AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 21, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Superconductor Technologies Inc. (STI) (Nasdaq: SCON ), a world leader in the development and production of high temperature superconducting (HTS) materials and associated technologies, will exhibit its Conductus ® superconducting wire at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) Superconductivity Conference in Houston from Oct. 28 th to 30 th . The electric utility focus of the conference addresses practical aspects of development, application, testing and service experience of superconducting equipment and system components for electrical power delivery applications.
"EPRI provides an excellent forum for STI and our customers to collaborate with industry-leading electric utilities to commercialize superconducting solutions," stated Adam Shelton, STI's VP of Marketing and Product Line Management. "The electric power industry is facing many challenges that threaten an electric utility's ability to deliver reliable and cost efficient power. These challenges include integration of renewable electricity, need for improved network efficiency, aging infrastructure, increased electrical demand and implementation of new Smart Grid technologies. Existing copper-based electrical conductors are inefficient and cannot support the growing energy demand or Smart Grid infrastructure."
"Advanced, high power superconducting transmission cables and superconducting fault current limiters (SFCLs) are cost-effective, high-performance alternatives to conventional, copper-based solutions. High power superconducting transmission cables reduce voltage and increase current, lowering right-of-way, civil work and environmental impact. SFCLs protect the grid from damaging faults and enable power sharing between substations and connectivity to new sources of renewable power. These solutions are all made possible with superconducting wire, which typically is composed of 100s of superconducting wire strands ranging from 3 meters to 1000 meters in length."
"STI is in the process of scaling capacity to commercialize our Conductus wire for applications like SFCLs and superconducting transmission cables. Our initial production machines have been installed in Austin, TX, with the final RCE-CDR production system, capable of 1km lengths, being installed in 2014," Shelton concluded.
Ken Pfeiffer, STI's VP of Engineering, will deliver a technology and product development milestone update presentation titled " Development of Low-Cost 2G HTS Coated Conductors at STI " on Tuesday, Oct. 29 th . This presentation will highlight how STI's RCE-CDR superconducting wire manufacturing process addresses three key areas of opportunity in the superconducting wire market: high performance, improved economics and commercial-scale capacity.
About EPRI
The EPRI Superconductivity Conference is a biennial international forum for electric utility and superconductivity industry stakeholders. EPRI provides an international forum for electric utility and superconductivity industry stakeholders to develop a mutual understanding of the technology readiness, business potential and system operational requirements associated with transitioning to a superconducting power delivery system.
About Superconductor Technologies Inc. (STI)
Superconductor Technologies Inc., headquartered in Austin, TX, has been a world leader in HTS materials since 1987, developing more than 100 patents as well as proprietary trade secrets and manufacturing expertise. For more than a decade, STI has been providing innovative interference elimination and network enhancement solutions to the commercial wireless industry. The company is currently leveraging its key enabling technologies, including RF filtering, HTS materials and cryogenics to develop energy efficient, cost-effective and high performance second generation (2G) HTS wire for existing and emerging power applications, to develop applications for advanced RF wireless solutions and innovative adaptive filtering, and for government R&D. Superconductor Technologies Inc.'s common stock is listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the ticker symbol "SCON." For more information about STI, please visit http://www.suptech.com .
Safe Harbor Statement
Statements in this press release regarding our business that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are inherently subject to uncertainties and other factors, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. These factors and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: our limited cash and a history of losses; the limited number of potential customers; the limited number of suppliers for some of our components and our HTS wire; there being no significant backlog from quarter to quarter; our market being characterized by rapidly advancing technology; overcoming technical challenges in attaining milestones to develop and manufacture commercial lengths of our HTS wire; customer acceptance of our HTS wire; fluctuations in product demand from quarter to quarter; the impact of competitive filter products, technologies and pricing; manufacturing capacity constraints and difficulties; our ability to raise sufficient capital to fund our operations (whether through registered direct offerings or otherwise), and the impact on our strategic wire initiative of any inability to raise such funds; the impact of any such financing activity on the level of our stock price, which may decline in connection with the sales under registered direct offerings or otherwise; the dilutive impact of any issuances of securities to raise capital; and local, regional, national and international economic conditions and events and the impact they may have on us and our customers, such as the current worldwide recession.
Forward-looking statements can be affected by many other factors, including, those described in the "Business" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections of STI's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012 and in STI's other public filings. These documents are available online at STI's website, www.suptech.com , or through the SEC's website, www.sec.gov . Forward-looking statements are based on information presently available to senior management, and STI has not assumed any duty to update any forward-looking statements.
Investor Relations Contact Cathy Mattison or Kirsten Chapman LHA +1-415-433-3777
