THORNTON, CO--(Marketwired - Apr 17, 2017) - Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. (OTCQB: ASTI), reported results for the full year
ended December 31, 2016.
FY2016 Financial Results:
The Company posted net revenue of $1.75M in 2016, a decline of approximately 73.2% from $6.54M in 2015. Loss from
operations in 2016, however, improved by $3.1M, or 11.2% from -$27.7M in 2015 to -$24.6M. Ascent Solar attributes this to a
substantial reduction in SG&A Expenses of 16.9% from $12.4M in 2015 to $10.3M in 2016, lower depreciation and amortization as
well as progressive cost reduction initiatives in R&D and manufacturing operations. These expenses are expected to decline
further as the Company continues to restructure and streamline its operations in 2017.
The revenue decline is a direct result of (i) the Company's exit from brick and mortar retail customers due to a number of
factors, including the high cost of doing business especially with those who were overly battery centric which is no longer in
line with Ascent's overall roadmap; (ii) continuous price erosion witnessed in the portable battery market resulting from a huge
influx of low cost products from Asia; (iii) very large charged-back and revenue contras from prior commitments resulting from
discontinuation of EnerPlex™ sales channels; (iv) bankruptcy of The Sports Authority, one of our large retail customers; (v) an
overall negative retail environment (especially for brick and mortar retailers) during 2016; (vi) changes in commercial terms
from our largest EnerPlex customer that caused revenue recognition to be delayed to later quarters; and (vii) capital constraints
and cost-cutting at the Company necessitated by the more difficult capital raising conditions especially following its de-listing
from the Nasdaq Capital Market in February 2016.
Net loss for the year 2016 was -$38.9M, that included approximately $14.3M in non-cash interest expense and change in fair
value of derivatives & extinguishment of liabilities that were associated with the outstanding convertible notes and convertible
preferred stocks. Overall, net loss improved by $6.9M, or approximately 15% from -$45.8M in 2015 to -$38.9M in 2016.
Management Comments:
"We are focused on improving our results as we moved on from the concentration in the consumer business,"
commented Victor Lee, President and CEO of Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. "Going forward, we will continue to streamline our
business model in an effort to better allocate our resources to be fully focused on our core strength in the developing specialty
PV markets with high entry barriers like the military, 1st responders, emergency power, aviation (drones), and space & near-space
applications.
"The Company has made significant progress in these developing high-value markets, and will continue to sharpen our focus in
such areas where Ascent is truly at the forefront of the competition. Notable milestones include the recent announcements that
the Company's superlight thin-film modules were selected by JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) for the second phase of
evaluation for deep space mission, as well as the securing of a major contract from an Asian-based customer. Additionally, our
recent progress of being the first and only flexible CIGS manufacturer to have achieved ISO 9001:2015 certification, will enable
us to serve a larger universe of premium market customers who prefer products manufactured under a superlative Quality Management
System and must be as robust and fail proof as possible."
Mr. Lee concluded, "Great progress was also made in the defense and emergency power market, particularly in the increasing
interest shown in our award winning, military-graded and GSA-listed MilPak™ E PV and battery-integrated blanket, which we believe
will add to revenue growth in 2017 and beyond. We are optimistic and certainly look forward to a stronger 2017 and beyond, as our
high-value PV market focus begins to take shape. We look forward to updating our shareholders as we make continued progress."
ABOUT ASCENT SOLAR TECHNOLOGIES, INC:
Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. is a developer of thin-film photovoltaic modules using flexible substrate materials
that are more versatile and rugged than traditional solar panels. Ascent Solar modules were named as one of the top 100
technologies in both 2010 and 2015 by R&D Magazine, and one of TIME Magazine's 50 best inventions for 2011. The technology
described above represents the cutting edge of flexible power and can be directly integrated into consumer products and off-grid
applications, as well as other aerospace applications. Ascent Solar is headquartered in Thornton, Colorado, where the company's
quality management system has achieved ISO 9001:2015 certification. More information can be found at www.ascentsolar.com.
Forward-Looking Statements:
Statements in this press release that are not statements of historical or current fact constitute "forward-looking
statements." Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other unknown factors that could
cause the Company's actual operating results to be materially different from any historical results or from any future results
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In addition to statements that explicitly describe these risks and
uncertainties, readers are urged to consider statements that contain terms such as "believes," "belief," "expects," "expect,"
"intends," "intend," "anticipate," "anticipates," "plans," "plan," to be uncertain and forward-looking. The forward-looking
statements contained herein are also subject generally to other risks and uncertainties that are described from time to time in
the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.