Yes an engineer but lets call it a TECH Engineer. Compressed air technology is its main business, develops industrial air compressors and Gas seals and whats more it provides them for the OIL and GAS industry.
Very close to commercialisation now with its compressors and seals and todays deal ( see below ) should bring that very close.

Charges upfront payments, continuing royalties and development contracts so revenues are not lumpy.

It as a market cap circa off the top of my head 20 million(hope my calculator is now working) and as circa of 5 million cash on the books, very nice.

Some very big names as customers.

Heres todays announcement...........

Corac Group Plc
26 May 2004


For Immediate Release 26 May 2004


Corac Group plc ('Corac')

Joint Industry Programme for Downhole Gas Compression

Corac, the intellectual property and licensing company specialising in
compressor technology, is pleased to announce the signature today of a Joint
Industry Programme ('JIP') for the development of its unique, patented downhole
gas compression technology.

Following the recent successful completion of a Shell funded feasibility study
which evaluated both the technical and economic viability of the technology,
considerable industry interest has been generated, culminating in the addition
of a further four major international oil and gas operators to the project.

The participants of the JIP comprise ConocoPhillips, ENI, Husky Energy,
Repsol-YPF as well as Shell, all of whom have gas assets worldwide which they
believe could benefit from this game changing technology. As well as covering
the development costs for the next phase, the participants will also make
substantial resource available to ensure the final product specification meets
the requirements of the industry.

Corac's downhole gas compression concept involves the coupling together of a
number of axial compressor modules in a single compression train for
installation in the well bore in close proximity to a gas reservoir. In this
location, a modest uplift in pressure results in a very significant increase in
gas production compared with conventional methods using surface compression,
thereby accelerating gas production and cash flow from a producing asset.
Potential production rate enhancement of up to 40% has been demonstrated through
the application of downhole gas compression during a number of gas field case
studies carried out over recent months.

Placing the compressor downhole could also have the effect of being able to
lower the reservoir abandonment pressure which in turn would materially increase
the ultimate recovery from a gas field, thereby further enhancing the economic
benefit from the installation of this novel application of existing technology.

Phase 1 of the JIP is scheduled for completion by the end of 2004, with further
engineering and development work leading to the manufacture and testing of a
prototype downhole in a producing gas well within the following two years.

Commenting on the JIP, Professor Gerry Musgrave, Chairman, said:

'The support from such eminent oil and gas companies vindicates Corac's
development to date of the downhole gas compression project and gives the Group
another product line to bring to the market using its core technologies. It is
the start of a major business development opportunity which is expected to have
significant international ramifications throughout the upstream natural gas
industry.'ENDS.

Although loss making at the moment it shouldnt be very long before this one turns the corner.

Outlook

The Company has a loyal, talented workforce dedicated to the innovation and
exploitation of the technology. Successful trials have demonstrated the
commercial performance in Corac's industrial air compressor and its seals. The
Board is striving to deliver the right manufacturing and sales licences which
will yield the best returns in the long term.

We are confident that a number of deals, which have been subject to recent
intensive negotiation, will be successfully concluded in the near term.

Short to medium term investment, and anyone interested should DYOR and please remember you are responsible for the timing of your buying and selling actions.

cheers GF.

Going great guns. Chart looks fine aswell.

decent volume so far today, looks set to move >80p.

1.5 million @ 81p.
2517

wow!! looking very confident---news soon do you think?

Well, has certainly performed these last two weeks, am posting chart below, and although the current rally may continue for the very near term, i would uggest we are getting ahead of ourselves, and i, for one, would rather see a pull back to 70p level, where we can resume a more sensible upward climb...

been undervalued for years, so re-rating long over-due
one piece of news + we will be>1, no problems.
market cap is still very low for what CRA have got.

would not disagree except markets are generally pretty downbeat and surely CRA is still at least several months before being able to announce anything ..... is that not correct?

cynic, it is quite possible (but not certain!) that Corac could announce the first actual orders for DGC, the order(s) being placed by one or two of the JIP partners.
This would signal very strong confidence in the project and leave no doubt as to how the JIP partners view the project.
This could well happen in the next month or so.
If that were to be the case, I would expect a very strong re-rating from CRA, certainly something over 1, imo.

There are also other items of news that could have a beneficial effect, for example, if another major JIP partner came on board. That possibility has been strongly mooted in the recent brokers note but, to be fair, it has been mooted for several years!

So, I think the first mentioned item, DGC orders, stands a decent chance of happening in the near term.

notlob so you think orders will be placed before the next field trials commence?

halifax
there is a lead time to build the DGC units, so with initial field deployment due to start late this year, I would expect initial DGC order(s) to be placed in the relatively near term.
Orders must be placed before live deployment, it can't happen any other way!

sounds reasonable logic to me, even if things rarely work out as expected - lol

notlob so you are suggesting the results of the next field trial are a foregone conclusion?

halifax
let me try to explain the situation
currently, and for over the last year, the full size prototype dgc modules have been under flow loop testing in Cumbria, simulating as near as possible live condidtions. The JIP partners last october expressed their satisfaction with the testing process.

