10-K/A
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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, DC 20549

 

 

Form 10-K/A

FOR ANNUAL AND TRANSITION REPORTS PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)

OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

(Mark One)

x ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009

OR

 

¨ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from                          to                         

Commission file number: 001-32393

 

 

ENVIRONMENTAL POWER CORPORATION

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware   75-3117389

(State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization)

 

(IRS Employer

Identification Number)

120 White Plains Road, 6th Floor, Tarrytown New York   10591
(Address of principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:

(914) 631-1435

 

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

 

Title of Each Class

 

Name of Exchange on Which Registered

Common Stock, $0.01 par value per share   The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

      

 

(Title of Class)

 

 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.    Yes  ¨    No  x

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.    Yes  ¨    No  x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    Yes  x    No  ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Website, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).    Yes  ¨    No  ¨

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.  ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer or a smaller reporting company. See definitions “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act (Check one).

 

Large accelerated filer   ¨    Accelerated filer   ¨
Non-accelerated filer   x    Smaller reporting company   x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).    Yes  ¨    No  x

The aggregate market value of the registrant’s common stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant as of June 30, 2009, was approximately $7.3 million based on $0.52, the price at which the registrant’s common stock was last sold on June 30, 2009, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter.

As of February 28, 2010, the registrant had 15,708,591 shares of common stock outstanding.

 

 

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Not Applicable.

 

 

 


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EXPLANATORY NOTE

This amendment on Form 10-K/A to the Annual Report of Environmental Power Corporation on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 (the “Annual Report”) of Environmental Power Corporation (“we,” “us,” the “Company” or “EPC”) filed on March 30, 2010 with the Securities & Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) is being filed solely for the purpose of including information that was to be incorporated by reference from the Company’s definitive proxy statement pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. The Company will not file its proxy statement within 120 days of its fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 and is, therefore, amending and restating in their entirety Items 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 of Part III of the Annual Report. In addition, in connection with the filing of this Amendment and pursuant to Rules 13a-14(a) or 15d-14(a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, we are including with this Amendment certain currently dated certifications.

Except as described above, no other amendments are being made to the Annual Report. This Form 10-K/A does not reflect events occurring after the March 30, 2010 filing of our Annual Report, and does not modify or update the disclosure contained in the Annual Report in any way other than as required to reflect the amendments discussed above and reflected below.


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ENVIRONMENTAL POWER CORPORATION

ANNUAL REPORT

ON FORM 10-K/A

INDEX

 

PART III

Item 10.

   Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance    1

Item 11.

   Executive Compensation    4

Item 12.

   Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters    19

Item 13.

   Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence    23

Item 14.

   Principal Accountant Fees and Services    24

SIGNATURES

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PART III

 

ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Directors

Roger S. Ballentine, age 47, has been a director since 2007. Mr. Ballentine has been the President and principal consultant of Green Strategies Inc., an energy and environmental policy consulting firm, since February 2001. Previously, Mr. Ballentine served in the Clinton Administration, serving from 1999 until early 2001 as Chairman of the White House Climate Change Task Force and Deputy Assistant to the President for Environmental Initiatives, and from 1998 to 1999 as Special Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs. Prior to that time, Mr. Ballentine was a partner with the Washington, D.C. law firm Patton, Boggs, L.L.P. Mr. Ballentine is a member of the boards of directors of the American Council on Renewable Energy, the Biomass Energy Research Center, the Solar Electric Light Fund and the American Bird Conservancy, all of which are non-profit organizations. Mr. Ballentine received a B.A. in Economics, magna cum laude, from the University of Connecticut, and a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School. In 2008, Mr. Ballentine was a visiting lecturer at the Harvard Law School. Mr. Ballentine served on the Board of Directors of China Energy Recovery, Inc., a publicly traded company, from 2007 through 2009. Mr. Ballentine was chosen to serve as a director due to his extensive experience with respect to environmental matters and renewable energy, in particular during his government service.

John R. Cooper, age 62, has been a director since 2003. Since 2004, Mr. Cooper has been a principal, director and Chief Financial Officer of Ocean Renewable Power Company, LLC, a venture developing technology and projects to produce electric power from ocean tidal and river currents. Prior to 2002, Mr. Cooper was Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of PG&E National Energy Group (and predecessor companies), where he oversaw all aspects of the structuring and arranging of financing for the construction and acquisition of 8,500 MW of fossil, hydro and renewable electric generating projects and gas pipelines. During his 14 year tenure, these financings were awarded 10 “deal of the year” citations. Previously, he spent eight years with Bechtel Financing Services, Inc., where he was responsible for structuring and arranging financing for large infrastructure and energy projects. He spent three years as chief financial officer of a European oil, shipping, banking and venture capital group in Geneva, Switzerland. He is currently a Director of MachGen, LLC, TUUSSO, LLC, SkyFuel, LLC and Ocean Renewable Power Company, LLC and an advisory director of Republic Financial Corporation’s private equity group. Mr. Cooper holds a bachelor’s degree from Trinity College (Connecticut), a master’s degree in development economics and international studies from the Johns Hopkins Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, and a MBA in finance from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. Mr. Cooper was chosen to serve as a director due to his extensive financial accounting experience as well as his experience with the development and financing of power projects.

Joseph E. Cresci, age 67, is a founder of our company and has served as our Chairman since its inception in 1982 and as Chief Executive Officer from 1982 to July 2003. Mr. Cresci’s role as Chairman became a non-executive position in June 2006, and he retired from employment with our company in September 2006. Mr. Cresci now serves as an independent consultant in the area of energy project development. Prior to founding Environmental Power, Mr. Cresci held other senior management positions including CEO/Owner of a distribution business and President/COO of a subsidiary of a New York Stock Exchange listed company. Mr. Cresci holds an A.B. degree from Princeton University and a law degree from Cornell Law School and was a member of the Pennsylvania and Massachusetts bars. In continuing to nominate Mr. Cresci to serve as a director, the Company values the perspective and experience developed over 28 years as a director of the Company that Mr. Cresci brings to his service on the board.

