Mr. Paul Woodward reports

AETHER CATALYST SOLUTIONS, INC. SUBMITS COMMENTS TO CALIFORNIA AIR RESOURCES BOARD PUBLIC HEARING, PROPOSING AMENDMENT TO SMALL OFF-ROAD ENGINE REGULATIONS: TRANSITION TO ZERO EMISSIONS

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has proposed significant changes to its regulation of small off-road engine (SORE) emissions. CARB has asked for comments from the industry and public ahead of a public hearing to be held on Dec. 9, 2021.

Aether Catalyst Solutions Inc. has taken this opportunity to make CARB aware of Aether's cost-effective emission abatement technology that is capable of removing significant amounts of NOx (nitrogen oxide) emissions, assisting the state's climate goals as it transitions to zero-emission equipment (ZEE).

Aether's response can be found on the California Air Resources Board website.

The company believes SOREs will continue to be utilized long after the transition to ZEE and so sees an opportunity to eliminate harmful air pollution using its inexpensive catalyst technology. Catalysts for SORE emissions need to be relatively small and deal with much higher gas space velocities than most automotive catalytic converters. While addressing these concerns, a SORE catalytic converter also needs to remain superbly economical. Converters based on platinum group metals (PGMs) can easily cost as much or more as many of the consumer products they are designed to operate within.

Aether's small-motor catalyst, in its current unoptimized state, could cut NOx from SOREs immediately by more than half. NOx is responsible for smog and the typical brown cloud that covers larger cities and produces poor air quality. NOx emissions contribute to acid rain and formation of ground-level ozone that can damage ecosystems, animal and plant life. NOx can cause serious health damage to humans, including respiratory diseases -- globally, 4.2 million people die prematurely per year from air-pollution-related health issues. Of the many categories of SOREs, just garden equipment engines produce up to 5 per cent of the nation's air pollution and a good deal more in metropolitan areas.

Aether believes that CARB's movement on SOREs will send a message to OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) and lead it to look to catalyst innovation to cut its emissions. Aether's solution right now is cost-effective and conveys a significant, measurable environmental benefit. The company will accelerate its business development efforts in the small-motor space -- making regulators and OEMs aware of technology that can make a real air quality difference at a benign economic cost.

About Aether Catalyst Solutions Inc.

Aether Catalyst Solutions is focused on providing an order-of-magnitude cost reduction in automotive catalytic converter catalyst while meeting or exceeding government emission standards. Aether is working to quickly advance its technology through rapid screening of new material combinations. While Aether's primary focus has been automotive applications, the company is also developing catalysts to address small-motor emissions -- a significant contributor to urban air pollution.

We seek Safe Harbor.