Agcert, the London-listed, Dublin-headquartered producer of greenhouse gas emission reductions, has said that it achieved strong progress in both its operations and regulatory approvals since December 2005.

The company announced a "normalised" earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) loss for the six months to end June 2006 of €45.7 million. When a €30 million non-recurring contract renegotiation charge is removed, the loss was €15.7 million.

It said it had secured advanced sales contracts worth €114 million. Agcert was founded in 2002 for the specific purpose of generating large-scale greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions which could be traded. Its proprietary systems and processes include a United Nations-approved methodology for the reduction of GHG emissions from modified animal waste management systems.

The ratification of the Kyoto Protocol has created demand for certified emission reductions (CERs). The purchase of CERs enables GHG emitters, including countries and commercial entities such as power generators, to keep their emissions within limits determined as part of the Kyoto Protocol and the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EUETS).

Agcert said its annual CER production rate stood at 2.6 million at the end of August 2006. It also reaffirmed its ability to meet its forward delivery obligations.

"The first six months of 2006 have both reaffirmed the business opportunity for Agcert to produce greenhouse gas emissions offsets, and further defined the company's ongoing operating and regulatory challenges in reaching its goals," the company chairman Merrick Andlinger told shareholders in a letter with the interim figures. "In advancing the business during this period, the company was issued and sold its first CERs from projects in Brazil and Mexico, and has expanded both the geographic scope and host sectors for biodigester-related CDM projects," he said.