Shipment of Fuel Cell Back Up Power System

Acta S.p.A.

("Acta" or "the Company")

Shipment of Fuel Cell Back-Up Power System

with onboard Hydrogen Generation

Acta S.p.A. (AIM: ACTA), the clean energy products company, is delighted to announce the shipment of the first fully integrated fuel cell telecom back-up power system incorporating Acta's onboard hydrogen generation for automatic fuel replenishment.

The system, which incorporates an Acta 100 L/hr low cost electrolyser and a Ballard fuel cell stack, has been assembled and tested by M-Field Energy Ltd, a system integrator based in Taiwan. The completed system has been shipped to SEFCA Pty Ltd, Acta's Australian marketing and distribution partner, and is to be put on field trial with a major Australian telecoms company in the near future.

This installation will represent the first telecoms customer field trial of an integrated fuel cell back-up power system incorporating Acta's unique technology, and is the only system in the world able to offer the same functionality at a comparable price.

On the basis of a five-year Total Cost of Ownership, the system is cheaper than diesel or battery-based alternatives, while incurring none of their environmental disadvantages. In addition, since the hydrogen used to power the fuel cell is generated onsite whenever it is required, the system suffers none of the logistical barriers (delivery of hydrogen or other fuel) often associated with fuel cell back up power units. This is particularly advantageous in remote locations and in markets with high hydrogen costs, such as in Australia and in South East Asia in general.

The partners to the project believe that the size of the future market for this technology may be very substantial.

Paolo Bert, Chief Executive of Acta commented

"This will be the first field trial of our product with a major telecommunications company and we believe that it will represent an excellent demonstration case for our technology. We are delighted to be working with M-field, our channel partners for this important installation, and we are optimistic for the opportunities that will develop from it"

Bin Hsu, Chief Executive of M-Field commented

"The system has been fully tested and it looks great. I deeply believe that we will have a bright future together."

Martin Burns, Chief Executive of SEFCA commented

"Sefca is excited to be working with Acta to provide a product that generates hydrogen on site to power fuel cells. This allows us to store excess solar energy in the form of hydrogen - 'bottled sunshine'. Energy is captured ready for use within the fuel cell to guarantee backup power for remote, off-grid locations. This solution responds to the requirements of the Australian market where large areas of the country do not have grid power and delivery of fossil fuels is problematic.

The new Acta/M-field consolidated unit will enable Telecom providers to use rain water and sunlight to provide an almost endless source of power for these remote locations. The ability to use collected rain water and variable Solar Energy will offer a flexible solution not previously available".

- ENDS-

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About Acta S.p.A.

Acta S.p.A. is a developer and manufacturer of a range of clean energy products. Its product line includes market-leading compact hydrogen generators (electrolysers) which produce pure, dry and compressed hydrogen in a way that is easy-to-use and completely safe, and the Company is committed to integrating its award-winning electrolysers with renewable energy sources.

Acta's cost-competitive electrolysers are based on its proprietary, inexpensive environmental catalyst and hydrogen conversion technologies. These products help overcome the barriers to the adoption of fuel cells, most notably the lack of a local hydrogen infrastructure.

Acta's low-cost hydrogen generators represent a unique breakthrough in electrolyser technology. They can operate using mains power or intermittent renewable energy, and produce clean, dry hydrogen already at pressure for use in fuel cell and other applications. This unique combination of features avoids the system complexity and energy cost of further cleaning, drying and compression of the hydrogen, resulting in a simple, compact, low-cost and highly efficient system that is ideally suited for energy conversion and storage applications. In such applications, which include battery replacement and renewable energy storage, low cost and high efficiency are critical to commercial viability, while hydrogen compression is essential for the energy density of the system. No other water electrolyser currently on the market offers this combination of benefits.

Acta is focusing on delivering its products to markets with high volume demand for high-value environmental solutions (transport, back-up power, energy and leisure). It is accelerating the commercialisation of its products via partnerships with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), distributors, and agents in these sectors, and intends to drive down production costs at high volume via contract manufacturing.

Acta S.p.A. is based near Pisa, Italy, and was admitted to trading on AIM in October 2005.

www.actagroup.it

About M-Field

M-FIELD is committed to a clean sustainable energy business by providing green power solutions. Based in Taiwan, a country with strong technology profiles, M-Field has been deeply involved in Fuel Cell technology for about ten years, M-FIELD now is focused on stationary Fuel Cell System marketing and education.

www.m-field.com.tw 

About SEFCA Pty Ltd

SEFCA is an Australian-owned company specialising in the design, supply, installation and support of fuel cells for back up and prime power applications. Applications include stationary and mobile back-up power, continuous off-grid power, hybrid power solar/fuel cell solutions, and other applications such as traffic control, remote monitoring and security systems.

www.sefca.com.au.