NxtGen Emission Controls, Inc. Announces the Appointment of Chris Benner as Vice President of Sales and Application Engineering

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 2, 2008 -- NxtGen Emission Controls, Inc. announced today the appointment of Chris Benner to vice president of sales and application engineering. The announcement was made by Jeremy Holt, president and chief executive officer of NxtGen. NxtGen is an emerging developer and supplier of emissions control devices and systems to address diesel emissions challenges related to NOx and particulate matter in light- and heavy-duty diesel engines.

"We are delighted to welcome Chris as vice president of sales and application engineering," Holt said. "His extensive 27-year sales, marketing and product management career in the supply of heavy-duty engine and drivetrain components, as well as his eight years as general manager of North American sales for ArvinMeritor, bring comprehensive experience to NxtGen that is ideally suited to the commercialization of this clean diesel technology."

According to Holt, Benner will be based in the Detroit vicinity and will lead the commercial and application engineering efforts to bring the company's technology to the automotive and heavy-duty markets.

"The company's technology is a true enabler to increase performance and economy to broad mobile and stationary engine markets. One of our initial target markets is the on-highway diesel market," Benner said. "In North America, end-users have been penalized with higher owning and operating costs as a result of 2007 U.S. EPA regulations. The same results will apply to Europe in 2009 with Euro 5 emission standards."

NxtGen's technology will assist tier-one suppliers with more efficient aftertreatment system designs. The company will collaborate with the engine manufacturer's technical community to allow them to focus on performance and economy as a primary driver instead of emissions. For vehicle manufacturers, NxtGen can improve packaging and decrease complexity, while also providing a platform for future cab power requirements. NxtGen will add value through the entire supply chain to the end-user fleet. When the entire engine system is optimized, the fleet will recognize better performance and economy compared to 2007 engines, as well as eliminate the supporting infrastructure for urea- based systems.

The NxtGen technology facilitates an elegant solution to NOx emission aftertreatment and particulate filter regeneration performance as an effective and viable alternative to selective catalytic reduction (SCR). The NxtGen system uses highly reactive "syngas" created from a fraction of diesel fuel and exhaust flow in a "syngas" non-catalytic generator. Therefore only "syngas" is needed to regenerate both the lean NOx trap and diesel particulate filter. This avoids the cost and complexity of urea-based SCR technology. Adoption of this system could liberate fuel economy improvements via engine recalibration and allow for lower temperature particulate filter regeneration.

NxtGen Emission Controls, Inc. is privately held by institutional investors led by Yaletown Venture Partners and has operations in Vancouver, British Columbia and the Detroit vicinity. The company is an emerging supplier and technology innovator in hydrocarbon fuel processing and is leveraging this technology to support clean diesel, advanced gasoline and alternative fuel engine applications.

Editor's Note:

Chris Benner is a native of Baltimore, Md. and currently resides in Rochester, Mich.

For an electronic image of Chris, please contact Jessica Killenberg at jkillenberg@bianchipr.com or (248) 269-1122.