Melbourne, Nov 26, 2010 (ABN Newswire) - Benitec Limited (
ASX:BLT) (PINK:BNIKF) is pleased to release Chairman address to 2010 Annual General Meeting.
Dear Shareholders,
Welcome and thank you again for your ongoing support. The past 12 months has seen significant and very pleasing progress and success in Benitec's technology development.
Without doubt, the most significant event in the last 12 months was the USPTO Board of Appeals decision, in late September, to reverse the previous objections to the Graham '099 patent which had delayed the reissue of this patent in the US for a number of years. We are now waiting for the USPTO to issue the Ex Parte Re-examination Certificate, effectively the re-issue of the patent. This will bring to an end a saga that has run for a number of years and greatly restricted Benitec in its ability to exploit this significant patent.
Other significant events have been:
- The granting of a number of other patents in the Graham patent family in various jurisdictions;
- The successful completion and publication of the results of our clinical study in HIV/AIDS lymphoma by the City of Hope;
- The commencement of several landmark projects, focusing on Hepatitis B, lung cancer and neuropathic pain; and
- The renegotiation of the CSIRO agreement on much more favourable commercial terms, which represented a win-win for both parties and removed the barriers to Benitec's commercial development.
Further details of these events have been provided in the Company's 2010 Annual Report.
Financially, Benitec's loss for the year, excluding the charge for the CSIRO settlement, increased by 6% to A$2.63 million with increased expenditure allocated to the research and development category offsetting further reductions in the employment related and corporate categories.
Benitec raised $360,000 from a share placement with our major shareholder in February 2010 and since then a further USD$1.5 million under a convertible note facility with La Jolla Cove Investors Inc (the facility is for a total of USD$6 million). Further capital will be necessary in the coming year to support the activities planned to be undertaken in 2011.
Personnel wise, we have experienced some major changes during the past year. Managing Director/CEO Sue MacLeman left the Company and our Chief Scientific Officer Dr Peter French was appointed as the new CEO. The Board sincerely thanks Sue for her tremendous contribution in guiding Benitec through a number of extremely complex situations over four years and wishes her every success in the future. The Board welcomes Peter to his new role and looks forward to a hectic next 12 months.
The Board was also reconfigured with the addition of Dr John Chiplin and Mr Iain Ross to the Board providing Benitec with significantly enhanced expertise in areas of RNA interference.
As a result, Benitec's Board and Management are looking forward to an exciting year to come.
Peter Francis
Chairman
26 November 2010
ASX:BLT) (PINK:BNIKF) is pleased to release Chairman address to 2010 Annual General Meeting.Dear Shareholders,
Welcome and thank you again for your ongoing support. The past 12 months has seen significant and very pleasing progress and success in Benitec's technology development.
Without doubt, the most significant event in the last 12 months was the USPTO Board of Appeals decision, in late September, to reverse the previous objections to the Graham '099 patent which had delayed the reissue of this patent in the US for a number of years. We are now waiting for the USPTO to issue the Ex Parte Re-examination Certificate, effectively the re-issue of the patent. This will bring to an end a saga that has run for a number of years and greatly restricted Benitec in its ability to exploit this significant patent.
Other significant events have been:
- The granting of a number of other patents in the Graham patent family in various jurisdictions;
- The successful completion and publication of the results of our clinical study in HIV/AIDS lymphoma by the City of Hope;
- The commencement of several landmark projects, focusing on Hepatitis B, lung cancer and neuropathic pain; and
- The renegotiation of the CSIRO agreement on much more favourable commercial terms, which represented a win-win for both parties and removed the barriers to Benitec's commercial development.
Further details of these events have been provided in the Company's 2010 Annual Report.
Financially, Benitec's loss for the year, excluding the charge for the CSIRO settlement, increased by 6% to A$2.63 million with increased expenditure allocated to the research and development category offsetting further reductions in the employment related and corporate categories.
Benitec raised $360,000 from a share placement with our major shareholder in February 2010 and since then a further USD$1.5 million under a convertible note facility with La Jolla Cove Investors Inc (the facility is for a total of USD$6 million). Further capital will be necessary in the coming year to support the activities planned to be undertaken in 2011.
Personnel wise, we have experienced some major changes during the past year. Managing Director/CEO Sue MacLeman left the Company and our Chief Scientific Officer Dr Peter French was appointed as the new CEO. The Board sincerely thanks Sue for her tremendous contribution in guiding Benitec through a number of extremely complex situations over four years and wishes her every success in the future. The Board welcomes Peter to his new role and looks forward to a hectic next 12 months.
The Board was also reconfigured with the addition of Dr John Chiplin and Mr Iain Ross to the Board providing Benitec with significantly enhanced expertise in areas of RNA interference.
As a result, Benitec's Board and Management are looking forward to an exciting year to come.
Peter Francis
Chairman
26 November 2010
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About Benitec Limited
Benitec Limited (ASX:BLT) (PINK:BNIKF) holds a dominant position in expressed RNA interference (RNAi)-based human therapeutics, with a transformational platform technology supported by a robust and extensive intellectual property portfolio. Benitec is leveraging this platform to develop and build a pipeline of expressed RNAi therapeutics focusing on treatment and alleviation of cancer and infectious disease. With strong global partnerships and committed scientific and clinical investigators, Benitec Ltd aims to deliver a range of novel RNAi-based therapeutics to the clinic in partnership with the pharmaceutical industry.
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