UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report
(Date of earliest event reported): March 25, 2004 (March 25, 2004)
Altair Nanotechnologies Inc.
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(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Province of
Ontario,
Canada 1-12497 None
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(State or other (Commission File No.) (IRS Employer
jurisdiction Identification No.)
of incorporation)
204 Edison Way
Reno, Nevada 89502
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(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (775) 858-3750
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(Former Name, if Changed Since Last Report)
Item 12. Results of Operations and Financial Condition.
On March 25, 2004, Altair Nanotechnologies Inc. ("Altair') issued a press
release entitled "Altair Nanotechnologies Reports Year-End Financial Results for
2003." The full text of the press release is set forth herein beginning on the
following page.
Altair also announced that it will hold a quarterly conference call to discuss
the press release and related items on Thursday, March 25, at 11:30 a.m. Eastern
Standard Time. Shareholders and members of the investment community are invited
to participate in the call.
The conference call dial-in number is 800.299.8538. As a passcode is necessary
to participate in the conference call, please RSVP your participation by calling
Suzanne Schnitzer at McCloud Communications, 949.566.9860. Additionally, this
call is being webcast by CCBN and can be accessed at Altair's web site,
www.altairnano.com.
Additionally, the web cast is being distributed over CCBN's Investor
Distribution Network to both institutional and individual investors. Individual
investors can listen to the call through CCBN's individual investor center at
www.companyboardroom.com or by visiting any of the investor sites in CCBN's
Individual Investor Network. Institutional investors can access the call via
CCBN's password-protected event management site, StreetEvents
(www.streetevents.com).
The information in this Current Report on Form 8-K shall not be deemed to be
"filed" for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended (the "Exchange Act"), or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that
section, nor shall it be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing made by
Altair under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except
as expressly set forth by specific reference in such a filing.
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Important News From
ALTAIR
NANOTECHNOLOGIES
For Additional Information:
Marty Tullio Tracy La Follette
McCloud Communications, LLC Altair Nanotechnologies
949 566 9860 307 587 8245
ALTAIR NANOTECHNOLOGIES REPORTS YEAR-END FINANCIAL
RESULTS FOR 2003
Altair Strengthens Balance Sheet by Approximately $11 Million
Through Exercise of Options and Shareholder Warrants
RENO, NV - March 25, 2004 - Altair Nanotechnologies, Inc. (Nasdaq:ALTI) a
company engaged in developing nanomaterials, titanium dioxide pigment
technology, and materials science focused on nanostructures, today reported
financial results for its year ended December 31, 2003.
The company reported revenue for fiscal 2003 of $72,851, a net loss of $6.2
million, and a net loss per share of $0.19, compared to fiscal 2002 revenue of
$253,495, a net loss of approximately $10 million, and a net loss per share of
$0.40.
As of December 31, 2003, Altair's cash position was approximately $3.6 million;
Altair's cash position as of March 25, 2004 is approximately $11.6 million.
Altair CFO Edward Dickinson noted that at the end of 2003 Altair's long term
debt consisted only of a promissory note to purchase the building that houses
its Reno production facilities from BHP Minerals International, Inc. Under that
agreement, interest begins accruing in August 2005, with the first payment due
in February 2006.
"Our balance sheet has been significantly strengthened through the repayment of
convertible debt during August of 2003 and the addition of more than $11 million
in cash through the exercise of warrants by Altair shareholders and the exercise
of stock options by employees," continued Dickinson. "During the year sales of
equity and the exercise of options and warrants has increased the number of
common shares issued and currently outstanding to approximately 48.2 million."
"During fiscal 2003 we concentrated our research and development efforts on
nanotechnology and materials science," said Altair President Dr. Rudi E. Moerck.
"This focus is the spring board for what we believe will be a significant future
for the Company. We have refined our technology platform and, during 2003 and
the first quarter of 2004, have been successful in securing development
contracts, grants, and licensing agreements with major companies.
"Our sales backlog for 2004 is already approximately $780,000. In addition, our
current pipeline of signed contracts to be performed during 2005 and contracts
with a high probability of success is approximately $1,500,000, for a total of
approximately $2,280,000," continued Dr. Moerck. "These revenue contracts are
supplying work in areas with large long term potential payoffs, such as titanium
metal, and funding development of our intellectual property portfolio."
-more-
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ALTAIR NANOTECHNOLOGIES REPORTS YEAR-END FINANCIAL
RESULTS FOR 2003
Page 2-2-2
Altair Highlights:
o Testing of RenaZorb(TM)in rats and dogs was successful;
o Signed agreement with Titanium Metals Corporation (NYSE:TIE) to
provide development services and sell development quantities of
custom nano titanium dioxide and titanium alloy oxide electrode
feedstock;
o Awarded subcontractor status by DARPA (Department of Defense);
o Signed a pigment licensing agreement with Western Oil Sands. Phase
I development of the agreement underway and generating revenues;
o Signed agreement with Avireco USA to evaluate the AHPP (pigment
process) utilizing feedstock from Vietnam to produce titanium
dioxide pigment;
o Completed independent and in-house laboratory testing indicates
NanoCheck(TM) safely and effectively prevents algae growth in
swimming pools. Revenues expected in late 2004 or early 2005;
o Signed agreement with Western Michigan University (WMU) under
which Altair will receive $362,000 of an approximately $1 million
grant from the Department of Energy to participate in the
development of technology for detecting chemical and biological
weapons;
o Signed an agreement with Hydrogen Solar to develop the Tandem
CellTM technology, a unique technology that makes hydrogen
directly from sunlight and water. Development program is expected
to be funded by a grant of approximately $1 million. The grant is
earmarked but has not yet funded.