Lon Hatamiya, age 51, has been a director since 2005. Mr. Hatamiya has been a Director of Navigant Consulting, Inc., a publicly traded, specialized, independent consulting firm providing litigation, financial, healthcare, energy and operational consulting services to government agencies, legal counsel and large companies, since July 2007. From January 2004 to July 2007, Mr. Hatamiya was a Director of LEGC, LLC, an international expert consulting firm serving businesses and public agencies specializing in economic analysis and development, intellectual property valuation, international trade and related matters. From December 2003 to March 2004, he was an advisor to Declare Yourself, a non-profit, non-partisan organization focused on motivating young voters. From January 1999 to November 2003, Mr. Hatamiya was Secretary of the State of California’s Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency and Chairman of the Board of the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank. From September 1993 to January 1999, Mr. Hatamiya held various positions in the United States Department of Agriculture, including being Vice President of the Credit Commodity Corporation, and Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service and the Foreign Agricultural Service. He also practiced law with the international

 

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firm of Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe. Mr. Hatamiya holds a B.A. in Economics from Harvard University, an M.B.A. in International Business and Entrepreneurial Studies from the UCLA Anderson Graduate School of Management, and a J.D. from the UCLA School of Law. Mr. Hatamiya was chosen to serve as a director due to his experience as a consultant to a wide variety of enterprises as well as his knowledge of and experience with economics, finance and agriculture.

Richard E. Kessel, age 60, has been our President and Chief Executive Officer since July 2006 and a director since 2007. From October 2003 to July 2006, Mr. Kessel was President and Chief Executive Officer of Bedford Partners, a consulting firm assisting private equity firms in acquiring energy, water, waste and other service related enterprises. From July 2002 to September 2003, Mr. Kessel served as the President and Chief Executive Officer for North America, and a Senior Vice President, of Suez Environment, an international company focused on water, wastewater and waste services. The North American operations overseen by Mr. Kessel were comprised of five companies with over 9,200 employees, $1.3 billion in annual revenues and $1.5 billion in assets. Mr. Kessel served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Trigen Energy Corporation, an energy services company with $1 billion in assets, $533 million in annual revenue and 34 operating facilities in 22 states, from April 1, 2000 to June 30, 2002, after serving as its Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer from December 1993 to March 31, 2000. Previously, Mr. Kessel was President and Chief Executive Officer of United Thermal Corporation (acquired by Trigen), which owned and operated the district energy systems in Baltimore, Boston, Philadelphia and St. Louis, and Chief Operating Officer of Sithe Energies, Inc., a developer of independent power projects in the United States and global markets. Mr. Kessel serves on the board of directors of ISO New England, Inc., the operator of the New England region’s bulk power system and wholesale electricity markets. Mr. Kessel holds a B.S. in electrical engineering from Manhattan College, completed the course work for a masters in finance from New York University’s Stern School of Business and received an advanced management degree from the Wharton School of Business Executive Program. We are required by the terms of Mr. Kessel’s employment agreement to nominate him for election as a director at each annual meeting of stockholders held during his tenure as President and Chief Executive Officer. Nevertheless, we believe that Mr. Kessel’s business acumen and perspective and insights into our company as a result of his service as President and Chief Executive Officer make him especially well-suited to service as a director.

Steven Kessner, age 57, has been a director since 2005. Mr. Kessner has been the Chairman of the Board and President of The R.E. Group since 1981. In this capacity, Mr. Kessner has overseen the management and operation of the various real estate holding companies and construction and management companies of which The R.E. Group is the parent. Mr. Kessner is the founder of Uncle Steve’s Camp, a non-profit organization for underprivileged children. Mr. Kessner has served on various non-profit boards and has been a volunteer fundraiser for numerous organizations throughout his career. Mr. Kessner holds a B.S. in Economics from Dartmouth College and served as President of his Dartmouth College class. Mr. Kessner was chosen to serve as a director due to his demonstrated business judgment over a successful career in real estate.

August Schumacher, Jr., age 70, has been a director since 2002. Since January 2003, Mr. Schumacher has served as a consultant to W.K. Kellogg Foundation, a consultant advisor to SJH & Company, Inc. and development advisor to Cantera Partners, LLC. Mr. Schumacher served as the third-highest ranking official in the United States Department of Agriculture in the Farm and Foreign Agricultural Service from 1997 to 2001. During this time, he was also President of the USDA’s Commodity Credit Corporation. Prior to his appointment, he directed the Department’s Foreign Agricultural Service. Earlier, Mr. Schumacher was the Senior Agricultural Project Manager for World Bank and also served as the Commissioner of Food and Agriculture for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Mr. Schumacher is currently a member of the 21st Century Sustainable Agriculture Task Force of the National Academy of Sciences. In 2007, Mr. Schumacher, among others, oversaw the preparation of the Task Force Report of the Chicago Council of Global Affairs, titled “Modernizing America’s Food and Farm Policy: Vision for a New Direction.” Mr. Schumacher is also chairman of the Wholesome Wave Foundation of Westport, Connecticut, a non-profit organization, and serves on the board of GrainPro, LLC of Concord, Massachusetts, a privately held company. Mr. Schumacher was chosen to serve as a director due to his extensive experience with agriculture, a key constituency for our business, and its interactions with government.

Kamlesh R. Tejwani, age 49, has served as a director since 2003 and has been our non-executive Vice Chairman since July 2006. Since July 2008, Mr. Tejwani has served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of AllGreen Energy Pte Ltd., a company focused on the development of renewable energy projects in India designed to generate electricity from biomass. From July 2003 to July 2006, Mr. Tejwani served as our President and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Tejwani served as President of Target Capital Corporation, a private equity firm, from May

 

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1996 to June 2003. His responsibilities included structuring and implementing investments for an offshore investment fund and assisting operating companies in operational and strategic planning. From April 1990 until December 1995, he served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Air-Cure Technologies, Inc., a manufacturer and marketer of air pollution control systems. Mr. Tejwani was originally elected to our board in connection with his employment as our President and Chief Executive Officer, and continues to be selected to serve on our board given his long-standing relationship with our company and his demonstrated experience in the development of renewable energy projects.

Robert I. Weisberg, age 63, has been a director since 1994. From 2004 to 2008, Mr. Weisberg was Chairman and CEO of Oceans Casino Cruises, Inc., an operator of casino cruise ships. From 1996 to 2004, he was President and Chief Executive Officer of Alco Financial Services, LLC, a commercial asset-based lending company. Mr. Weisberg was the former President and Chief Executive Officer of Pro-Care Financial Group, Inc., and has held the positions of President and CEO of Fleet Credit Corporation and Executive Vice-President of Fleet Financial Group. A graduate of Northeastern University, he received the Executive Award from a joint program sponsored by Williams College and the Harvard Graduate School of Business. Past Chairman and President of the Commercial Finance Association, he is presently a member of the Commercial Finance Association’s Education Foundation. Mr. Weisberg has served on numerous other public, corporate and non-profit community boards. Mr. Weisberg continues to be selected to serve on our board due to the perspective and experience developed over his more than 16-year relationship with our company as well as his expertise and experience in finance.

