Stocks have started to pick up momentum out of the depths of the mini-banking crisis we experienced in March. Retail investors and fund managers have been bearish over recent months, leading to a significant skew in positioning data, with small traders now near record levels of short interest in index futures and holding near record levels of puts. Fund managers, for their part, are underexposed to equities and overexposed to cash, according to the latest Bank of America Fund Manager Survey.
That all adds up to a good environment for speculators on the long side in the stock market because the bears have already spent their ammo and a rising market has plenty of dry powder to pull into the action.
One of the most interesting areas in this environment stands to be stocks tied to the clean energy movement. The Biden Administration’s “Inflation Reduction Act” passed last year has recently been revealed by Goldman Sachs analysts as consisting of green subsidies worth $1.2 trillion.
That’s a massive tailwind. Suffice it to say, as investors pile back into stocks, green energy could be where the party gets going. And within the green energy space, there’s one story worth paying extra attention to: Clean Vision Corp. (OTC US:CLNV).
The Dream is Big, the Cap is Small
Clean Vision Corp. (OTC US:CLNV) consists of two main operating segments: Clean-Seas, which uses chemical recycling of plastic waste to produce clean fuels, and Ecocell, a licensed technology focused on producing a hydrogen-based fuel cell.
The long-term vision is to tie these two segments together by turning sea-borne plastic waste into hydrogen fuel—directly cleaning the world and producing clean fuel from the waste. It’s an environmental enthusiast’s dream.
But the first order of business is establishing a dominant position, in terms of scale and breadth, in the waste-plastic refining marketplace.
One of the main reasons we point this story out right now is because the company appears well on its way to doing just that, and while it’s still trading at six cents per share on the OTC.
The path for waste plastic as a major source of energy over coming decades is already established. But no one has put together the infrastructure to monetize that thesis until CLNV.
Clean-Seas has already started to scale up the operation, but recent messaging from the company suggests it is on its way to dominating this market with recent deals in Morocco and Malaysia.
Establishing the PCN
Clean Vision’s CEO, Dan Bates, came from a technology background, starting a wind and solar tech company in 2008 that eventually spread to over 40 countries. That led him further down the sustainability path. In 2018, he started focusing on the global plastic waste crisis, which was the source of Clean-Seas.
According to Bates, plastic made since the 1960s is still with us, and the problem is building with no end in sight.
To turn lemons into lemonade, Clean-Seas uses a chemical process known as “pyrolysis” to convert the waste plastic back into its original hydrocarbon form, which can then be refined into fuels to power the world.
The most powerful part of this story is the company’s Plastic Conversion Network (PCN). At this point, the company plans to have a global network of PCN facilities operating at large scale, with the ability to convert into hydrogen-based clean fuel within the next 18 months.
And this is a rapidly scaling strategy. Clean-Seas is currently scaling up, including LOI’s and deals in negotiation, as well as currently owned and operating facilities. In all, the company has stated that it is heading toward processing 2,600 tons of plastic per day through its global PCN network.
To give you some idea of the scale that represents, that would mean it is 26 times larger than its next closest competitor in the space. Dominant.
Rubber, Meet Road
It’s also important to note that CLNV isn’t selling a pipedream to its shareholders. The company is making material progress toward its vision.
In its second major deal, Clean-Seas entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 51% of Morocco-based Ecosynergie Group, which owns and operates two pyrolysis conversion units targeting the collection of sea-borne plastics and their conversion into refinable petroleum.
“Right now, Ecosynergie is currently running only one 10-ton-per-day pyrolysis conversion unit, and that unit has only been running less than 10 days per month so far this year,” stated Dan Bates, Clean Vision CEO. “But even that limited operation is more than enough to support ambitious objectives around the corner given our strategy to aggressively scale this technology.”
According to a press release from the company, over the near term, the Morocco plant will begin operating another 10-TPD plant. At that point, each of its TPD plants will be expected to produce monthly outputs consistent with those demonstrated so far this year in January and February. The company expects the Morocco plant to expand operations with an additional 50-TPD system by May 1, using pyrolysis technology manufactured in France by GRH Environment. Another 50-TPD output expansion is expected to occur in fall 2023, increasing total production at the Morocco site to 120 TPD through the end of the year.
Management also noted in the release that the key at Ecosynergie is proof of concept. CLNV has already begun to scale its model. The company also plans on upgrading the equipment at this site to drive bottom-line value by reducing fixed-cost investments over time through superior equipment quality.
