The following is a statement by John A. Conklin, President & CEO, New
Energy Technologies, Inc. (OTCQB: NENE):
Mr. John Conklin, President & CEO (Photo: New Energy Technologies, Inc.)
Dear Valued Shareholders,
It’s been a breakthrough, banner year for New Energy Technologies. I’m
proud to share many of our 2013 - 2014 accomplishments and development
goals planned for the year ahead.
As I sit to write today, I want to personally thank you – our
shareholders – for your continued, strong support in developing the
world’s first-of-its-kind see-through SolarWindow™ technology.
Since the early days of presenting our first liquid,
electricity-generating coatings and dark, small-scale prototypes to this
year’s highly-transparent and record-breaking modules, you’ve been a
part of each milestone. On behalf of my team, I thank you for that. We
could not progress toward commercialization without your commitment.
You’ll be happy to know that over the last two years, we’ve set amazing
records with our modules, raised the bar on our technical achievements,
and even displayed our SolarWindow™ modules to members of the United
States Congress on Capitol Hill.
Our SolarWindow™ technology continues to show strong progress in
development, and is picking up pace. At a time when energy demand is
rising, there is a tremendous opportunity for SolarWindow™ coatings to
generate electricity on the many acres of glass surfaces available on
tall towers and skyscrapers. This year, our engineers and scientists
focused on size, aesthetics, and power production. The results have been
impressive.
Using the Company’s proprietary power production model, engineers
estimate that when installed on all four sides of a 50-story building:
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Our SolarWindow™ modules could produce more than 50 times greater
power than conventional rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems, which are
limited to only a handful of square feet on a congested rooftop.
SolarWindow™ technology can be applied to all four sides of a
building’s glass surfaces.
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In Phoenix, AZ, SolarWindow™ technology could generate enough
electricity to power 130 homes each year as compared to only three to
eleven for today’s rooftop PV systems.
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In Amarillo, TX, our SolarWindow™ systems could help avoid the same
carbon emissions produced by vehicles driving about 2.75 million miles
per year as compared to today’s rooftop PV systems with only 180,000
miles.
We previously unveiled our biggest-ever working module, which was
fabricated through a collaborative partnership with the U.S. Department
of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), one of the
world’s leading renewable energy laboratories. At the time, this module
was more than 14-times larger than previous OPV devices fabricated at
NREL. This year, our continuing partnership with NREL led to the
unveiling of our newest, high-performance SolarWindow™ modules, which
are 35% larger than previously unveiled modules.
Better yet, SolarWindow™ coatings can produce electricity using
artificial light sources, such as fluorescent lighting in offices and
hotels. Today’s conventional rooftop PV solar systems cannot.
As CNBC explains, SolarWindow™ is a “’first-of-its-kind’ technology that
could turn the buildings we live and work in into self-sufficient,
mini-power stations.”
Our numerous breakthroughs this year have captured the attention of The
Huffington Post, CNBC, Renewable Energy Magazine, CleanTechnica,
TechRepublic, and The Washington Post, among others.
As our SolarWindow™ technology progresses, we anticipate even greater
coverage.
Rising Demand for Electricity and Glass: SolarWindow™ Technology
Corporate America is shifting a great deal of focus and financial
resources to renewable energy for generating electricity. In fact,
Walmart, Costco, Kohl’s, Apple, IKEA, Staples, FedEx, Intel, General
Motors, and Dow Jones & Company are all embracing renewable energy.
Keep in mind that our SolarWindow™ technology is being developed as a
Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) renewable energy source. The
BIPV market is expected to have a tremendous growth rate of 41% through
2016. That growth, combined with the global market for coated flat
glass, is expected to reach nearly $29.2 billion by 2019.
This escalating energy demand and growth in the glass market comes at an
essential time, as we advance toward market-ready SolarWindow™ products.
SolarWindow™ Attracts Industry Leaders
Over the last two years, our scientists and engineers have achieved
numerous milestones. Not only have we set a new record in power
production, but we’ve also made significant breakthroughs in scaling up
the size of our modules. We have successfully increased efficiency; and
improved manufacturability, and transparency, constantly improving our
ability to harvest energy and generate electricity.
We have also unveiled some of the most powerful electricity-generating
modules we’ve ever seen. In doing so, we’ve attracted some influential
industry leaders, like Mr. Curtis Watkins and Mr. Kelly Provence.
Mr. Provence is one of the most credentialed solar PV and installation
experts in the field, holding three North American Board of Certified
Energy Practitioners (NABCEP) certifications. The Interstate Renewable
Energy Council (IREC) awarded him Master Certified PV Trainer status, as
well. His knowledge of systems for integrating and installing
SolarWindow™ modules into building architecture is invaluable.
Mr. Watkins works with Duke Energy’s Emerging Technology Office, one of
America’s largest utility companies. He’s responsible for testing and
verifying new technologies that have the potential to become part of a
portfolio of energy solutions. He brings expertise in the utility and
municipal energy industries and guidance in the development of strategic
partnerships.
These are exciting times, as our technology attracts some of the most
substantial names in the industry. Things are even better because of our
dedicated team of scientists, engineers, and employees’ remarkable
determination.