Executive Officers

Information regarding our executive officers may be found under the caption “Executive Officers of the Registrant” appearing at the end of Part I of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009, to which this Form 10-K/A relates. Such information is incorporated herein by reference.

Audit Committee

We have a separately designated standing Audit Committee established in accordance with Section 3(a) (58) (A) of the Exchange Act. The members of the Audit Committee for 2009 were Messrs. Cooper, Hatamiya and Ballentine. Mr. Cooper serves as chair of the Audit Committee.

Audit Committee Financial Expert

The Board of Directors has determined that John R. Cooper is, and has designated Mr. Cooper as, the “Audit Committee Financial Expert” as defined by Item 407(d)(5)(ii) of Regulation S-K of the Exchange Act and determined that he is independent within the meaning of Item 407(a) of Regulation S-K of the Exchange Act.

Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance

Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 requires our directors, executive officers and the holders of more than 10% of our common stock to file with the SEC initial reports of ownership of our common stock and other equity securities on a Form 3 and reports of changes in such ownership on a Form 4 or Form 5. Officers, directors and 10% stockholders are required by SEC regulations to furnish us with copies of all Section 16(a) forms they file. To our knowledge, based solely upon a review of the copies of such forms furnished to us for the year ended December 31, 2009, and the information provided to us by those persons required to file such reports, no such person failed to file the forms required by Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act on a timely basis, except as follows:

 

   

Mr. Weisberg filed a Form 4 on April 3, 2009 with respect to his purchase of 3,400 shares of our common stock on March 31, 2009.

 

   

Each of Mr. Kessel, Mr. Thomas and Mr. Haines filed a Form 4 on June 30, 2009, with respect to the surrender to us of 2,733, 829 and 903 shares, respectively, of our common stock on May 1, 2009 to satisfy certain income tax withholding obligations in connection with the vesting of restricted stock awards.

Code of Ethics

We have adopted a code of business conduct and ethics that applies to our directors, officers (including our principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, or persons performing similar functions) and our employees. A copy of our code of business conduct and ethics is available on

 

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our website at www.environmentalpower.com under “Investor Relations—Corporate Governance”. We intend to post on our website all disclosures that are required by applicable law, the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission or NASDAQ listing standards concerning any amendment to, or waiver from, our code of business conduct and ethics.

 

ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

INFORMATION ABOUT EXECUTIVE AND DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

Compensation Discussion and Analysis

This compensation discussion describes the material elements of compensation for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2009, that was awarded to, earned by, or paid to each of our current and former executive officers identified in the Summary Compensation Table below as our named executive officers. This compensation discussion primarily focuses on the last completed fiscal year, but we also describe certain compensation actions taken before or after the last completed fiscal year to enhance the understanding of this disclosure.

The Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors oversees our executive compensation program. In this role, the Compensation Committee reviews and approves, or recommends for approval by the full Board, all compensation decisions relating to our executive officers. The Committee also oversees our stock-based compensation plans and programs.

Objectives and Philosophy of Our Executive Compensation Program

The objective of our executive compensation program is to align the interests of management with the interests of stockholders by tying a substantial portion of overall compensation opportunities provided to executive officers to the achievement of business objectives and individual performance. Our policy is to offer competitive compensation packages that will permit us to attract and retain individuals with superior abilities, and to motivate and reward such individuals on the basis of corporate performance in an appropriate fashion that is in the long-term interests of Environmental Power and its stockholders.

Our company continues to develop. As it does, we have been working to design and implement formal criteria and programs to reward executive officers based upon an assessment of corporate, business-unit and individual performance. As a result of these efforts, in March 2008, our Compensation Committee adopted our Annual Incentive Management Plan and our Long-Term Incentive Plan, in which our executive officers participate, in addition to various compensation plans for other employees other than our executive officers. The Annual Incentive Management Plan and the Long-Term Incentive Plan are described in more detail below. Pursuant to these plans, we expect to evaluate corporate- and business unit-performance by reviewing the extent to which strategic and business-plan goals are met, including such factors as maintaining capital and operating budgets and timely accomplishment of business-development objectives, as applicable. We expect to evaluate individual performance by reviewing attainment of specified personal objectives and the degree to which teamwork and our other values are fostered.

As a result of our recent efforts to formalize compensation practices, we have committed to the following compensation philosophy, to the extent consistent with financial resources:

 

   

We will strive to provide competitive compensation programs that will help to attract highly qualified individuals necessary to grow our company, and then to retain and motivate these individuals to achieve higher levels of performance.

 

   

Compensation programs will emphasize a “pay-for-performance” concept, in which an individual’s future compensation growth and career advancement are dependent upon maintaining and exceeding our recognized levels of quality and performance while supporting our strategic goals. Future monetary growth is dependent upon company performance as well as individual performance.

 

   

We will provide a compensation package consisting of base salary, incentives, and benefits that are consistent with similar positions in recognized competitors and start-up/growth companies, with each component addressing individual, team and company performance, competitive conditions and our overall financial performance. Our goal is to attract the most qualified applicants to fuel our growth. Future salary increases will be based on an individual’s evaluated performance against pre-established objectives, as well as our performance and ability to pay.

 

   

Base salary programs will be will be targeted “at market” (50th percentile), and total cash compensation will be targeted “aggressive to market” (up to the 75th percentile) in order to recognize our employees’ direct impact on our business goals.

 

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Our core belief is that the opportunity to earn competitive incentives will help drive the focus of business. Competitive incentive compensation will be based upon the achievement of expected performance targets, with upside potential tied to exceptional contribution and surpassing goals. Measurable performance goals and objectives will be developed by our executive management team and approved by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors, consistent with our identified business strategies and financial objectives.

 

   

We will provide a quality and supportive work environment with challenging career opportunities and the necessary resources to enhance growth in order to attract, retain, and motivate a highly qualified and experienced staff. Compensation programs shall encourage employees to maximize their capabilities through personal growth and job development in order to foster a culture that is team focused and rewards both individual and business success.

