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Mon May 2<\/p>\n
YVERDON-LES-BAINS,<\/strong>\u00a0Switzerland, May 2, 2022<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 In its decision of April 29, 2022, SIX Exchange Regulation AG approved an extension of the publication deadline of Leclanch\u00e9\u2019s 2021 annual report until June 6, 2022 and requested Leclanch\u00e9 (SIX: LECN), one of the world\u2019s leading providers of energy storage solutions, to publish its 2021 key figures by May 2, 2022.<\/p>\n As indicated in the business update ad hoc announcement of February 24, 2022, the Company is actively working on raising capital through a US-based Special Purpose Acquisition Company (\u201cSPAC\u201d). To date, Leclanch\u00e9 has signed an exclusive Letter of Intent with a US listed SPAC which is currently conducting a due diligence expected to be completed by early May 2022. The foreseen next step will be to sign a binding business combination agreement with the SPAC that will lay the foundation for a merger of the SPAC with Leclanch\u00e9 E-Mobility SA, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Leclanch\u00e9 SA that was incorporated on January 1, 2022, with the aim of listing the merged entity on the New York Stock Exchange (\u201cNYSE\u201d) before the end of September 2022.<\/p>\n This will allow the Company to demonstrate that it is a going concern, which is a condition precedent set by the board of directors of Leclanch\u00e9 (the \u201cBoard\u201d) to the finalization of the 2021 annual report.<\/p>\n In parallel, Leclanch\u00e9\u2019s has received a Term Sheet for a loan of CHF 15 million from a lender. The Company is proactively working with existing and new advisors to meet the lender\u2019s conditions. At the same time, it has initiated the incorporation of a branch office in Singapore to explore development opportunities in Asia, which is one of the fastest growing energy market, especially in the marine sector. Upon successful conclusion of this loan, the Company will have a reasonable level of funding to run its operations in 2022 until completion of the intended SPAC merger. The Company is also working with other investors to secure new financing and remains confident that a new funding agreement will be reached within May 2022. Until such time the liquidity position remains tight and supplier payments continue to be late.<\/p>\n As a result, the Board was not in a position to approve the 2021 annual report before April 30, 2022, hence the request to SIX Exchange Regulation to approve an extension of the deadline for the publication of the 2021 annual report of Leclanch\u00e9.<\/p>\n Despite this situation, Leclanch\u00e9 is releasing its unaudited key figures for the year 2021:<\/p>\n Consolidated Total Income for the financial year 2021 were CHF 21.8 million, down 9% from CHF 23.9 million in 2020; the EBITDA Loss for the year was CHF (48.8) million compared to CHF (62.2) million in 2020. The Net Loss for the year was CHF (65.0) million compared to CHF (78.2) million in 2020.<\/p>\n The flat sales in 2021 were due to product delivery delays caused by the pandemic and the disruption of the global supply chain which also prevent the Company from issuing guidance for 2022. Despite these headwinds, the Company was able to produce a record number of cells of nearly 250,000 at its German plant in Willst\u00e4tt and 5,000 modules at its Swiss plant in Yverdon-les-Bains.<\/p>\n The reduction of the EBITDA Loss is mainly stemming from a significant improvement of the Gross Margin of most of the projects delivered in 2021 at +19% vs. -51% in 2020 partially offset by a still high underutilization of about 20% of the useable capacity of the German cell plant.<\/p>\n The balance sheet total amounted to CHF 110.2 million compared to CHF 73.2 million in 2020. This increase is stemming from the right of use assets for the lease of new premises in Yverdon-les-Bains (CHF 19.3 million, offset by the same amount on the liabilities side), higher inventories (+CHF 4.6 million) due to delayed customer shipments, higher cash and cash equivalents (+CHF 13.2 million), and an investment of CHF 6.0 million in a new module assembly line in Yverdon-les-Bains. These additional assets are financed by an increase in loans (+CHF 11.4 million) and trade payables (+CHF 5.5 million).