With their support, I’m happy to say that our Company continues to
advance SolarWindow™ technology through its Cooperative Research and
Development Agreement (CRADA) with NREL. Leading our research efforts is
Dr. Scott Hammond, our Principal Scientist, who continues to work
closely with NREL scientists to further develop SolarWindow™
electricity-generating coatings into commercially-viable products. Scott
has been instrumental in accomplishing all of our technology development
objectives, to date.
Record-Setting Growth: Two Years of Breakthroughs
Two years of significant accomplishments and record-setting
breakthroughs have brought us closer than ever to commercialization.
Patent Portfolio more than Doubled
In July 2013, we more than doubled our U.S. and international patent
filings in just 12 months for protection of our proprietary SolarWindow™
technology.
Received 2013 Energy Innovation Award
By December 2013, our team was awarded the 2013 Energy Innovation Award
from the Energy Business Review (EBR). We were recognized as the most
promising global energy project of the year. It was a tremendous
reflection of our hard work and dedication to advancing our SolarWindow™
development.
New Year, New Goal of Demonstrating Versatility
In January 2014, our scientists successfully increased power and created
a broader selection of SolarWindow™ module colors under high-demand by
architects and building designers.
Next Generation, High-Performance SolarWindow™ Modules
We then set to work on unveiling our next generation, high performance
SolarWindow™ working prototype within the following quarter,
successfully achieved in March 2014.
Our Proudest Milestone
We built our largest and most powerful SolarWindow™ modules, fabricated
in neutral colors to address tall-tower and commercial building glass
requirements.
New Record: 50% More Power
Ninety days later, we set a new record for generating electricity while
remaining see-through with more than 50% greater power than other
industry attempts.
Estimated to Generate Up to 50-Fold Electrical Energy Benefits
By June 2014, our engineers developed a proprietary model for estimating
the amount of electrical energy and environmental benefits SolarWindow™
prototype modules may provide. Our model showed that SolarWindow™
modules could outperform conventional rooftop solar by as much as
50-fold.
Demonstrated before U.S. Congress
In September 2014, NREL experts presented our SolarWindow™ modules to
staff and members of the U.S. Congress as part of the first-ever
National Lab Day on Capitol Hill, co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of
Energy.
Highlighted at Major Scientific & Industry Events
Dr. Scott Hammond was selected to present our SolarWindow™ technology at
Energy Harvesting and Storage USA 2013, the world’s largest annual
conference and exhibition of its kind. Dr. Hammond was also invited to
present at the 2013 Materials Research Society Spring Meeting Exhibit.
We then presented our SolarWindow™ technology to the 2014 InterSolar
North America Conference, the most widely attended solar exhibition in
the United States.
Where do we go from here?
What sets see-through SolarWindow™ coatings apart commercially is the
ability to generate electricity not only in sunlight, but also using
artificial light sources, diffused light and even in shaded areas. This
allows our modules to be commercially installed on all sides of a
skyscraper, turning the entire building into a power generator.
Conventional rooftop solar systems cannot do that.
Using liquid-based materials, we also lend ourselves to low-cost,
high-speed manufacturing methods. That’s important, considering the
expensive, temperature-sensitive and cumbersome manufacturing of
conventional solar PV modules.
Moving forward, we’re heading into 2015 with solid momentum of
technological achievements. Our expanded intellectual property portfolio
continues to play a crucial role as we pursue a greater number of
industry and research partnerships in our push toward commercialization.
There is still a lot of hard work to be done, but the complex, early
discovery proof-of-concept research is long behind us.
Our team will continue to improve power production and strive toward
greater efficiency with our SolarWindow™ modules. We are further
enhancing the transparency and uniformity of our coatings, developing
SolarWindow™ modules in glass colors and shades in high demand by
architects and building designers.
Also key to our future development goals is scaling up the size of our
modules and developing new fabrication techniques for applying
electricity-generating coatings onto glass. These steps will help
prepare SolarWindow™ coatings for low-cost, high-speed fabrication using
roll-to-roll and sheet-to-sheet manufacturing processes.
With your ongoing support, we look forward to setting new industry
records, achieving important milestones, and attracting global
attention. The development of our Company and SolarWindow™ technology
will put New Energy Technologies in a strong position to deliver greater
value to you, our shareholders.
Rest assured that shareholder value is, always has been, and will most
certainly remain, an important priority for the New Energy team. With
this in mind, I promise to continue our tradition of proactive
shareholder outreach in 2015 and keep you updated on our major
advancements.
Whether by way of press releases, media interviews, or industry and
scientific presentations, we will continue to attract positive coverage
for New Energy Technologies and our SolarWindow™ technology.
You have my personal commitment, and the commitment of our Board of
Directors and Advisors, employees, and scientists who are working to
advance our technologies and strengthen shareholder value. As we
approach our goal of commercialization, we remain focused on our
objective of positioning our SolarWindow™ technology as one of the
greatest future energy innovations.
Thank you for your confidence and ongoing support. Our best days are
ahead.
Best regards,
John Conklin
President & CEO
New Energy
Technologies, Inc.
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