Not just Enmax investment / active partner
Naikun appoints Holden to board; blows hard at AGM
2007-04-02 20:55 ET - News Release
Ms. Angela Salehi reports
NAIKUN AGM HIGHLIGHTS PROGRESS TO DATE AND ANNOUNCES CHANGES TO BOARD AND MANAGEMENT
Naikun Wind Energy Group Inc. held its annual general meeting March 30 in Vancouver amid unprecedented investor interest in the company. Michael C. Burns, chairman of Naikun, addressed shareholders and summarized the significant progress the company has made in the past 12 months:
formed a partnership with Enmax Corp., the Western Canadian energy leader with extensive wind energy project experience. Enmax will take an active role in development of the project and assume 50-per-cent ownership of the generation subsidiary with the right to acquire the first, 320 megawatts of Naikun's 1,750-megawatt project;
secured financing of more than $9-million through two separate offerings to the investment community, a contribution from the Enmax partnership as well as the exercise of warrants and stock options. More importantly, strong investor interest in the company and the green energy sector has led to a significant increase in the valuation of the company over the past 12 months;
opened an office at Oceanic Plaza in Vancouver and engaged a team of managers and third party consultants with world-class credentials in energy development and offshore wind. The team has developed or completed 10 studies to date and has at least 12 more under way with the goal of preparing a bid for submission to B.C. Hydro's 2007 Call for Power;
played an active role in helping foster policy initiatives at the federal and provincial levels of government to help accelerate the development of wind energy in British Columbia;
strengthened relationships with several community groups. For instance, this past November the company was honoured to participate in a ceremony with the Haida Indians. The council presented Naikun with the CHN flag which now stands alongside the flags of Canada and British Columbia in its Vancouver office. This symbolizes the company's respect for the Haida and its commitment to approach this development with the appropriate environmental, social and cultural considerations; and
initiated the environmental impact assessment process with the filing of the EIA draft terms of reference.
"The last year has been an exceptional one for Naikun," said Mr. Burns. "The positive public policy environment, strong investor interest and support, together with the funding and validation by Enmax have put Naikun in a very strong position to realize the potential of the Haida energy field," he added.
The AGM also notified shareholders of several significant changes to the board and management of the company:
Gary Holden, the president and chief executive officer of Enmax, has been nominated to join the board of directors of Naikun.
Michael Altman will be winding up his active involvement with Naikun as of May 31 in order to concentrate on the oil, gas and mineral assets of Uniterre, a subsidiary of Naikun.
Francis Waldbillig, who has been corporate secretary, will be leaving his post. He will be replaced by Jonathan Reilly, who will also be transitioning into Mr. Altman's former role as general counsel.
Ray Castelli will assume the role of chief executive officer of Naikun Wind Development Inc., in addition to his current role as president. Mr. Castelli will also be appointed senior vice-president of Naikun and all subsidiary companies.
Doug King has joined the company as director of finance and administration. Shortly, the company will also be announcing the addition of Sara MacIntyre as director of public affairs and corporate communications.
Naikun launched a new website on April 2 which includes an enhanced investor relations portal. This reflects the significant growth in its investor base and the number of investor inquiries its is receiving on a regular basis. A key feature of this website will be an investor question and answer section where management will post responses to relevant investor inquiries in order to ensure those replies are as broadly available as possible.