<\/p>\n In addition, Leclanch\u00e9 SA, the Swiss legal entity, was in a negative equity position as of December 31, 2021 in an amount of CHF 18.4 million. This situation has since been remedied by the subordination of CHF 35.7 million of loans with AM and its investment advisor in February 2022.<\/p>\n Despite the many conflicting priorities Leclanch\u00e9 faces in the SPAC fundraising project, the Company is working hard to close the remaining open items with its auditors and the Board remains confident in its ability to publish its full 2021 annual report before or on June 6, 2022.<\/p>\n In its decision of April 29, 2022, SIX Exchange Regulation AG requested Leclanch\u00e9 to insert the below excerpt in this press release:<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThe exemption application of Leclanch\u00e9 SA (Issuer) dated April 22, 2022 requesting an extension of the deadline to publish its 2021 annual report and to file such report with SIX Exchange Regulation AG until June 6,<\/sup>\u00a02022 at the latest, is granted with the following reservation (lit. a) and under the following conditions (lit. b):<\/em><\/p>\n For more information, write to\u00a0info@leclanche.com<\/a>\u00a0or visit\u00a0www.leclanche.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n About Leclanch\u00e9<\/strong><\/p>\n Headquartered in Switzerland, Leclanch\u00e9 SA is a leading provider of high-quality energy storage solutions designed to accelerate our progress towards a clean energy future. Leclanch\u00e9\u2019s history and heritage is rooted in over 100 years of battery and energy storage innovation and the Company is a trusted provider of energy storage solutions globally. This coupled with the Company\u2019s culture of German engineering and Swiss precision and quality, continues to make Leclanch\u00e9 the partner of choice for both disruptors, established companies and governments who are pioneering positive changes in how energy is produced, distributed and consumed around the world. The energy transition is being driven primarily by changes in the management of our electricity networks and the electrification of transport, and these two end markets form the backbone of our strategy and business model. Leclanch\u00e9 is at the heart of the convergence of the electrification of transport and the changes in the distribution network. Leclanch\u00e9 is the only listed pure play energy storage company in the world, organised along three business units: stationary storage solutions, e-Transport solutions and specialty batteries systems. Leclanch\u00e9 is listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange (SIX: LECN).<\/p>\n SIX Swiss Exchange: ticker symbol LECN | ISIN CH 011 030 311 9<\/p>\n Disclaimer<\/strong><\/p>\n This press release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to Leclanch\u00e9\u2019s business, which can be identified by terminology such as \u201cstrategic\u201d, \u201cproposes\u201d, \u201cto introduce\u201d, \u201cwill\u201d, \u201cplanned\u201d, \u201cexpected\u201d, \u201ccommitment\u201d, \u201cexpects\u201d, \u201cset\u201d, \u201cpreparing\u201d, \u201cplans\u201d, \u201cestimates\u201d, \u201caims\u201d, \u201cwould\u201d, \u201cpotential\u201d, \u201cawaiting\u201d, \u201cestimated\u201d, \u201cproposal\u201d, or similar expressions, or by expressed or implied discussions regarding the ramp up of Leclanch\u00e9\u2019s production capacity, potential applications for existing products, or regarding potential future revenues from any such products, or potential future sales or earnings of Leclanch\u00e9 or any of its business units. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such forward-looking statements reflect the current views of Leclanch\u00e9 regarding future events, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. There can be no guarantee that Leclanch\u00e9\u2019s products will achieve any particular revenue levels. Nor can there be any guarantee that Leclanch\u00e9, or any of the business units, will achieve any particular financial results.<\/p>\n Contacts<\/strong><\/p>\n Media Switzerland \/Europe:<\/strong><\/p>\n Thierry Meyer<\/p>\n T: +41 (0) 79\u00a0785 35 81<\/p>\n E-mail:\u00a0tme@dynamicsgroup.ch<\/a><\/p>\n Media North America:<\/strong><\/p>\n Henry Feintuch \/ Ashley Blas<\/p>\n T: +1-646-753-5710 \/ +1-646-753-5713<\/p>\n E-mail:\u00a0leclanche@feintuchpr.com<\/a><\/p>\n Media Germany:<\/strong><\/p>\n Christoph Miller<\/p>\n T: +49 (0) 711 947 670<\/p>\n E-mail:\u00a0leclanche@sympra.de<\/a><\/p>\n\n
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