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Technology Stocks : Ballard Power -world leader zero-emission PEM fuel cells -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: HarveyO who wrote (1930)	3/17/1998 10:37:00 PM
From: Hawkeye	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5827

News from Chicago. New buses in service. Here's the link: suntimes.com Regards

To: HarveyO who wrote (1930)	3/18/1998 11:24:00 AM
From: HarveyO	Respond to of 5827

Ballard blasts to new high $3.6-million GM contract boosts stock $17.25 to $182.25 Wednesday, March 18, 1998 By Carolyn Leitch Investment Reporter Shares of Ballard Power Systems Inc. rocketed ahead $17.25 to a new 52-week high of $182.25 yesterday after the company announced that it had won a $3.6-million contract from General Motors Corp. The shares of the fuel cell maker have now gained 75 per cent in about five weeks on the Toronto Stock Exchange. During yesterday's session they climbed as high as $188 before settling back. Ballard, based in Burnaby, B.C., said GM will use the fuel cells developed by Ballard for research into developing an electric car. Ballard will also provide equipment and services. Yesterday's surge put Ballard's market capitalization at a dizzying $4.2-billion, despite the fact that the company is not expected to generate significant revenue for years. Market watchers have speculated that investors are itching for Ballard to announce a lucrative contract. GM has been buying Ballard's fuel cells since 1991. Is this relatively modest sale to an existing customer the news the market has been anticipating? "I have no idea," said analyst David Dvorchik of Taurus Capital Markets Ltd. in Toronto. "I would think that there is a whole slew of similar-type deals that the company is negotiating." Analyst Robert Chewning at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter in New York is also baffled by the runup. He said the market may be looking for significance in the fact that GM, which has been engaged in its own research into fuel cell technology, is now turning to Ballard. "The fact they they are coming to Ballard and ordering a fuel cell -- what do people read into that? It may indicate that they're behind in their own development." He added that while the contract is "not the biggest, not the smallest," that Ballard has received, it can be viewed as another endorsement from a major car maker. Mr. Chewning also believes the attention focused on the company helps to fuel the stock's rise. "Obviously this has attracted a lot of the media. It's a self-fulfilling prophecy." Mr. Chewning calls Ballard "a very tough company to value." He downgraded the stock to "neutral" from "outperform" earlier this month. Mr. Dvorchik of Taurus also believes that the market may read the small contract from the world's largest auto maker as a harbinger of things to come. Auto makers are racing to develop alternatives to the traditional internal combustion engine. Ballard's proprietary fuel cell produces electricity without combustion. The technology is favoured as a way to cut emissions and pollution. "GM is a large company and obviously doesn't want to be left out of the loop," Mr. Dvorchik said. But he points out that the purchase of some technology is not as significant as taking an equity stake in Ballard, as both Ford Motor Co. and Daimler-Benz AG have done. Ford owns 15 per cent of Ballard and Daimler-Benz owns another 20 per cent. That partnership is aiming to introduce a fuel-cell-powered vehicle in 2004. Earlier this month, Mobil Corp. said it had joined this alliance on projects that include alternative fuel vehicles.