China Clean Energy Announces First Quarter 2011 Financial Results

FUQING CITY, China, May 16, 2011 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- China Clean Energy Inc. (OTC QB: CCGY) ("China Clean Energy" or the "Company"), a producer of biodiesel fuel and environmentally-friendly specialty-chemical products made from renewable resources, today reported its financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2011.

First Quarter 2011 Highlights

• Revenue totaled $19.0 million, up 77% from $10.7 million for the first quarter in 2010
• Gross profit totaled $4.3 million, up 192% from $1.5 million in the first quarter of 2010
• Gross margin was 22.9%, compared to 13.8% in the same period in 2010
• Operating income was $3.6 million, up 260% from $1.0 million in the first quarter 2010
• Net income was $2.9 million or $0.09 per fully-diluted share, compared to net income of $0.4 million or $0.01 per fully-diluted share in the first quarter 2010
• Adjusted net income (Non-GAAP) was $2.7 million, or $0.09 per fully-diluted share for the first quarter of 2011, compared to $0.8 million or $0.03 per fully- diluted share in the comparable period of 2009. A table reconciling adjusted net-income, a non-GAAP measure, to its nearest GAAP measure is available elsewhere in this release.

"We are delighted to report another quarter of strong performance, as we continue to establish ourselves as a unique, renewable resources-based leader in the biodiesel and specialty chemicals sectors," said Mr. Tai-ming Ou, China Clean Energy's Chairman and CEO. "As we look to the future, we expect to continue to grow our operating results as we benefit from increased capacity attributable to our Jiangyin plant, improved product quality and an even greater migration to our premium, higher margin products."

First Quarter 2011 Results

China Clean Energy's net revenue in the first quarter of 2011 was $19.0 million, up 77% from the first quarter of 2010. The increase in revenue was driven by the substantial increase in specialty chemicals sales. The Company added over 70 new customers in 2010 which helped spur a 60% increase in sales volume to 9,648 tons.  In addition, the average selling price of specialty chemicals rose 22% year-over-year to RMB 11,441 per ton. Biodiesel sales volume was 2,678 tons in the first quarter of 2011, down 39% from 4,391 tons in the first quarter of 2010. Biodiesel average selling price was RMB 5,352 in the first quarter of 2011, up 15% from the first quarter of 2010. Specialty chemicals and biodiesel represented 89% and 11% of total revenue in the quarter, respectively. The comparatives for last year were 73% and 27%, respectively.

Gross profit in the first quarter of 2011 was $4.3 million, up 192% from the first quarter of 2010. Gross margin was 22.9% in the first quarter, up from 13.8% in the same period of 2010. The improvement in gross margin is due to specialty chemicals representing a larger proportion of total company sales this year with its higher margin product mix. In particular, purity dimer acids and high-performance hot melt adhesives accounted for 5.9% of revenue in the quarter, while neither of which were sold in the same quarter of 2010. Gross margins for purity dimer acids and high-performance hot melt adhesives were 41.2% and 51.1%, respectively.  Specialty chemicals' first quarter gross margins were 24.9%, compared to 12.2% for biodiesel products. This compares to margins of 16.7% for specialty chemicals and 7.3% for biodiesel in the year-ago quarter.

Operating expenses in the first quarter of 2011 were $780,910, up 57% from $496,228 in the first quarter of 2010. Operating expenses increased at a lower rate than top-line revenue growth resulting in an expansion of operating margins to 18.8% in the first quarter compared to 9.2% in the comparable year-ago quarter. R&D increased by 272% in the current quarter relative to the comparable year-ago quarter as a result of higher spending on quality control tests and inspections due to first quarter's higher sales volume.  Operating income in the first quarter of 2011 reached $3.6 million, up from approximately $1.0 million for the comparable period of 2010.

Net income for the first quarter of 2011 was $2.9 million or $0.09 per fully-diluted share, compared to net income of $0.4 million, or $0.01 per fully-diluted share in the first quarter of 2010. Net income for the first quarter includes a $190,737 non-cash expense for employee stock-based compensation and a $424,685 non-cash income to reflect the fair value of warrant liability.

Adjusted net income, excluding above non-cash charges, was $2.7 million or $0.09 per fully-diluted share for the first quarter of 2011, compared to $0.8 million or $0.03 per fully-diluted share in the comparable period of 2010. A table reconciling adjusted net-income to its nearest GAAP measure is available elsewhere in this release.