Dr. Moerck went on to note that in addition to the sales backlog entering into
2004, the Company is aggressively pursuing licensing agreements and development
partnerships for its TiNano Sphere drug delivery system, as well as for
RenaZorb(TM), the Company's drug candidate for patients undergoing kidney
dialysis. TiNano Sphere marketing and out-licensing efforts are being directed
at pharmaceutical companies that have Class 4 narcotics products.
"We are only now beginning to realize the benefits of our business strategy,"
said Dr. Moerck. "The first quarter of 2004 has already begun to show
proof-of-concept of our technology, not only from the number of grants and
strategic partnerships forged, but also from our progress toward potential
commercial sales for several products, including NanoCheck."
Conference Call
Dr. Moerck will be updating shareholders and the financial community on the
year-end financial results for its 2003 fiscal year ended December 31, 2003, in
a conference call at 11:30 A.M. Eastern Standard Time on Thursday, March 25,
2004.
ALTAIR NANOTECHNOLOGIES INC.
Nanotechnology is rapidly emerging as a unique industry sector. Altair
Nanotechnologies is positioning itself through product innovation within this
emerging industry to become a leading supplier of nanomaterial technology and
nanomaterials worldwide. Altair owns a proprietary technology for making
nanocrystalline materials of unique quality both economically and in large
quantities. The company is currently developing special materials with potential
applications in
-more-
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ALTAIR NANOTECHNOLOGIES REPORTS YEAR-END FINANCIAL
RESULTS FOR 2003
Page 3-3-3
pharmaceuticals, titanium pigment and metal, batteries, fuel cells, solar cells,
advanced energy storage devices, thermal spray coatings, catalysts, cosmetics
and environmental remediation. For additional information on Altair and its
nanoparticle materials, visit www.altairnano.com.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
For the Year Ended December 31, 2003 2002
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STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
Sales $ 72,851 $ 253,495
Cost of sales $ 62,159 $ 93,583
Operating expenses $ 5,795,902 $ 8,016,623
Interest expense $ 454,415 $ 1,151,388
Interest income $ (1,879) $ (2,105)
(Gain) loss on foreign exchange $ 193 $ 835
Loss on extinguishment of debt $ -- $ 914,667
Gain on forgiveness of debt $ -- $ --
Net Loss $ 6,237,939 $ 9,921,496
Basic and diluted net loss per
common share $ 0.19 $ 0.40
Cash dividends declared per
common share $ -- $ --
BALANCE SHEET DATA
Working capital $ 3,565,039 $ (204,365)
Total assets $ 11,659,754 $ 8,914,405
Long-term obligations $ 2,686,130 $ 3,905,040
Current liabilities $ 397,141 $ 604,503
Net shareholders' equity $ 8,576,483 $ 4,404,862
Forward-Looking Statements
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This release may contain forward-looking statements as well as historical
information. Forward- looking statements, which are included in accordance with
the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995, may involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the
company's actual results and performance in future periods to be materially
different from any future results or performance suggested by the
forward-looking statements in this release. These risks and uncertainties
include, without limitation, the risks that Altair's numerous development stage
products will not be developed to the point of commercialization or that, even
if commercialized, no market will exist for such products or Altair will fail to
effectively market to customers in a market, that Altair will be unable to enter
into license agreements regarding its pigment process (AHPP), RenaZorb or other
developing products, that even if Altair enters into such license agreements,
short term revenues from such agreements will not be sufficient to fund Altair's
-more-
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ALTAIR NANOTECHNOLOGIES REPORTS YEAR-END FINANCIAL
RESULTS FOR 2003
Page 4-4-4
operations in the long run, and that animal testing or future testing of
RenaZorb or other products of the company will not be successful and that
development will need to be terminated. In general, Altair is, and expects to be
in the immediate future, dependent upon funds generated from sales of
securities, grants, testing agreements, and licensing agreements to fund its
testing, development and ongoing operations. If the company is unable to
continue to raise significant funding through such methods, it may be unable to
continue as a going concern. In addition, other risks are identified in the
company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, as filed with the SEC. Such
forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this release. The
company expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statements found herein to reflect any changes in company
expectations or results or any change in events.
# # # #
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
the registrant has duly caused this Current Report on Form 8-K to be signed on
its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.
Altair Nanotechnologies Inc.
March 24, 2004 By: /s/ Edward Dickinson
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Date Edward Dickinson, Chief Financial Officer
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