NEW CASTLE, Pa., May 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Axion Power International Inc (OTC Bulletin Board: AXPW), the developer of advanced lead�-carbon PbC® batteries and energy storage systems, today announced results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2012.

Net product sales increased to $1.8 million in 2012 from $1.0 million in 2011. Net product sales increased in 2012 compared to 2011 primarily due to the sale of specialty lead-acid batteries to a single customer who will sell these batteries under their brand, as well as carry the cost of inventory and provide the raw materials for production of these batteries.

Net loss for 2012 was $2.3 million or $0.02 per basic and diluted share compared to $2.4 million or $0.03 per basic and diluted share in 2011.

Excluding the cash inflow of approximately $8.6 million in net proceeds from our sale of common stock in the first quarter of 2012, our net cash flow for 2012 was negative $2.1 million compared to a negative $2.9 million in 2011, a reduction in net cash burn of $0.8 million. 

Other highlights of our first quarter of 2012 include:

• In January, we were awarded a purchase order from Siltek, Inc. confirming their participation in a Zero Energy Building for the US Navy in the Washington D.C. Naval Yard.  Axion will be providing an array of its PbC batteries, system electronics and battery management system that together will serve as an example of Axion's "mini-cube".
• Also in January, we appointed Vani Dantam to the new position of Senior Vice President/Business Development, Sales and Marketing. Vani brings to our company an extraordinary background that includes broad battery industry experience and proven leadership.  He has expressed his confidence and personal commitment to the commercialization of our PbC Technology.
• In February, we successfully concluded a funding of approximately $8.6 million in net proceeds from the sale of our common stock. The proceeds from this raise will be used for the near term funding of working capital, capital expenditures and corporate operations.
• Last year we announced that we had received a series of orders for the production and immediate delivery of specialty flooded lead-acid batteries. This February we received guidance that the purchase orders are expected to continue at least through the end of 2012. The batteries are branded by the purchaser, and the purchaser will provide all raw materials and the carrying cost for the continuing order.
• In April, in an event subsequent to the end of the quarter, we received an initial large scale order from Norfolk Southern (NS) for PbC batteries for use in a battery powered locomotive. This $400K purchase order is part of an overall total purchase order of $475K.  This total purchase order will be shipped and deployed in the next 90 � 120 days.  To date, this is the largest single PbC battery order that we have received.

Chairman & CEO Thomas Granville commented, "It has only been about six weeks since our last earnings release, but the first quarter of 2012 has been a busy one. I have previously mentioned that the road to PbC commercialization has been longer than we anticipated, but that we were finding the market opportunities, for our PbC product applications, larger and more diverse than we had initially anticipated. The first quarter of 2012 provided further proof of the market diversity for our technology. We have received numerous new requests for proposals and quotations, more than half of which have come from new markets for our product. And although these are new opportunities in new markets, it is the historical advantage of PbC batteries that makes the equation work. The old standby values that are as important today as they ever were and include: high charge acceptance; fast recharge rate; voltage consistency in large string applications; superior 'extreme temperature' performance; and low cost on a per cycle basis."

Granville concluded, "when you add these advantages to the historical PbC attributes - ease of manufacture on existing equipment worldwide; high rate of recyclability (99.1%) and the strong safety record of lead-acid batteries, it is easy to see why we feel our technology will be one of the ultimate winners in numerous energy storage market applications. And it is easy to see why so many potential customers agree with that premise."

Conference Call / Webcast

Today at 11:00 am ET (8 a.m. Pacific) a conference call will be held to review the AXPW results.

Interested parties should call 877-317-6789 (domestic) or 412-317-6789 (international), to access the call. You may also access this call via the Internet by visiting the company's website at www.axionpower.com and clicking on the Investors link. Access to the webcast will be available for 90 days.

For those who are unavailable to listen to the live broadcast, a replay will be available for one week and can be accessed by dialing 877-344-7529 (domestic) and 412-317-0088 (international) and using conference number 10013320.

About Axion Power International Inc

Axion has developed and patented a next generation energy storage device that won the prestigious Frost & Sullivan Technology Award for North America in the field of lead-acid batteries. According to Frost & Sullivan, Axion's new PbC® batteries have "the potential to revitalize the lead-acid battery industry by breathing new life into an established technology that is not well suited to the requirements of important new applications like hybrid electric vehicles and renewable power."

Axion Power International, Inc. is the industry leader in the field of lead-acid-carbon energy storage technologies. Axion believes this new battery technology is the only class of advanced battery that can be assembled on existing lead-acid battery production lines throughout the world utilizing Axion's proprietary carbon electrodes. Axion's future goal, after filling their plant's lead-carbon battery production capacity, is to become the leading supplier of carbon electrode assemblies for the global lead-acid battery industry.

For more information, visit www.axionpower.com

Forward-looking Statements

Certain statements in this Press Release are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risk factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include the risk for the Company to complete its development work, as well as the risks inherent in commercializing a new product (including technology risks, market risks, financial risks and implementation risks, and other risks and uncertainties affecting the Company), as well as other risks that have been included in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, all of which are available at www.sec.gov. We disclaim any intention or obligation to revise any forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, financial estimates, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Contacts

Axion Power International Inc
Charles Trego, CFO
ctrego@axionpower.com
(724) 654-9300

Allen & Caron Inc
Rudy Barrio (Investors)
r.barrio@allencaron.com
(212) 691-8087

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