Proposed EPA Mercury Regulations Could Spur Renewed Investments in Mercury Capture Technology
FinancialNewsMedia.com News Commentary
PALM BEACH, Fla., March 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Investors recognize that there are a lot of changes taking place in the world's energy supplies. We seem to read announcements almost every day about coal plant retirements, and solar and wind farm installations. Yet, when you look at power projections put out by the experts, coal-fired generation remains prevalent in the mix beyond 2050, even as renewable resources slowly climb in the rankings. As reported in an article on Benzinga.com, In January, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposal to bring back a set of hazardous air pollutant regulations known as the 2012 Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS). The rules had been in strong effect until the Trump administration attempted to revoke the MATS regulations in 2020. Before MATS went into effect, power plants were the largest domestic source of mercury and other toxic air pollutants. The 2012 rules required these major sources of pollution to reduce emissions and meet the EPA's standards by 2016. The renewed regulations will impose higher standards of health and environmental safety on power plants across the country and require more stringent cleanup and emissions control technology to meet EPA standards. Active companies in the markets today include: Midwest Energy Emissions Corp. (OTCQB: MEEC), CECO Environmental Corp. (NASDAQ: CECE), Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE: DCI), Clean Harbors, Inc. (NYSE: CLH), Advanced Emissions Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADES).
The article added: "Controlling HAP [Hazardous Air Pollutants] emissions from power plants improves public health for all Americans by reducing fatal heart attacks, reducing cancer risks, avoiding neurodevelopmental delays in children and by helping to restore certain ecosystems people and businesses value," the agency wrote in a fact sheet about the decision. Benzinga added: "That 2020 revocation is what the EPA is now proposing to reverse—in effect, bringing back the agency's authority to enforce MATS regulations that had proved effective in cutting emissions. To do that, they implement a range of emission control technologies that can stop the mercury and other pollutants generated by the plants from entering the air. In addition to enforcing the 2012 standards, the EPA proposal also includes provisions for gathering public health information and public input needed to strengthen the regulations even further."
Midwest Energy Emissions Corp. (OTCQB: MEEC) BREAKING NEWS: ME2C Environmental Exercises Right of First Refusal with Major U.S. Utility, Patented Mercury Emissions Technology Licensee, to Supply Product Valued at $1 Million Annually - Midwest Energy Emissions Corp. ("ME2C Environmental" or the "Company"), a leading environmental technologies firm, announced today that it has exercised its right of first refusal ("ROFR") for mercury emissions capture product supply with a significant coal-powered utility operating in the Midwest. This major utility entered into a license agreement with the Company in 2021 which agreement provided a ROFR with respect to certain future supply business. ME2C Environmental is exercising the ROFR and matching the terms of an offer made by another supplier for a direct three-year supply order and a renewal option, which is expected to have a value of approximately $1 million annually.
The utility will begin testing ME2C's SEA®, or Sorbent Enhancement Additive, products in pre-supply planning discussion to determine adequate supply quantities and any sorbent tunability that may be necessary to help the utility meet the strictest mercury emissions capture and compliance requirements. The Company expects that direct supply orders for the utility's plant locations will begin in the near term during the next few months of 2022.
"While we had no previous interaction with this utility prior to 2021, this utility's immediate support and swift recognition of our patented technologies for mercury emissions capture has been evident," stated Richard MacPherson, CEO of ME2C Environmental. "Within several months of announcing a license agreement with this utility that was reached in November 2021, we are excited to move toward the next phase in reaching a direct supply partnership. Adopting a strong business-first approach across the coal-fired industry has allowed us the opportunity to expand our core business organically creating positive relationships."
MacPherson added, "Once direct supply orders begin by mid-year, this significant new business will be supported by the commissioning of our batch plant in Texarkana, an innovative facility that will support additional new supply business that we anticipate during 2022. As we expand our focus into new areas of growth this year, we are excited to reinforce a strong recurring revenue stream that will continue to strengthen our bottom-line." CONTINUED… Read the MEEC full press release by going to: https://ir.me2cenvironmental.com/press-releases
In other news and developments of note in the markets this week:
CECO Environmental Corp. (NASDAQ: CECE), a leading environmentally focused, diversified industrial company whose solutions protect people, the environment, and industrial equipment, recently reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year results of 2021.
"Our continued orders growth in the fourth quarter capped a year in which we grew overall bookings 29 percent and put CECO in position for solid growth in 2022," said Todd Gleason, Chief Executive Officer. "As we expected, CECO delivered sequential growth in revenue and margins in the fourth quarter, despite unprecedented inflation, labor and material shortages. We also completed the purchase of all of the shares authorized by our previously announced share repurchase program and continued to reduce net debt levels."
Donaldson Company, Inc. (NYSE: DCI) recently reported second quarter 2022 net earnings of $71.8 million, an increase of 27.7% from $56.2 million in 2021. Earnings per share (EPS) for the second quarter 2022 increased 30.4% to $0.57 from $0.44. The prior year EPS includes an impact of approximately $0.08 related to restructuring charges. Excluding this impact, second quarter 2022 EPS increased 9.8% from adjusted EPS of $0.52 in 2021. The tables attached to this press release include a reconciliation of measures calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) to non-GAAP measures.
"Second quarter record sales demonstrate the resiliency of our business model, the Donaldson team and our commitment to delivering value to our customers," said Tod Carpenter, chairman, president and chief executive officer. "Although ongoing inflation and supply chain challenges pressured gross margin more than we expected, we worked to mitigate the impact through our strategic pricing and expense management while continuing to invest for future growth.
Clean Harbors, Inc. (NYSE: CLH), the leading provider of environmental and industrial services throughout North America, recently announced financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2021. "The fourth quarter marked a strong close to the year for Clean Harbors and demonstrated the ongoing success of our comprehensive growth strategy," said Alan S. McKim, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Favorable market dynamics for both our operating segments drove our performance – including high demand for hazardous waste disposal, industrial services and re-refined products. This positive market environment, combined with strong execution by our entire team, enabled us to exceed our guidance for both Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted free cash flow. With contributions from HydroChemPSC ("HPC"), which we acquired in October, we delivered more than $1 billion in quarterly revenue for the first time in our Company's history."
Advanced Emissions Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADES) recently filed its Annual Report on Form 10-K and reported financial results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2021, including information about its equity investments in Tinuum Group, LLC ("Tinuum Group") and Tinuum Services, LLC ("Tinuum Services") (collectively "Tinuum"), of which ADES owns 42.5% and 50%, respectively.
"The strong demand environment for our APT segment persisted through the end of the year and drove a 45% increase in segment revenue in the fourth quarter compared to the prior year," said Greg Marken, CEO of ADES. "Continued high prices for alternative energy sources such as natural gas, coupled with the cold winter months, along with fully implementing the Cabot Supply Agreement, are supporting strong performance for the APT segment and delivering better gross margin leverage compared to 2020. With capacity utilization high, we continue to source inventory from third parties to meet rising customer demand and expect inventory tightness and general supply-chain constraints to remain in the near-term and to continue to weigh on our margin profile. We are working to offset margin pressures through methodical adjustments in pricing, as contracts become eligible for repricing, and we have been successful at better aligning new contract terms to current market conditions. Looking ahead to 2022, we expect volumes and our plant utilization to remain elevated, though we anticipate some gross margin compression due to elevated levels of third party purchases and rising input costs. More broadly, we remain focused on diversifying our end market mix and advancing our technologies alongside partners like Cascade Environmental for the soil and groundwater remediation market."
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