Altair chief: Performance will silence the skeptics

With short-sellers' positions representing about 5 percent of the float in his company's stock,Altair Nanotechnologies President Alan Gotcher took on the skeptics last week.

He promised that investors in the Renobased company will see what he called "substantial revenue growth" during this year and said the company expects to make significant progress with a couple of its products.

But bound by confidentiality agreements with the manufacturers who are studying deals with Altair, Gotcher couldn't provide any details, and the company's common stock was down more than 5 percent within hours of his comments.

That's not unusual for shares of the highly volatile stock, which have ranged from 95 cents to $6.52 during the past 52 weeks.

And the abundant short sellers who are betting the company's stock will decline in coming months last week appeared to be focusing on Altair's announcement that it struck a deal for its battery-materials technology with Advanced Battery Technologies Inc., a U.S.

and Chinese firm.

The skeptics focused on the two-person office of Advanced Battery Technologies, wondering how serious the company can be.

But Gotcher said the Advanced Battery employs more than 1,200 at a factory in China.

How big is the deal? "Somewhere between not succeeding and being a very big deal," Gotcher said, adding that financial and technical details will remain under wraps.

Altair last week also said it signed a memo of understanding to create a joint venture with Bateman Engineering, a company based in the Netherlands, to manufacture titanium dioxide pigments for paint.

Altair will contribute its technology; Bateman will bring expertise in plant design and construction.

Gotcher said investors should expect announcements about projects undertaken by the joint venture before the end of this year.

He said investors need to be patient because the large companies with which Altair is negotiating tend to move slowly.

And he said new materials such as those developed by his company generally take a long time to create and a long time to sell.

"We have discussions under way with some very large multi-national companies," he said, but again noted the company isn't able to provide any details because of confidentiality agreements.

Gotcher said Altair's cash position about $30 million on hand last week gives it breathing space while it awaits the flow of revenue from

its products.