10 and at this time, there is no reason to suspect this will not be achieved within the announced timeframe,” AFC told investors in an update.
They also heard the company continues to make progress in the development of its fuel cell catalyst and has seen further improvements in the power output.
As a result it is confident it will achieve its targeted output by the end of the year.
Chief executive Adam Bon said: "At this time, we wish to reassure shareholders that AFC remains on target to deliver on its key milestones announced in December 2014.
“We will provide further updates to the market on the KORE system at Stade and other commercial developments in the near future."
AFC’s technology has its roots in the space race of the 1960s and a repurposed croissant maker is used in the manufacturing process.
The method of generating electricity it has developed works a little like a large alkali battery, and it is versatile in being able to use hydrogen created from, for example, chlorine production, biomass and coal.
To date, the firm has spent £30-£35mln getting the technology to the stage it is today – on the cusp of being commercial.
This, Bond reckons, is some achievement, given that billions have been spent industry-wide for little tangible (and profitable) return.
The shares, up 260% in the year to date, added a further 6% in morning trade to change hands for 36.75p.