Pond Provides Update to Shareholders on AB Agri/Livalta Project Progress and Milestone Payments Received of $1.5 Million to Date

MARKHAM, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 5, 2022 / Pond Technologies Holdings Inc. ("Pond") (TSXV:POND)(OTCQB:PNDHF)(FSE:4O0), an ESG company addressing global sustainability challenges of wellness and climate change, is providing an update on its agreement with Livalta, an AB Agri company, a subsidiary of Associated British Foods (LSE:ABF) for the joint commercialization of algae-based animal feed ingredients. This global partnership between responsible protein specialists Livalta and Pond will produce commercial algae-based animal feed ingredients from CO2 emissions. Effectively, the technology is designed to take CO2 emissions out of the air to produce high value protein.

Details:

• In an agreement dated September 7, 2021, Livalta and Pond entered into an exclusive global partnership to grow algae-based animal feed from CO2 emissions
• The engagement consists of two parts: a supply agreement, where AB Agri will purchase an algae demonstration system from Pond to be installed in the UK for the sum of approximately CAD$2.9 million and a license agreement, where Pond will receive up to CAD$2.6 million in technology access fees and an ongoing royalty based on the production from commercial algae plants deployed in the future
• The demonstration system will be used to grow algae strains for animal feed trials and the development of commercial animal feeds which will be sold by AB Agri.
• The first product will be spirulina, combining 60% protein with essential vitamins and minerals. Spirulina is known for its nutritional and functional value both in food and animal feed.
• Livalta's pilot plant is currently anticipated to begin operating at British Sugar's Wissington site in Norfolk in Q4 2022

Since the start of the agreement Pond has received approximately $1.5 million CAD to date for initialization and milestone payments and has completed initial engineering work. Approximately $4 million CAD in license and engineering, procurement and construction payments remain to be earned by Pond. Additional project updates will be provided as Pond begins fabrication later this year.

Spirulina (and other algae) are gaining increasing attention as a potentially game-changing animal feed ingredient. Until now, the technology to produce algae, at the scale, quality and cost required to be an affordable ingredient for animal feed, has remained elusive. This exclusive partnership, which brings together Pond's ground-breaking technology with Livalta's expertise in new proteins for animal feeds, is set to change that.

Managing Director of Livalta, Valerie Schuster, said: "We are very happy that together with our partner Pond and our sister company British Sugar we have completed the initial engineering work for our algae pilot plant. Despite global supply chain challenges and having to work mostly remotely across continents and time zones we now have achieved a key milestone towards starting operations of our algae pilot plant towards the end of this year."

Grant Smith, President & CEO at Pond said: "We are pleased with the progress made to date with our partner Livalta/AB Agri on this milestone filled project, despite the supply chain disruptions seen around the globe. This is the world's first scalable algae plant utilizing carbon emissions for the production of protein used in animal feeds."

About Pond Technologies Holdings Inc.:

Located in Markham, Ontario, Pond Technologies has developed a proprietary system that can profitably transform CO2 into valuable products. Its Pond Carbon business focuses on absorbing greenhouse gas emissions, transforming these into food, feed, and nutraceutical ingredients. Pond recently added a Biotech division focused on the growth of unique strains of micro-algae to be used as a reproductive medium for the expression of human anti-bodies and proteins.

For more information, please visit https://www.pondtech.com/.

About Livalta

Livalta, an AB Agri company, develops new, responsible proteins for feed and food using the latest science and technology. It seeks to contribute to making food systems more responsible, meeting the needs of people and the planet. It produces local, traceable proteins from e.g., co-products, algae or single cells and transforms them into high value feed and food ingredients.

About AB Agri

AB Agri is the agricultural division of Associated British Foods and manufactures animal feed, nutrition, and technology-based products and offers data services for the agri-food industry. It operates all along the food industry supply chain. It produces and supplies compound animal feed, feed enzymes, specialised feed ingredients and a range of value-added services to farmers, feed and food manufacturers, processors and retailers.

Associated British Foods is a diversified international food, ingredients and retail group with sales of £13.9bn and 133,000 employees in 53 countries. It has significant businesses in Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia and Australia. Its aim is to achieve strong, sustainable leadership positions in markets that offer potential for long-term profitable growth. It looks to achieve this through a combination of growth of existing businesses, acquisition of complementary new businesses and achievement of high levels of operating efficiency.

Neither TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

For further information contact: Grant Smith, Chief Executive Officer, at info@pondtech.com, or 416-287-3835 ext. 201

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward‐looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws, including statements regarding, among others, anticipated milestone and licensing payments, timing regarding fabrication and operation of the facility, anticipated commercial production of algae-based animal feed ingredients, and affordability of algae as an ingredient in animal fee.. Such forward‐looking statements are based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by Pond, including, among others, assumptions regarding construction of the facility on time and within budget, Pond achieving its project milestones, successful operation of the facility, sale of algae produced on favourable terms, compliance by Livalta of its contractual obligations with Pond, the continued legislative regime in which Pond operates, availability of cost‐effective labour and supplies, the proper functioning of Pond's technology, the quality of the algae produced, the demand for Pond's products, the ability of Pond to successfully compete, cash flow and expenses, and obtaining and maintaining intellectual property protection. Although Pond believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward‐looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed thereon and Pond can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. By their nature, such forward‐looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, which could cause the actual results and expectations to differ materially from the anticipated results or expectations expressed, including the risks set forth in Pond's annual information form and management's discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations for its year ended December 31, 2021 available on Pond's profile on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on this forward‐looking information, which is given as of the date hereof, and to not use such forward‐looking information for anything other than its intended purpose. Pond does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or revise any forward‐looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Pond Technologies Holdings Inc.