This compensation philosophy will apply to all employees, including our executive officers. We believe that this compensation philosophy will serve as the basis for the development of new or modified compensation programs and will be used as a tool to help meet identified needs relating to motivation and retention. In practice, we expect that the implementation of this philosophy will have the following implications:

 

   

The marketplace must be considered with regard to establishing competitive compensation levels, including base salary, benefits and incentives. See the discussion under “—Comparative Compensation Review Process and Benchmarking”, below.

 

   

Employees should have the ability to earn total cash compensation above market levels based on exceptional performance. Incentive payouts, where applicable, must be determined in a manner that is ethical, and is reflective of performance achieved against objective measures.

 

   

We must develop and maintain clear salary administration plan documents to ensure the consistent and proper application of all programs.

 

   

Except for contractual obligations, performance should be the primary determinant of salary increases and incentive bonuses. Increases should be based on objective, quantifiable performance measures, where possible, with a minor portion based on discretionary factors so that subjectivity is limited.

 

   

Only those employees whose performance meets acceptable standards will receive increases, and the size of the increase will be dependent upon the individual’s evaluated performance.

 

   

Specific, measurable performance criteria for each job must be set on an annual basis, consistent with our strategic corporate objectives, and the achievement of results for each criteria must be tracked, in order to improve accountability for end results due to the individual’s ability to directly affect the amount of his/her salary increases.

 

   

A formal performance appraisal tool must be maintained that offers uniform, dependable evaluations that outline the desired performance expectations and accurately reflects each employee’s contribution and performance, and which is monitored to make sure the program is consistently applied and equitable to all employees.

 

   

Management must be regularly trained in the use of the performance evaluation program and be held accountable for completing evaluations both accurately and on a timely basis.

Comparative Compensation Review Process and Benchmarking

We do not believe that compensation levels should be controlled by benchmarking. However, we believe that information regarding pay practices at other companies is useful in two respects. First, our compensation practices need to be competitive in the marketplace. Second, marketplace information is one of the many factors that we consider in assessing the reasonableness of compensation. Accordingly, from time to time we have compared our compensation packages—including levels, components, and mix of compensation types—with those of other companies in the alternative energy industry, through reviews of survey data and information gleaned from filings of publicly traded companies and through information compiled and analyzed by others. Going forward, we intend to compare the compensation of our employees to the marketplace within two specific peer groups: (1) alternative energy, energy development and production and water/wastewater treatment companies and (2) start-up and emerging bio-technology companies, and to perform these comparisons at least every two or three years. In addition, we intend to identify a peer group and maintain updated job descriptions for each unique job in order to benchmark positions appropriately.

 

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While such information may be a useful guide for comparative purposes, we believe that a successful compensation program also requires the application of judgment and subjective determinations of individual performance. Review of this information and these factors forms the basis of management’s compensation recommendations to the Compensation Committee and the Committee’s decision-making.

Use of Consultants

The Compensation Committee’s charter grants it the authority to retain outside advisors, including compensation consultants, and approve their compensation. Environmental Power is obligated to pay the Compensation Committee’s advisors and consultants. Although management is involved in coordinating with these advisors with respect to the provision of their services, these advisors and consultants report directly to the Compensation Committee. With respect to non-employee director compensation, the full Board of Directors has acted directly.

Thus, in 2007, the Compensation Committee and management sought the advice of outside counsel and also engaged Brian Foley & Company, Inc., an independent executive compensation consulting firm, to advise the Committee on certain matters relating to stock-based compensation. Also in 2007, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee engaged Heidrick & Struggles, a leading executive search firm, to assist it in evaluating best practices for corporate governance, including such matters as board composition, director stock ownership guidelines and related matters.

In February 2008, the Compensation Committee engaged Harry Schum, an independent compensation consultant, to assist the Compensation Committee and management in the formulation of more formal incentive compensation programs for our executive officers as well as all other full-time employees.

We did not engage any compensation consultants in 2009.

Elements of Executive Compensation

Compensation for our executives has generally consisted of the following elements:

 

   

base salary;

 

   

bonuses;

 

   

long-term incentive compensation via stock-based awards;

 

   

health, dental, life and disability insurance and other traditional employee benefits, and executive perquisites; and

 

   

Severance and change-in-control arrangements.

Historically, we have not had any formal policy or target for allocating compensation between long-term and short-term compensation, between cash and non-cash compensation or among the different forms of non-cash compensation. Instead, the Compensation Committee, with input as requested from senior management, has determined subjectively what it believes to be the appropriate level and mix of the various compensation components. The mix of compensation has also been impacted in many cases by the course of negotiations with the executive in question in connection with his hiring. Ultimately, the Compensation Committee’s objective in allocating between annual and long-term compensation opportunities is to ensure adequate base compensation to attract and retain personnel, while providing incentives to maximize long-term value for our Company and its stockholders. Therefore, we have provided cash compensation in the form of base salary to meet estimated competitive salary norms and, to the extent our cash position has permitted, have rewarded individual performance on an annual basis in the form of bonus compensation. We provide non-cash compensation, principally in the form of equity-based grants such as stock options and, more recently, stock appreciation rights and restricted stock awards, which are intended to create incentives for the achievement both of specific objectives and/or of long-term strategic goals.

In March 2008 the Compensation Committee, acting upon the recommendations of management and Mr. Schum, adopted the compensation philosophy described above. In addition, as part of its effort to formalize our compensation practices generally, including with respect to our executives, the Compensation Committee adopted our Annual Incentive Management Plan and Long-Term Incentive Plan.

 

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The purpose of the Annual Incentive Management Plan is to align the interests of management with corporate performance goals by focusing management on the achievement of annual financial and operational objectives with competitive financial incentives. Full-time employees not participating in other incentive programs will be eligible under the plan, with the extent of participation to be determined by position in our company. Pursuant to the plan, the board of directors, in cooperation with our executive team, will set annual corporate financial objectives. Individual performance will also be considered, and threshold and maximum levels of performance will also be set. Under the plan, our Chief Executive Officer will have a target award of 50% of base salary; other executive officers will have target awards of 35% of base salary. Our Chief Executive Officer’s award will be based 100% on the achievement of corporate goals; the other executive officers’ awards will be based 75% on the achievement of corporate goals, and 25% on individual performance. Particular corporate objectives will be assigned a relative weight, as may also be the case with individual performance goals. Awards under the plan will be based on the overall level of achievement of both corporate and individual goals, and will be paid following the audit of year-end financials. Participants in the plan must be employed at the time of payout to receive an award. The plan can be modified or terminated at any time, is strictly a guideline, and is not binding on us. The Compensation Committee will determine awards to our Chief Executive Officer and other executives.

