Vast Advances Utility-Scale Concentrated Solar Thermal Plant as Worley Commences Engineering

2023-06-05 19:23

SYDNEY, Australia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 5, 2023--

Vast Solar Pty Ltd (Vast), a renewable energy company specialising in concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) energy systems that generate zero-carbon, utility-scale, dispatchable electricity and industrial process heat, today announced it has awarded Worley Ltd. (Worley) (ASX: WOR) key engineering contracts for its VS1 CSP project.

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Vast’s 1.1 MW CSP Demonstration Plant in Forbes, Australia was operated for 32 months (Photo: Business Wire)

VS1 is a 30MW / 288 MWh CSP plant being built in Port Augusta, South Australia. Utilising Vast’s proprietary modular tower CSP v3.0 technology, VS1 will generate clean, low-cost, dispatchable power with over 8 hours of thermal energy storage. The project will create dozens of green manufacturing jobs, hundreds of jobs during construction and long-term plant operations roles.

Vast has appointed Worley and its specialist consulting division, Advisian, to complete VS1 basic engineering by July 2023, followed by front-end engineering design (FEED) in the balance of this calendar year. Construction of VS1 is on track to begin in 2024.

"With strong expertise in CSP, Worley and Advisian are the ideal engineering partners for VS1, which will utilise our industry-leading technology to capture and store the sun’s energy during the day before generating heat and dispatchable power during the day or night,” said Craig Wood, CEO of Vast.

“Vast has a long-standing relationship with Worley and Advisian dating back to assistance with the engineering and commissioning of our 1.1MW grid connected Jemalong demonstration plant,” added Wood. “Their skill in integrating our technology with major packages to be delivered by key equipment partners from around the world will allow VS1 to progress towards FID late this year.”

“Worley is pleased to continue their support of Vast Solar with the provision of specialist engineering skills. This work aligns with our corporate ambition to be recognized globally as leader in sustainability solutions and delivering a more sustainable world,” said Peter Israel, Power & Energy Transition Practice Manager of Worley.

Vast’s proprietary CSP v3.0 technology has received significant support from the Australian government. Most recently, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) announced it has approved up to AUD$65 million in funding to support construction of VS1.

VS1 will be co-located with Solar Methanol 1 (SM1), a world-first green methanol demonstration plant which, in February, was selected to receive AUD$19.48 million and EUR13.2 million from a collaboration between the Australian and German governments, respectively. SM1 will use zero emissions dispatchable electricity and heat from VS1 to produce green methanol for use as a sustainable shipping fuel.

About Vast

Vast is a renewable energy company that has CSP systems to generate, store and dispatch carbon free, utility-scale electricity, industrial heat, and to enable the production of green fuels. Vast’s CSP v3.0 approach to CSP utilizes a proprietary, modular sodium loop to efficiently capture and convert solar heat into these end products.

On February 14, 2023, Vast announced a business combination agreement with Nabors Energy Transition Corp. (NYSE: NETC). The combined entity would be named Vast and its securities are expected to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “VSTE” while remaining headquartered in Australia.

Visit www.vast.energy for more information.

About Worley

Worley is a global company headquartered in Australia and our purpose is delivering a more sustainable world. Worley is a leading global provider of professional project and asset services in the energy, chemicals and resources sectors. As a knowledge-based service provider, we use our knowledge and capabilities to support our customers to reduce their emissions and move towards a low carbon future.

Worley Limited is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX: WOR).

About Nabors Energy Transition Corp.

Nabors Energy Transition Corp. (NYSE: NETC, NETC.WS, NETC.U) is a blank check company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities. NETC was formed to identify solutions, opportunities, companies or technologies that focus on advancing the energy transition; specifically, ones that facilitate, improve or complement the reduction of carbon or greenhouse gas emissions while satisfying growing energy consumption across markets globally.

NETC is an affiliate of Nabors Industries Ltd. (Nabors), a leading provider of advanced technology for the energy industry. By leveraging its core competencies, particularly in drilling, engineering, automation, data science and manufacturing, Nabors, which owns the global industry’s largest fleet of land drilling rigs and equipment, is committed to innovate the future of energy and enable the transition to a lower-carbon world.

Important Information about the Business Combination and Where to Find It

This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or constitute a solicitation of any vote or approval.