The recent annual results said that :

'We are heavily engaged with two of our JIP partners in planning the field trials
that will take place in Argentina and Italy later this year. Both partners are
spending considerable resource in building up their teams and performing
analysis with us to ensure the right specification for deployment in these wells
and they have also sought to ensure that they have the appropriate budgets to
acquire the machines and deploy them. As the units will be operating in
producing wells, our partners have to be confident as installation will
initially interrupt the gas flow. When the units are deployed in a gas well, it
is expected that the artificial lift of gas could improve flow rates by 30% to
40%.'

Therefore I expect to hear orders for DGC units in the not too distant future.
I'm not sure when you say 'results of the next field trial are a foregone conclusion'
Currently there is the flow loop testing being carried out in Cumbria, on which the JIP members have already publicly given the thumBs up to and stated they are now moving onto the next stage, ie field deployment.

Ref their RNS in feb ". Field trials planned with two JIP partners in Argentina and Italy later this year."
My understanding is that these are not with units already purchased, but with units 'on trial'. Field deployment is true, but does not mean sales, imo.

Tks for the explanation.It appears from what is stated in the extract from the results statement that the field trial partners are going to buy the machines before the trials start, which must suggest they are confident of a successful outcome,bearing in mind the anticipated cost of the equipment.

harrycat
I have checked this very point with Corac
as ever, dyor, but Corac have confirmed that the inital sales of DGC units will be at full commercial rates (less the modest discount the JIP memmers enjoy)
Therefore field deployment does mean sales.

It's a bit of a moot point, imo, because Corac is still loss making (1.4m last financial year). Industrial parteners, including Repsol & ENI are part financing the R&D for this technology, which is why they are conducting the field trials. If they are purchasing these units, then that cash is going in to the development of their own product. CRA might want to write that up as a sale for their P & L accounts, but it seems a bit misleading of CRA to promote these as sales.

Harrycat
I don't think it is a moot point or misleading, its all quite clear to me.
I don't think Corac are promoting anything, other than recognising revenues, as all companies do!

Corac are paid or partially funded to develop the DGC for the JIP partners,that is one area of revenue.

Another , quite seperate, area of revenue is the actual sales of DGC units.
The initial DGC units will be charged at full commercial rates,

All sounds absolutely fine to me and very straightforward.

Buy orders not getting triggered, they just wont drop! although topping up recently, i think there is more chance of them going to 85p than dropping down to 65p! up 3p this morning on very few purchases and no new news, i expect share tip sheets and general awareness of this company now, will give limited downside to sp, also i think it would be a while before any potential problem with a DGC would be reported, as they haven't been deployed as yet, therefore if the sp is going to rise on speculation, it gives a certain safety net... ie if sp is going to reach 1 before any poss problems can happen with a compressor, a guaranteed stop will safeguard against such setbacks, and NL before you point it out, i already know that the testing in Cumbria was positive, i'm just pointing out any snag reported with a trial down a well could cause a lot of panic and the sp to crash...

from todays investor chronicle

BULL POINTS

Huge global market in stranded gas

Co-investment by industry partners

Patent-protected technology

Little competition

BEAR POINTS

Testing not complete

Assembly facility needs to be built

Corac is poised to bring to market a revolutionary compressor that can extend the life of gas wells by up to five years. High gas demand and pricing coupled with diminishing resources is forcing producers to look to releasing stranded gas from depleting wells - residual gas under insufficient pressure for normal recovery. Governments keen to minimise reliance on foreign states are also likely to support takeup, including the UK government in relation to North Sea reserves.

Corac's Downhole Gas Compressor (DGC) uses revolutionary gas-lubricated bearings. Not using oil, and being almost frictionless, these can rotate at high speeds with minimal wear, and Corac has miniaturised the unit for use in seven-inch (178mm) pipes extending some two km underground. The designs are protected by 64 patents and closely guarded know-how, providing a significant advantage over potential competitors.

DGC units sell for $2m, with a $2m installation fee, and independent research estimates there are around 100,000 gas wells requiring artificial lift excluding those less than seven inches in diameter, or in difficult structures. So this represents a multi-billion dollar market similar to that for electric submersible pumps, the established, equivalent oil well technology.

To date, joint industry partners (JIPs) - ENI, Repsol YPF and ConocoPhillips - have invested 4m in development. And following successful trials in Cumbria, JIPs will field test in producing gas wells in Italy and Argentina later this year, providing initial revenues to Corac. Orders and roll-out should follow soon afterwards.

While the DGC provides the most exciting upside, Corac's innovative industrial air compressor, which turbo boosts existing compressors, provides the bedrock of the business. One unit being used by a major international soft drinks company is saving an estimated 70,000 per year in energy costs, and Corac is developing further sales and licensing agreements.



SHARE TIP SUMMARY:
Buy
Following last November's placing, the company has more than 5m of cash to cover completion of DGC testing and construction of an assembly and test facility. JIPs and sales of industrial air units offer further finance, if required.

So with demand, funds, partners, and economic and political will all in place to bring the DGC to successful commercialisation, the market has huge potential and Corac is well positioned to dominate. For the long-term, the shares rate a buy.