The Long-Term Incentive Plan was adopted pursuant to the Compensation Committee’s discretion under our existing 2005 Equity Incentive Plan and 2006 Equity Incentive Plan, to set the terms and amounts of awards under such plans, subject to the limitations set forth in such plans. The purpose of this plan is to provide a long-term incentive plan based on the financial growth of our company, to foster teamwork and an entrepreneurial spirit among participants and to provide a long-term compensation tool to motivate, reward and retain participants. Our Chief Executive Officer, our other executive officers and those additional persons designed by our Chief Executive Officer, are eligible to participate in the Long-Term Incentive Plan. Awards pursuant to the plan are expected to be made annually, and may be a combination of different long-term vehicles, including restricted stock awards, incentive stock options and stock appreciation rights, based upon guidelines considered by the Compensation Committee on an annual basis. Such awards will be made under our 2005 Equity Incentive Plan or 2006 Equity Incentive Plan, and awards pursuant to the Long-Term Incentive Plan will be subject to the terms the equity incentive plan under which they are granted, including any limitations on awards set forth therein. Awards pursuant to the plan generally will vest in three substantially equal annual installments beginning on the first anniversary of the grant date. The value of such awards will be determined based on the fair market value at the time of grant, utilizing a modified Black-Scholes methodology where appropriate. The target value of each annual award (as a percentage of base salary) will be established by the Compensation Committee for our Chief Executive Officer, will be 30% for the other executive officers, and will be discretionary for any other employees designated for participation in the plan by our Chief Executive Officer. All awards will vest in full upon the death of total disability of a participant, or upon a change in control of our company, and will be forfeited, whether or not vested, upon any termination for cause. Awards vesting upon death or disability are to be paid or exercised within 12 months following such event. The Long-Term Incentive Plan can be modified or terminated at any time, is strictly a guideline, and is not binding on us. The Compensation Committee will determine awards to our Chief Executive Officer and other executives.

Base Salary. Salary for our executives is generally set by reviewing compensation levels for comparable positions in the market, as described above, and the historical compensation levels of our executives. Salaries may then be adjusted from time to time, based upon market changes, actual corporate and individual performance and promotions or changes in responsibilities. Base salaries and other elements of compensation may also be mandated by the terms of employment and other agreements entered into with our executives, as described under “Information about Executive and Director Compensation—Employment and Severance Agreements.” In such cases, base salaries have at first been determined by arms-length negotiations with these executives, generally in connection with their initial hiring. Going forward, we will continue to seek to set salaries that are competitive with the marketplace, recognizing the skill and experience of each executive, his or her level of performance, and his or her responsibilities as compared to similarly situated employees at competing firms. While it will be our primary objective to offer and maintain base salaries that are competitive with the marketplace, we will reserve the right to pay premium base salaries to secure the services of individuals with certain skill sets or to fill positions in key markets that are vital to our business objectives.

 

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Bonuses. Bonuses, as well as any annual increases in salaries, are expected to be based on actual corporate and individual performance compared to targeted performance criteria and various subjective performance criteria. Given what we believe are competitive base salaries, as well as our stage of development and cash position, we generally have not paid cash bonuses to our top executives from 2002 through 2006. We did, however, pay bonuses to our executives in respect of 2007, based on their individual performance. Due to our company’s financial condition, no bonuses were paid in respect of 2008, and no bonuses will be paid in respect of 2009. Going forward, we expect to pay bonuses based upon criteria and corporate and individual performance goals established in accordance with the Annual Incentive Management Plan described above, subject to the availability of cash resources to do so. The objective of the Annual Incentive Management Plan will be to:

 

   

reward participants for achievement of short term financial and operating plan business goals;

 

   

establish goals that are challenging but attainable and linked to corporate, division and individual objectives based on the ability of the participant to influence results;

 

   

leverage award opportunities to incent over-achievement of the operating plan objectives; and

 

   

provide competitive cash opportunity versus the marketplace

We intend to communicate the annual incentive opportunities under this plan, and the accomplishments necessary to achieve these incentives, to each participating employee early in each plan year. Notwithstanding the adoption of the Annual Incentive Management Plan in early 2008, while specific performance goals for 2008 were initially identified, the goal setting process was hampered by quickly changing circumstances and deteriorating financial market conditions, which resulted in a shift in the Company’s priorities. These conditions persisted into 2009, and in 2009 the Company’s financial condition also deteriorated. As a result, specific performance goals for 2008 and 2009 were not implemented.

Long-Term Incentive Compensation via Stock-Based Awards. Compensation for executive officers also includes the long-term incentives afforded by stock options and other equity-based awards. Our stock option and equity-based award program is designed to align the long-term interests of our employees and our stockholders and assist in the retention of executives. The size of stock-based awards is generally intended to reflect the executive’s position and the executive’s expected contributions. In 2009, we made stock-based awards in accordance with the terms of the Long-Term Incentive Plan described above. This compensation plan is designed to accomplish several objectives:

 

   

focus participants on the strategic plan performance objectives that are critical to the success of the company over a three-year period, which objectives are linked to the achievement of business and financial goals that are designed to create value for shareholders;

 

   

encourage retention of participants through reward opportunities that require continued service; and

 

   

encourage teamwork and “one company” focus by employees regardless of their business unit and reward sustained contribution for attainment of strategic objectives.

As this plan is based on total company strategic results, the participation is limited to those whose actions play a direct role in the long-term success of the company, including our executive officer and others designated by our Chief Executive Officer.

Insurance, Other Employee Benefits and Perquisites. We maintain broad-based benefits and perquisites that are provided to all employees, including health insurance, life and disability insurance, dental insurance and a 401(k) plan. Under our 401(k) plan, so long as the employee is employed through the last day of the year in question, we generally make a matching 401(k) contribution of 50% of the employee’s contribution, up to 6% of the employee’s salary for the year, with a maximum matching contribution of $7,500. In 2009 we did not make a matching corporate contribution. In addition, we provide certain perquisites to executives, which are generally detailed in their employment agreements or offer letters. Going forward, we expect to offer supplemental benefits and perquisites to designated executives, which supplement broad-based benefit programs. The objectives of this supplemental benefits and perquisites program will be to:

 

   

Provide executives with competitive benefits and perquisites versus the marketplace;

 

   

Replace benefits that are restricted due to ERISA and/or Internal Revenue Code limitations;

 

   

Attract and retain experienced senior executives;

 

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Assist executives in accomplishing job responsibilities; and

 

   

Supplement executive’s retirement benefits.

