News Release

For immediate release
December 2, 2002

ECBC SELLS FORMER SOUNDSTAGE TO PRIVATE SECTOR


Sydney, N.S. - Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation (ECBC) today announced that it has sold Filmscape, the former soundstage located in the Sydport Industrial Park, to DynaGen Technologies Incorporated of Sydney. 

Filmscape was established in 1998 as a pilot project to capitalize on the film and video production industry. Most recently it was used to produce the Pit Pony television series. With the cancellation of the series, efforts were made over a two-year period to find a private sector operator for the soundstage, who would be in a position to attract additional productions. None was found. 

In August 2002 ECBC publicly called for expressions of interest for the development of the 33,000 sq. ft. facility. As a result of this process, DynaGen Technologies Incorporated came forward with an offer to purchase the building that had been vacant for over two years.

DynaGen is a Sydney-based company founded in 1993, and has become North America’s fastest growing manufacturer of power generation controls. The company provides integrated electronic systems for the management of distributed power. With a core staff of 20 employees, DynaGen’s mission is to provide the supporting technology that drives the evolution of the growing distributed power market. The company is currently entering an expansion phase to meet growing demand for its electronic systems and switching equipment for the U.S. market.

“DynaGen is well positioned for even greater successes and growth in the coming years because of our extensive research and development, and our clear understanding of the fundamentals of the marketplace,” said Paul Wareham, CEO. “In addition to our current roster of successful products, we are preparing to release a number of new, proprietary products, aimed at meeting the global need for reliable power in the electronic economy. To meet our growth needs, we were in the market for a high quality facility to house our manufacturing, R&D, and marketing activities. We are pleased to have acquired this facility and look forward to establishing it as the company’s headquarters.”

The purchase price for the building is $535,000. This compares favorably with the suggested market value of $442,000, as determined by a professional appraiser commissioned by ECBC in 2002. ECBC will hold a mortgage on the facility for a period of five years, generating an additional $75,000 for the Corporation in interest.

“The sale of the former soundstage is in keeping with ECBC’s legislative mandate to promote economic development on Cape Breton Island,” said Rick Beaton, Vice-President of ECBC. “Filmscape was a pilot project that served the community well during the production of Pit Pony, however without a full-time production or regular stream of feature films, a valuable resource remained idle and unproductive. I am pleased to see a successful local company like DynaGen acquire the property and put it to good use.”

Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation offers programs in support of economic development initiatives and is responsible for delivering ACOA's programs on Cape Breton Island and in the Mulgrave area.


FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT:

D.A. Landry 
ECBC Communications 
Tel: (902) 564-3617