Financial Condition

As of March 31, 2011, China Clean Energy had $17.7 million in cash, up from $13.7 million as of December 31, 2010.  The Company also had approximately $18.5 million in working capital and $6.0 million of bank debt. Stockholders' equity as of March 31, 2011 stood at $42.7 million, or approximately $1.36 per share.

Business Outlook

"The demand for specialty chemicals continues to be strong in China, driven by consumer demand for both everyday and more sophisticated products. China is a rapidly growing specialty chemicals market, second only in size to that of the U.S. In addition, biodiesel continues to be an early-mover, relatively clean energy alternative to imported oil. China Clean Energy is well-positioned in both segments to capitalize upon their strong trends," stated Mr. Tai-ming Ou, China Clean Energy's Chairman and CEO. "We are seeking to acquire an upstream feedstock supplier in the second half of 2011 to secure supply and expand our gross margins. Our raw materials sourcing sets us apart as we use renewable resources to produce our specialty chemicals and biodiesel unlike other industry participants who use depleting commodities such as oil, natural gas or coal. We expect to be able to finance an eventual transaction with cash on hand as well as cash flow from operations."

"Our increased production capacity as well as our new facility's geographical positioning will continue to promote strong operating results. We plan to continue to deliver positive results in the quarters ahead. We reiterate our guidance for 2011, and expect revenue and operating income in 2011 to be approximately $75 million and $14 million, respectively. We would also expect to see adjusted earnings reach $0.36 per fully-diluted share in 2011," concluded Mr. Ou.

Conference Call

China Clean Energy will hold its first quarter 2011 conference call at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time on Monday, May 16, 2011 to discuss its results. To participate in the live conference call, please dial the following number five to ten minutes prior to the scheduled conference call time: +1 (866) 759-2078. International callers should dial +1 (706) 643-0585. When prompted by the operator, mention conference passcode 65167970. If you are unable to participate in the call at this time, a replay will be available for 14 days starting on May 16, 2011, at 13:00 p.m. eastern time. To access the replay, please dial +1 (800) 642-1687, international callers dial +1 (706) 645-9291, and enter the pass code 65167970.

About China Clean Energy

China Clean Energy, through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Fujian Zhongde Technology Co., Ltd. and Fujian Zhongde Energy Co., Ltd, is engaged in the development, manufacturing, and distribution of biodiesel and specialty chemical products made from renewable resources. For additional information please visit: http://www.chinacleanenergyinc.com

Safe Harbor Statement

This announcement contains forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact in this announcement are forward-looking statements, including but not limited to, the effectiveness, profitability, and the marketability of the Company's products; the future trading of the common stock of the Company; the ability of the Company to capitalize on its expanded production capacity; the period of time for which its current liquidity will enable the Company to fund its operations; the Company's ability to protect its proprietary information; general economic and business conditions; the volatility of the Company's operating results and financial condition; the Company's ability to attract or retain qualified senior management personnel and research and development staff; and other risks detailed in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections about the Company and the industry. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent occurring events or circumstances, or to changes in its expectations, except as may be required by law. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward looking statements are reasonable, it cannot assure you that the Company's expectations will turn out to be correct, and investors are cautioned that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results.

--FINANCIAL TABLES FOLLOW—

CHINA CLEAN ENERGY INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

RECONCILIATION OF ADJUSTED NET INCOME TO NET INCOME

The management of China Clean Energy uses non-GAAP adjusted net earnings to measure the performance of the Company's business internally by excluding non-recurring items as well as non-cash charges related to the warrants issued in connection with the Company's 2009 Private Placement offering. The Company's management believes that these non-GAAP adjusted financial measures allow the management to focus on managing business operating performance because these measures reflect the essential operating activities of China Clean Energy and provide a consistent method of comparison to historical periods. The Company believes that providing the non-GAAP measures - which management uses internally - to its investors is useful to investors for a number of reasons. The non-GAAP measures provide a consistent basis for investors to understand the Company's financial performance in comparison to historical periods without variation of non-recurring items and non-operating related charges. In addition, it allows investors to better evaluate the Company's performance using the same methodology and information as those used by the management. Non-GAAP measures are subject to inherent limitations because they do not include all of the expenses included under GAAP and because they involve the exercise of judgment of which charges are excluded from the non-GAAP financial measure. However, the management of China Clean Energy compensates for these limitations by providing the relevant disclosure of the items excluded.

The following table provides the non-GAAP financial measure and a reconciliation of the non-GAAP measure to the GAAP net income.

SOURCE China Clean Energy Inc.