Severance and Change-in-Control Arrangements. Compensation for executive officers also includes severance and change-in-control arrangements, which are generally reflected in the employment agreements for such officers. These arrangements, like other elements of executive compensation, are structured with regard to practices at comparable companies for similarly-situated officers and in a manner we believe is likely to attract and retain high quality executive talent. Changes to existing severance arrangements are also sometimes negotiated with departing executives in exchange for transition services and/or general releases. The severance and change-in-control arrangements currently in place with our current executive officers are described in greater detail in this section under the headings “—Employment and Severance Arrangements,” and “—Summary of Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change of Control.”

Other Corporate Policies Relating to Executive Compensation

Role of Executive Officers in Determining or Recommending Executive and Director Compensation. Management plays an important role in support of the Compensation Committee’s determination of executive compensation. The most significant aspects of management’s role are:

 

   

evaluating key-employee performance;

 

   

recommending business performance targets and objectives; and

 

   

recommending salary levels and stock-based awards.

Our President and Chief Executive Officer assists the chair of the Compensation Committee in establishing the agenda for Committee meetings. Management also prepares meeting information for each Compensation Committee meeting. At the Committee’s request, our President and Chief Executive Officer also participates in Compensation Committee meetings to provide input if and as sought by the Committee, including but not limited to:

 

   

background information regarding our strategic objectives and progress toward the attainment of those objectives;

 

   

information on the performance of the senior executive officers; and

 

   

compensation recommendations as to senior executive officers other than the Chief Executive Officer.

Ultimately, however, all executive compensation decisions are made, or recommended to the Board of Directors, by the Compensation Committee, which makes such decisions and recommendations after considering management’s recommendations, available market data, and, in some cases, input from outside advisors to the Committee. In doing so the Committee engages in deliberations in executive session without the presence of the Chief Executive Officer or any other members of management.

The forms and amounts of non-employee director compensation in 2009 were unchanged from those set in 2007, which were determined by the full Board of Directors following a review of data provided by Heidrick & Struggles, as described above. However, in September 2008, the Board unanimously directed management to defer payment of cash compensation due to Board members until further notice, in order to conserve cash. We have been accruing these amounts as they become due.

Impact of Tax Treatment on Compensation Decisions. Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, generally disallows a tax deduction for compensation in excess of $1.0 million paid to our chief executive officer and our four other most highly paid executive officers. Qualifying “performance-based” compensation is not subject to the deduction limitation if specified requirements are met. We periodically review the potential consequences of Section 162(m) and generally intend to structure our executive compensation to comply with Section 162(m). However, the Compensation Committee may, in its judgment, authorize compensation payments that do not comply with the exemptions in Section 162(m) when it believes that such payments are appropriate to attract and retain executive talent.

Security Ownership Requirements or Guidelines. While we believe it is important for our executives to have an equity stake in our company in order to help align their interests with those of our stockholders, we do not have any equity ownership guidelines for our executive officers, other than as contemplated by the Long-Term Incentive Plan. We also do not have any equity ownership guidelines for our non-employee directors. However, board

 

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members and executive officers are encouraged to acquire, during open trading windows, shares of our common stock to the extent consistent with their individual economic circumstances, and directors and executive officers have done so.

Discussion of Specific Compensation Arrangements for 2009

On August 19, 2009, the Compensation Committee approved the following compensation arrangements with our executive officers:

Awards under Long-term Incentive Plan

The Compensation Committee approved combined awards of stock appreciation rights and restricted stock to the Company’s executive officers. Pursuant to the guidelines set forth in our 2008 Long-Term Incentive Plan, in the case of Mr. Kessel the award reflects a value of 65% of his salary in order to assure maximum alignment with shareholder interests. The stock appreciation rights were awarded under the our 2006 Equity Incentive Plan, each of which has an exercise price of $0.55 per share, the closing price of the our common stock as reported on The Nasdaq Capital Market on the date of grant, which the Committee determined to be the fair market value of a share of our common stock on the date of grant. The Compensation Committee also made restricted stock awards under our 2006 Equity Incentive Plan, at a purchase price of $0.01 per share. The Compensation Committee chose a vesting-schedule of one-third per year over a three-year period, with the first installment vesting on August 19, 2010, for both the stock appreciation rights and the restricted stock awards, with both the stock appreciation rights and restricted stock awards vesting in full upon a change in control:

 

Name

   Number of Shares
Subject to SARs
   Number of
Restricted Shares
  

Vesting

Richard E. Kessel

   100,000    50,000    1/3 on each of August 19, 2010, August 19, 2011 and August 19, 2012

Michael E. Thomas

   25,000    12,500    Same

Dennis Haines

   25,000    12,500    Same

The foregoing awards are reflected in more detail in the tables below.

Compensation Policies and Practices as They Relate to Risk Management

We believe that the design of our compensation policies and practices for our employees is relatively straightforward, strikes an appropriate balance between the achievement of short-term objectives and the achievement of long-term value and does not encourage the taking of undue risks. Therefore, given this design, and the nature of our business activities, we do not believe that risks, if any, arising from such policies and practices are reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on our business.

 

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Executive Compensation

Summary Compensation

The following table sets forth information for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007 regarding the compensation of our President and Chief Executive Officer, our Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, and our Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary. We refer to these individuals as our named executive officers.

SUMMARY COMPENSATION TABLE

 

Name and

Principal Position

  Year   Salary   Bonus(1)   Stock
Awards(2)
  Option
Awards(3)
  Non-Equity
Incentive Plan
Compensation(4)
  Change in
Pension Value
and Nonqualified
Deferred
Compensation
Earnings(5)
  All Other
Compensation(6)
  Total

Richard E. Kessel
President and Chief Executive Officer and President of Microgy, Inc.

