EQTEC has signed a contract with Idex Services for the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) at the France Market Development Centre (France MDC). The FEED Contract outlines the scope of services and an execution plan to support all design work up to financial close. The work is expected to start immediately and be completed by December 2023. EQTEC expects to receive approximately €440,000 for the full scope of FEED work. The FEED will provide Idex with all technical information essential to achieving Final Investment Decision (FID) toward retrofit and construction at the France MDC. The FID is targeted for Q1 2024. Assuming FID, EQTEC will be the core technology supplier for France MDC, receiving fees for engineering services, equipment, commissioning, and licensing over the period Q4 2023 - Q1 2025, estimated to total approximately €15 million.

The scope of the FEED includes validating the end-to-end process, analyzing issues with the predecessor plant, confirming EQTEC technology solutions, confirming the plant layout, requesting offers from suppliers, supplying plans and documents, providing technical specifications, estimating costs, identifying construction risks, and establishing a preliminary construction schedule.

This agreement follows Idex's acquisition of 95% of the share capital of Grande-Combe SAS, the project company for the France MDC. The agreement supports EQTEC's strategy of working with top-tier partners to support the development, construction, commissioning, and operations of plants running EQTEC technology.

David Palumbo, EQTEC CEO, commented, "We appreciate the impetus Idex has shown through its agreement of an ambitious schedule toward completion of design and progression toward construction start by early 2024. This third MDC for EQTEC and second project in partnership with Idex together indicate growing demand from innovative, blue-chip partners and funders to build and operate new energy infrastructure powered by EQTEC to futureproof their operations."

Stephane Guillet, Idex Director of New Energy Vectors, commented, "We are looking forward to completing all the engineering and developing work required at Grand-Combe by year-end so that we may progress to procurement and construction early in 2024. Our team is very familiar with the project's potential and the local market dynamics, and we believe with our expertise and resources we will be able to operate another successful plant that will be a reference for this type of new energy infrastructure in France."