Birchtech Corp. Files Patent Infringement Lawsuit Against Major Power Utility, Evergy

Suit Names Four Evergy Defendants, Seeking Injunction and Damages of Patent-Protected Mercury Emissions Technologies

/EIN News/ -- CORSICANA, Texas, Feb. 05, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Birchtech Corp., (TSX:BCHT) (OTCQB:BCHT), (“Birchtech” or the “Company”), a leader in specialty activated carbon technologies for sustainable air and water treatment, announced today that it has filed a patent infringement lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri against Evergy, a major power utility company in the Midwest. The lawsuit filed on January 23, 2025, names four defendants and claims that the defendants knowingly violated patent rights related to Birchtech’s mercury emissions reduction technologies, commercially known as “SEA® (Sorbent Enhancement Additive) Technologies under Birchtech’s division, “ME₂C Environmental”. At Birchtech’s request, the Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation ordered this case transferred to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.

The four companies named as defendants in the lawsuit include Evergy, Inc., Evergy Metro Inc., Evergy Missouri West, Inc., and Evergy Kansas Central, Inc., for patent infringement. The Company requests a trial by jury against the defendants and seeks damages, costs, and legal expenses, along with a finding of willful infringement by the defendants, and an injunction prohibiting the defendants from further acts of infringement.

“Following our successful jury trial in 2024, we will continue these efforts to protect our patented technologies in support of our company’s growth and to benefit our shareholders,” stated Richard MacPherson, CEO of Birchtech Corp. “Since our litigation efforts commenced in 2019, our primary objective has been to enter into positive, mutually beneficial business relationships across the industry and have been successful with several of our previous defendants reaching license and/or supply agreements for the continued use of our highly efficient, effective technologies for mercury emissions capture.  

“With a recently named defendant in one of the July 2024 lawsuits, we have entered into the product testing phase at the utility, which is typically the first step toward transitioning the utility to ME₂C’s supply. We expect to move forward similarly with other defendants and other utilities in the industry who may be using our patented technologies separate from our company.

“Our focus in 2025 is to protect the validity of our patents in clean air technologies, laying the foundation for our strategic growth in highly innovative water purification technologies currently under development,” concluded MacPherson.

Prior to this lawsuit announced today, the Company achieved a successful outcome in a five-year patent infringement lawsuit initiated in 2019 against 43 defendants that included four major power utilities and numerous refined coal companies. In late 2023, Birchtech obtained a pre-trial settlement with defendants AJ Gallagher, DTE, and a CERT Defendant. In March 2024, following trial in the U.S. District Court of Delaware with the remaining CERT Defendants, the Company was awarded a $57 million verdict following a jury trial with a unanimous finding of willful infringement, along with inducing and contributory infringement. In July 2024, the Company filed three separate lawsuits against a total of 14 defendants, which included major coal-fired utilities, in U.S. District Courts in Arizona, Iowa, and Missouri. In December 2024, the three separate lawsuits were consolidated and centralized in the Southern District of Iowa.

About Birchtech Corp.

Birchtech Corp. (TSX: BCHT) (OTCQB: BCHT) is a leader in specialty activated carbon technologies, delivering innovative solutions for air and water purification to support a cleaner, more sustainable future. The Company operates two divisions: ME₂C Environmental, a pioneer of SEA® sorbent technologies for mercury emissions capture to the coal-fired utility sector, and WE₂C Environmental, dedicated to developing disruptive water purification technologies with a specialization on forever chemicals such as PFAS and PFOS. Backed by a strong intellectual property portfolio and a world-class team of activated carbon experts, Birchtech provides cleaner air to North American communities and is applying this expertise to a novel approach in water purification. To learn more, please visit www.birchtech.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

With the exception of historical information contained in this press release, content herein may contain "forward-looking statements" that are made pursuant to the Safe Harbor Provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 or forward-looking information under applicable Canadian securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are generally identified by using words such as "anticipate," "believe," "plan," "expect," "intend," "will," and similar expressions, but these words are not the exclusive means of identifying forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this release include statements relating to expected developments and growth in Birchtech’s business. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made. In addition, this release contains time-sensitive information that reflects management’s best analysis only as of the date of this release. Birchtech does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect future events, information or circumstances that arise after the date of this release. Further information concerning issues that could materially affect financial performance or other forward-looking statements contained in this release can be found in Birchtech’s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission or Canadian securities regulators.                        

Investor Relations:
Lucas A. Zimmerman
Managing Director
MZ Group – North America
(949) 259-4987
BCHT@mzgroup.us   
www.mzgroup.us