  2009
2008
  $
$
318,800
312,533
   

 

—  

—  

  $
$
27,000
90,915
  $
$
37,425
605,631
  —  
—  
  —  
—  
  $
$
27,763
42,007
  $
$
410,988
1,051,086
  2007     300,000   $ 100,000     —       —     —     —       38,909     438,909

Michael E. Thomas
Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer

  2009
2008
   
 
227,700
225,133
   

 

—  

—  

   
 
6,750
27,550
   
 
9,356
119,254
  —  
—  
  —  
—  
   
 
20,951
28,922
   
 
264,757
400,859
  2007     134,680     15,500     —       507,425   —     —       17,295     674,900

Dennis Haines
Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

  2009
2008
   
 
221,000
217,333
   

 

—  

—  

   
 
6,750
27,550
   
 
9,356
119,254
  —  
—  
  —  
—  
   
 
22,969
21,887
   
 
260,075
386,024
  2007     210,000     22,000     —       —     —     —       20,532     252,532

 

(1) Bonus amounts for 2007 are bonuses in respect of services for that year, which were paid in 2008. We did not pay any bonuses in respect of services in 2008, nor do we expect to pay any bonuses in respect of services for 2009.
(2) We did not make any awards of stock in 2007. In 2008, the named executive officers were granted restricted stock awards vesting over two years, and in 2009, the named executive officers were granted restricted stock awards vesting over three years. The amounts in the “Stock Awards” column reflect the fair value of such awards on the date of grant calculated in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification Topic 718, Compensation — Stock Compensation (“FASB ASC Topic 718”). Please see Note K to our financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009 for a discussion of the assumptions underlying these values, which discussion is incorporated herein by reference. Please see the table below under the heading “Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End” for further detail regarding the restricted stock awards underlying these amounts, including the fair market value on the grant date and the number of shares subject to such awards.
(3) The amounts in the “Option Awards” column reflect the fair value of such awards on the date of grant calculated in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. Please see Note K to our financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009 for a discussion of the assumptions underlying these values, which discussion is incorporated herein by reference. Please see the table below under the heading “Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End” for further detail regarding the option awards underlying these amounts, including the exercise price and the number of shares subject to such options.
(4) We did not pay any non-equity incentive plan compensation in 2007, 2008 or 2009.
(5) We no longer maintain a pension plan, nor did we maintain any nonqualified deferred compensation plans in 2007, 2008 or 2009.
(6) The amounts in the “All Other Compensation” column represent the following amounts for the following individuals:

 

Richard E. Kessel    —2009:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $9,000 Medical insurance premiums: $10,770; Dental insurance premiums: $1,454 Life insurance premiums: $6,539.
   —2008:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $9,000 401(k) corporate matching contribution: $7,750 Medical insurance premiums: $13,498; Dental insurance premiums: $1,972 Life insurance premiums and stipend for life insurance: $9,787 (includes amounts to which Mr. Kessel was entitled to in 2006 put which were paid in 2008.
   —2007:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $13,500 (includes amounts to which Mr. Kessel was entitled in 2006 but which were paid in 2007); 401-K corporate matching contribution: $7,750 Medical insurance premiums: $9,627; Dental insurance premiums: $1,505 Life insurance premiums and stipend for life insurance: $6,527.
Michael E. Thomas    —2009:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $9,000; Medical insurance premiums: $7,516 Dental insurance premiums: $897; Life insurance premiums $3,538.
   —2008:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $9,000; 401(k) corporate matching contribution: $5,500 Medical insurance premiums: $9,825; Dental insurance premiums: $1,078; Life insurance premiums and stipend for life insurance $3,519.
   —2007:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $5,625; 401(k) corporate matching contribution: $5,500 Medical insurance premiums: $5,617; Dental insurance premiums: $553.
Dennis Haines    —2009:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $9,000; Medical insurance premiums: $7,630 Dental insurance premiums: $897 Life insurance premiums: $5,442.
   —2008:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $10,125 (includes amounts to which Mr. Haines was entitled in 2007 and 2006 but which were paid in 2008); Medical insurance premiums: $5,652; Dental insurance premiums: $1,078 Life insurance premiums and stipend for life insurance: $5,032.
   —2007:    Automobile expense reimbursement: $9,750 (includes amounts to which Mr. Haines was entitled in 2006 but which were paid in 2007); Medical insurance premiums: $4,643; Dental insurance premiums: $1,103; Life insurance premiums and stipend for life insurance: $5,036.

 

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The following table sets forth information regarding each grant of an award made to a named executive officer during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 under any plan, contract, authorization or arrangement pursuant to which cash, securities, similar instruments or other property may be received.

GRANTS OF PLAN-BASED AWARDS

 

      Grant    Estimated Future Payouts Under
Non-Equity Incentive Plan Awards
   Estimated Future Payouts Under
Equity Incentive Plan Awards
   All Other
Stock
Awards;
Number
of Shares
of Stock
    All Other
Option
Awards;
Number of
Securities
Underlying
    Exercise
or Base
Price of
Option
Awards
   Grant Date
Fair Value
of Stock
and Option

Name

   Date    Threshold    Target    Maximum    Threshold    Target    Maximum    or Units     Options     ($/sh)    Awards(1)

Richard E. Kessel

   8/19/09    —      —      —      —      —      —      —        100,000 (2)    $ 0.55    $ 37,425
   8/19/09    —      —      —      —      —      —      50,000 (3)    —          —        27,000

Michael E. Thomas

   8/19/09    —      —      —      —      —      —      —        25,000 (2)      0.55      9,356
   8/19/09    —      —      —      —      —      —      12,500 (3)    —          —        6,750

Dennis Haines

   8/19/09    —      —      —      —      —      —      —        25,000 (2)      0.55      9,356
   8/19/09    —      —      —      —      —      —      12,500 (3)    —          —        6,750

 

(1) The amounts in the “Grant Date Fair Value of Stock and Option Awards” column for options and SARs reflect the grant date fair value of each equity award calculated in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718, using a Black-Scholes option-pricing model employing certain variables and related assumptions, including stock price volatility. The amounts shown in this column are, therefore, projections that do not necessarily reflect the actual cash compensation to be received by the option holder upon exercise of the option or SAR. The assumptions we used to calculate these amounts are discussed in Note K to our consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009. The amounts shown in this column for restricted stock awards reflect the grant date fair value of the award calculated in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718 and are projections that do not necessarily reflect the actual cash compensation to the recipient of the award on the date the award vests or when the underlying shares are sold. As of December 31, 2009, the closing market price of our common stock was $0.19 per share.
(2) Represents shares subject to SARs vesting as to one-third of the shares subject thereto on each of August 19, 2010, 2011 and 2012.
(3) Represents shares subject to a restricted stock award vesting as to one-third of the shares subject thereto on each of August 19, 2010, 2011 and 2012.

