Conversation with I-tech AB
Conversation with the Company
Hello friends,
One of the subscribers told me that he is interested in I-tech AB, supplier of Selektope for antifouling for ships. I decided to share my notes from the call I had with management in 2024 with my friend.
I love swedish market since my first A-Z. It is a great market of great companies. One of the best businesses I have seen come from this place. I call it Sillicon Valley of Europe. Most of the time I research swedish stocks. I-Tech is 1 of the about 200 I cover. I want to know well all of them.
I am following I-Tech long-term but had never invested for number of reasons, which proved to me that, it was perhaps a mistake. I thought that the best days of Itech were behind and that the Itech has not collaborated on R&D with paint manufacturers, which were using mainly silicon based paints at higher price. I underestimated market penetration. I underestimated importantce of few things going right for this investment to work. Recently I-Tech reported strong results so I guess it is a perfect time to share these for those interested and for me it is the remainder to looks for opportunities as well as for flaws. Use the notes as you would like. You might find a pushback or a reason to invest.
The conversation covers these questions (important for business and industry, not current trading) and each question is expanded by a long dialogue:
What % of CMP’s sales include paints with Selektope?
Do other antifouling (hard) paints protect more against soft fouling than paints with Selektope? Does Selektope have to be combined with other antifoulants?
How many of the Selektope paints with CMP are legal under regulations in Asia, in Korea changing around how much leaching and biocide concentration is allowed to occur? How many of their non-Selektope paints?
How do potential regulations over fuel costs affect lease contracts? Owner pays for coating, but lease taker pays fuel? Who is held responsible if more emissions are created than allowed?
Do Selektope-based paints deplete faster? They seem more effective when combined with a carrier like copper or zinc?
How has coating cycle changed? Has it been longer, has it been shorter?
Why are there different paints for newbuild vs. drydocking?
Why Go Public in 2018?
What will you do with cash you generate?
What do Navies use for anti-fouling?