Timminco Limited

Timminco represented a number of firsts for asensio.com: our first focused coverage of an alternative energy company, of a non-US-listed company, of a venture backed by multi-billion-dollar, multi-national titans. But looking below the surface, the Timminco story was the same one that has appeared repeatedly in asensio.com reporting: a sudden, exponential rise in value, a CEO with a shady past [this time surrounded by a thick lack of respectability], insider selling [this time through a derivative entity listed in Amsterdam], and promotional claims to possessing technological know-how to solve age-old problems that have confounded the largest and best-funded players in a global industry. Unraveling the Timminco story meant understanding the science behind the process of refining silicon to remove boron and phosphorous to an extent that the silicon could be used in solar cells. Once we understood that the atomic closeness of these two impurities to silicon created a purification problem that was physically insurmountable for Timminco, we knew Timminco’s days were numbered. The stock lost about 90% of its multi-billion-dollar valuation in only a few months.

No.	Date	Reports
49	March 20, 2009	Timminco Continues “Stunning Fall from Grace.”
48	November 17, 2008	Financial Post Questions Timminco’s Disclosures
47	November 13, 2008	Timminco’s Cost Figures Disappoint, But May Be Far Worse Than They Appear
46	October 6, 2008	Timminco Stock Questionably Promoted at Quarter’s End.
45	September 29, 2008	Timminco’s New Spin to Institutional Investors: “Reverse Refinement”
44	September 26, 2008	Timminco’s Deloitte award for so-called ‘innovative intellectual property.’
43	September 25, 2008	Solar Stocks Rally, but Renewable Energy Incentives “Will Die”
42	August 25, 2008	“It will be a miracle if Timminco can deliver on its promises” according to Independent Research Report
41	August 21, 2008	Sprott’s Inconsistent Promotional Statements in Barron’s
40	August 15, 2008	AMG’s Timminco Promotional Claims Called “False and Misleading”
39	August 14, 2008	Globe and Mail Reveals Sprott’s Involvement with Many “Overhyped” Stocks
38	August 14, 2008	Timminco Stock Falls 38%. More Questionable Statements from Timminco Executives.
37	August 11, 2008	CEO Schimmelbusch Cited As a Reason for Timminco Short Sale
36	August 11, 2008	Schimmelbusch’s Past Cited in Stockwatch and Value Investor Insight
35	August 4, 2008	Stockwatch Reports Conflicting Stories on Timminco’s Financing
34	July 22, 2008	More Questions Surrounding Timminco’s Contracts and DSS Claims
33	July 21, 2008	Timminco’s Boisvert Makes Questionable Statements on DSS.
32	July 11, 2008	Heinz Schimmelbusch ‘Just Doesn’t Stop.’
31	July 1, 2008	Timminco’s Dietrich and Boisvert Evade Questions on Manipulating Conference.
30	June 25, 2008	Timminco Won’t Face Questions at Silicon Industry Conference.
29	June 6, 2008	Analyst issues damning report on Timminco and CSIQ’s Timminco claims.
28	June 5, 2008	Timminco trading under criminal investigation.
27	June 4, 2008	Timminco deemed “virtually worthless.”
26	June 3, 2008	Timminco’s belatedly announced Canadian Solar contract draws analyst criticism.
25	June 2, 2008	The Globe and Mail questions Timminco’s valuation.
24	May 29, 2008	Manuel P. Asensio to hold media conference call ahead of Timminco’s scheduled call.
23	May 28, 2008	Timminco’s plant tour turns sour.
22	May 21, 2008	Has Eric Sprott gone beyond “deny and defend?”
21	May 20, 2008	Barron’s uses sharp language to warn Timminco’s investors.
20	May 16, 2008	Photon’s Timminco forecast called “completely unrealistic” and “preposterously high” as well as “surprisingly suspect.”
19	May 16, 2008	Should Timminco correct PVTECH’s misleading statement?
18	May 15, 2008	Timminco’s Photon fails to address process concerns. Creates serious questions about Timminco’s conduct.
17	May 14, 2008	Will Photon Consulting do more than Timminco’s pliant analysts?
16	May 14, 2008	Q-Cells radically changes its position on Timminco and purified silicon.
15	May 14, 2008	Is Michael Rogol’s paid-for Timminco report to be believed?
14	May 13, 2008	Timminco investors cautioned on Photon Consulting and Michael Rogol.
13	May 9, 2008	Local press and competitors begin to question Timminco’s schemes.
12	May 9, 2008	Timminco halts stock to announce it hired gadfly.
11	May 8, 2008	Timminco compelled to release damaging information.
10	May 7, 2008	Sprott’s Timminco concentration raises a disclosure issue.
9	May 6, 2008	Timminco rumored to be getting order from SolarFun.
8	May 2, 2008	Sprott and the “plumbers.”
7	May 1, 2008	Sprott IPO will close despite Timminco-fueled results.
6	May 1, 2008	Sprott’s other Timminco-crowd deal gets more attention.
5	April 28, 2008	Sprott’s Timminco dealings openly questioned
4	April 23, 2008	Timminco’s convoluted dealings and “furious” insider selling comes to light.
3	April 22, 2008	Q-Cells acknowledges having no relevant information on Timminco.
2	April 21, 2008	Globe and Mail changes course on Timmico stock promotion.
1	March 31, 2008	Q-Cells makes outlandishly conflicting claims about upgraded metallurgical silicon.