In connection with the proposed business combination (the Business Combination) between Vast and Nabors Energy Transition Corp. (NETC), Vast has filed a Registration Statement on Form F-4 (the Registration Statement) with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC), which includes (i) a preliminary prospectus of Vast relating to the offer of securities to be issued in connection with the proposed Business Combination and (ii) a preliminary proxy statement of NETC to be distributed to holders of NETC’s capital stock in connection with NETC’s solicitation of proxies for the vote by NETC’s stockholders with respect to the proposed Business Combination and other matters described in the Registration Statement. NETC and Vast also plan to file other documents with the SEC regarding the proposed Business Combination. After the Registration Statement has been declared effective by the SEC, a definitive proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed to the stockholders of NETC. INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS OF NETC AND VAST ARE URGED TO READ THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT, THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS CONTAINED THEREIN (INCLUDING ALL AMENDMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTS THERETO) AND ALL OTHER DOCUMENTS RELATING TO THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED BUSINESS COMBINATION.

Investors and security holders will be able to obtain free copies of the proxy statement/prospectus and other documents containing important information about NETC and Vast once such documents are filed with the SEC, through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, the documents filed by NETC may be obtained free of charge from NETC’s website at www.nabors-etcorp.com or by written request to NETC at 515 West Greens Road, Suite 1200, Houston, TX 77067.

Participants in the Solicitation

NETC, Nabors, Vast and their respective directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders of NETC in connection with the proposed Business Combination. Information about the directors and executive officers of NETC is set forth in the Registration Statement Other information regarding the participants in the proxy solicitation and a description of their direct and indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, will be contained in the Registration Statement, the proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant materials to be filed with the SEC when they become available. You may obtain free copies of these documents as described in the preceding paragraph.

Forward Looking Statements

The information included herein and in any oral statements made in connection herewith include “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of present or historical fact included herein, regarding the proposed Business Combination, NETC’s and Vast’s ability to consummate the proposed Business Combination, the benefits of the proposed Business Combination and NETC’s and Vast’s future financial performance following the proposed Business Combination, as well as NETC’s and Vast’s strategy, future operations, financial position, estimated revenues and losses, projected costs, prospects, plans and objectives of management are forward-looking statements. When used herein, including any oral statements made in connection herewith, the words “could,” “should,” “will,” “may,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “estimate,” “expect,” “project,” the negative of such terms and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. These forward-looking statements are based on NETC and Vast management’s current expectations and assumptions about future events and are based on currently available information as to the outcome and timing of future events. Except as otherwise required by applicable law, NETC and Vast disclaim any duty to update any forward-looking statements, all of which are expressly qualified by the statements in this section, to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. NETC and Vast caution you that these forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the control of NETC and Vast. These risks include, but are not limited to, general economic, financial, legal, political and business conditions and changes in domestic and foreign markets; the inability to complete the Business Combination or the convertible debt and equity financings contemplated in connection with the proposed Business Combination (the “Financing”) in a timely manner or at all (including due to the failure to receive required stockholder or shareholder, as applicable, approvals, or the failure of other closing conditions such as the satisfaction of the minimum trust account amount following redemptions by NETC’s public stockholders and the receipt of certain governmental and regulatory approvals), which may adversely affect the price of NETC’s securities; the inability of the Business Combination to be completed by NETC’s business combination deadline and the potential failure to obtain an extension of the business combination deadline if sought by NETC; the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance that could give rise to the termination of the Business Combination or the Financing; the inability to recognize the anticipated benefits of the proposed Business Combination; the inability to obtain or maintain the listing of Vast’s shares on a national exchange following the consummation of the proposed Business Combination; costs related to the proposed Business Combination; the risk that the proposed Business Combination disrupts current plans and operations of Vast, business relationships of Vast or Vast’s business generally as a result of the announcement and consummation of the proposed Business Combination; Vast’s ability to manage growth; Vast’s ability to execute its business plan, including the completion of the Port Augusta project, at all or in a timely manner and meet its projections; potential disruption in Vast’s employee retention as a result of the proposed Business Combination; potential litigation, governmental or regulatory proceedings, investigations or inquiries involving Vast or NETC, including in relation to the proposed Business Combination; changes in applicable laws or regulations and general economic and market conditions impacting demand for Vast’s products and services. Additional risks are set forth in the section titled "Risk Factors" in the Registration Statement and other documents filed, or to be filed, by NETC and Vast with the SEC. Should one or more of the risks or uncertainties described herein and in any oral statements made in connection therewith occur, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results and plans could differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements.

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CONTACT: Vast

For Investors:

Caldwell Bailey

ICR, Inc.

VastIR@icrinc.comFor US Media:

Matt Dallas

ICR, Inc.

VastPR@icrinc.comFor Australian media:

Nick Albrow

Wilkinson Butler

nick@wilkinsonbutler.comNabors Energy Transition Corp. Contacts