Nexterra Receives $720,000 Funding to Develop New Gasification Applications: Direct Fired Syngas for Boilers and Kilns

Nexterra Energy Corp. (www.nexterra.ca) announced today it has received $720,000 in funding from Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), the National Research Council Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP) and Ethanol BC. This funding will support Nexterra’s product development program to directly fire boilers and lime kilns with syngas produced from wood residue.

These new applications of Nexterra’s gasification technology will enable customers in the forest products, pulp and paper, power generation and institutional markets to lower fuel costs and become more energy self-sufficient, while also reducing greenhouse gases and improving local air quality.

“Our Government has invested $2 billion in ecoENERGY Initiatives for clean technology, renewable energy and energy efficiency,” said the Honourable Gary Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources. “We are pleased to support promising renewable technologies such as Nexterra’s direct fired gasification technology to reduce the environmental impact of using conventional energy resources.”

“High fossil fuel costs are a liability for many industries that can no longer rely on utilities to supply stable, low cost fuel,” said Brian McCloy, Project Manager for Ethanol BC. “Nexterra’s direct fired syngas solutions will provide the forest products and pulp and paper industries with a lower cost and more secure energy source that will in turn lower greenhouse gas emissions.”

“Firing boilers and lime kilns with syngas is a natural extension of our product development program that creates a huge new market for Nexterra,” said Jonathan Rhone, Nexterra’s President and CEO. “This funding is an important catalyst in expanding commercial applications of our gasification systems, and we are very grateful for the support from these agencies.”

Funding from each agency includes: NRC-IRAP – $345,000; NRCan – $300,000; Ethanol BC – $75,000. This funding is in addition to a $2.7 million contribution agreement announced on February 6, 2007 with Sustainable Development Technology Canada. SDTC funding will support commercial demonstration of Nexterra’s gasification technology to displace natural gas used to fire lime kilns in kraft pulp mills with a “syngas” biofuel produced by gasifying wood residue.