Timminco Limited (TSX: TIM $24.85) halted its stock yesterday for no reason other than to create the appearance that the unsubstantiated opinion of a publisher and marketing consultant had some materiality. The marketer has no technical knowledge. Having failed to gain credibility by invoking the Q-Cells AG (Public, FRA: QCE) name, Timminco resorted to adding a former taxi cab driver to its group of paid-promoters.
Timminco created the halt shortly before disclosing damaging year-old information. The disclosure raises serious questions about the original event that was used to commence the promotion of Timminco’s then $0.40 per share stock. Also after the halt, Timminco announced that it had suffered a loss and experienced a 42% drop in its cash position in the first quarter. The quarterly results revealed that its silicon purification scheme had failed to deliver on its much-hyped extraordinary capacity and earnings claims.
The announcement that came after the halt was wholly immaterial. Timminco disclosed that it had paid Photon Consulting a fee. It claimed that Timminco’s silicon purification plant had “potential.” David Dunnison of Good Energies-backed 6N Silicon, Inc. has noted that Michael Rogol is a marketer and “does not talk about technology.”
After the halt, Timminco said that it would not allow any experienced engineers to view its plant. Apparently Photon Consulting and Mr. Rogol have the lack of knowledge and experience that Timminco required.
asensio.com contacted Mr. Rogol during its search for experts on the use of rotary furnaces with an oxy-fuel burner, and the use of slag and an electromagnetic stirrer, to purify silicon. asensio.com advised Mr. Rogol that it required an expert with knowledge and experience with the equipment described in Timminco’s provisional patent application and other very similar processes described by the many companies and research organization engaged in silicon purification. asensio.com also required its expert to have knowledge of thermodynamics especially in the area of boron segregation coefficients, and how boron and phosphorous react to slag and their behavior during solidification.