The Board of directors of Antonov plc informs the market about recent progression in the reorganization of the company.
At the last board meeting it was concluded that Antonov plc has a very difficult task to fulfill all its obligations. The board however is very dedicated to have all present shareholders in a position where they will benefit from the TX6 future.
After many years of funding all developments, our only goal now is to contract paying customers (OEM) for our ‘ready to go’ TX6 gearbox. That means that all further developments have to be done towards a designated customer car, for which the OEM will pay the development cost. As a result, the design department of Antonov plc only needs a maximum capacity of 3 FTE’s, instead of the higher numbers of employees so far.
The company is able to reduce costs with at least 70% compared to the actual level .
However decisions from the past left a substantial amount of financial risks (potential claims and guarantees) open to the company. So the board decided to pursue an option to restart the TX6 project in a German publicly traded entity , in which all present shareholders should receive a right to exchange their Antonov plc shares into German newco ones without additional investment. The mechanics of such a transaction needs to be examined by advisors and approved by regulatories, before we can actually execute such a transaction.
The board expects they might be able to sell-off some of their present assets to meet most of the creditor’s positions in the situation of a possible voluntary liquidation.
If the board decides to proceed and clean-up the company, including prospectus etc, we expect a need for a total investment of approximately € 4 million. Approval of a new prospectus includes a working capital statement demonstrating the availability of sufficient funds to guarantee a going concern situation for Antonov plc.
The board is of the opinion that after all these years of ongoing investments, together with all ups and downs, it would be a disgrace when our TX6 technology would not pursue into the final commercial step to create an ongoing business model, although the gearbox is ‘ready to go’.
The board will only work with those OEM´s who will co-invest in the finalization of the technology design for their designated car. This also include negotiations with Landai/EFA in China.
The board likes to see more proof of life from our Chinese Partners in the form of an additional investment. Furthermore, we are in commercial negotiations in India, that hopefully may lead to new partnerships, for the TX6.
We will keep the market informed about further progress.