Employment and Severance Arrangements

Employment Agreement with Richard E. Kessel

On July 12, 2006, we entered into an employment agreement with Richard E. Kessel. Mr. Kessel’s employment agreement provides for the following principal terms:

 

   

Employment as our President and Chief Executive Officer commencing on July 17, 2006, referred to as the commencement date, and appointment to our Board of Directors promptly following the satisfaction of any applicable board independence and composition requirements.

 

   

An initial annual salary of $300,000, subject to annual adjustment by the Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors, which salary was increased to $318,800, effective May 1, 2008.

 

   

The grant of non-qualified stock options to purchase up to 400,000 shares of our common stock, as described below.

 

   

Eligibility to participate on the same basis as other executives reporting directly to our chief executive officer in any bonus plan adopted by us from time to time, subject to the terms of any such plan; and

 

   

Such medical, dental, retirement, vacation and other benefits as are made available from time to time to our other similarly-situated employees, as well as a car allowance comparable to that afforded to our other senior executives and five weeks paid vacation each year.

Mr. Kessel’s employment agreement further provides that, notwithstanding the fact that Mr. Kessel will be an employee-at-will, the following termination provisions will apply:

 

   

Either we or Mr. Kessel may terminate the employment agreement upon sixty (60) days’ prior written notice.

 

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In the event that we terminate the employment agreement without cause (as defined in the employment agreement), Mr. Kessel terminates the employment agreement for good reason (as defined in the employment agreement) or Mr. Kessel terminates his employment or we (or any successor company) terminates Mr. Kessel’s employment for any reason within 180 days following a change in control (as defined in the employment agreement), Mr. Kessel will be entitled to the following:

 

   

continued coverage under our benefit plans through the termination date;

 

   

payment of all earned but unpaid compensation (including accrued unpaid vacation) through the effective date of termination, payable on or before the termination date;

 

   

reimbursement of any monies advanced or expenses incurred by Mr. Kessel in connection with his employment for reasonable and necessary business expenses incurred on or before the termination date;

 

   

payment of the equivalent of the base salary he would have earned over the 18 months following the termination date, less necessary tax withholdings, at his then current base salary rate, referred to as the severance payment, payable in a lump sum on the first business day following the six (6) month anniversary of the effective date of termination, to the extent required by Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, referred to as the Code, or, if not so required by Section 409A of the Code, then in a lump sum on the first business day following termination;

 

   

that portion of any annual bonus that Mr. Kessel would have been eligible to earn for the fiscal year in which his employment terminated, assuming that Environmental Power’s performance is deemed to continue at the same rate for the remainder of the fiscal year, as is represented by the number of days Mr. Kessel was employed up to the date of termination divided by 365, referred to as the pro-rata bonus;

 

   

benefit continuation for a period of 18 months at the same level as he was receiving prior to the termination; and

 

   

a number of outstanding unvested stock options and restricted stock, if any, previously granted to Mr. Kessel shall vest upon such termination in amount equal to the stock options and restricted stock that would have vested solely as a result of the passage of time (but not as the result of any other performance measure, stock price or other target) over the twelve (12) month period after such termination if Mr. Kessel remained employed by us, referred to as the accelerated vesting.

 

   

In the event that Mr. Kessel dies or become incapacitated, he or his estate will be entitled to receive:

 

   

payment of all earned but unpaid compensation through the effective date of termination, as specified in the notice;

 

   

bonus in a deemed amount; and

 

   

whatever benefits to which he or his estate may be entitled pursuant to our benefit plans.

 

   

In the event that Mr. Kessel’s employment is terminated by us for cause, he will be entitled to receive only his earned but unpaid compensation, comprised of base salary and accrued vacation, through the date of termination.

Mr. Kessel’s employment agreement also contains customary proprietary information and assignment of inventions provisions. Furthermore, the employment agreement provides that, during such time as Mr. Kessel is employed by us and for a period of two years thereafter, Mr. Kessel will not

 

   

engage in any business or enterprise, whether as owner, partner, officer, director, employee, consultant, investor, lender or otherwise, except as the holder of not more than 1% of the outstanding stock of a publicly-held company, that develops, manufactures, markets, licenses, sells or provides any product or service that utilizes or relates to any digester technology, or

 

   

solicit certain of our employees or customers.

 

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On July 18, 2006, in accordance with the terms of his employment agreement, we entered into two non-statutory option agreements with Mr. Kessel. The option agreements provide for the following principal terms:

 

   

The first option agreement relates to the grant of an option under the our 2005 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase up to 250,000 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $6.30 per share, the fair market value of our common stock on July 17, 2006, the date of grant and the date Mr. Kessel commenced his employment, referred to as the commencement date. This option vests as follows:

 

   

100,000 shares vest on the six-month anniversary of the commencement date,

 

   

100,000 shares on the 18-month anniversary of the commencement date, and

 

   

50,000 shares on the 24-month anniversary of the commencement date.

In addition, this option vests in full upon a change in control, as defined in Mr. Kessel’s employment agreement.

 

   

The second option agreement related to the grant of an option under our 2006 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase up to 150,000 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $6.30 per share. This option vested only if our common stock closes at a price per share equal to or in excess of $10.00 on or prior to December 31, 2007. As this condition was not satisfied, this option did not vest and terminated by its terms.

Employment Offer Letter with Michael E. Thomas

On May 10, 2007, we entered into an offer letter with Michael E. Thomas regarding his employment as our Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. The offer letter provides for Mr. Thomas’ employment with our company on the following principal terms:

 

   

An annual salary of $220,000, which salary was increased to $227,700, effective May 1, 2008.

 

   

Effective on his first date of employment, such date being the grant date, the grant of a stock appreciation right, or SAR, under the Company’s 2005 Stock Incentive Plan or 2006 Equity Incentive Plan, or a combination thereof, pursuant to which he will be entitled to receive, after vesting and upon exercise, a payment in cash or in shares of our common stock, or a combination of the foregoing (the form and composition of such payment to be at our election) equal to the increase, if any, in the fair market value of up to 100,000 shares of our common stock, referred to as the measuring shares, over the fair market value of the measuring shares at the close of business on the grant date, vesting as follows:

 

Number of Measuring Shares

  

Vest

25,000    May 21, 2008
25,000    May 21, 2009
25,000    May 21, 2009, so long as the closing price of a share of our common stock equals or exceeds $11 on or before that date.
25,000    On our achieving certain equity and debt financing objectives.

The SAR does not represent the right to purchase the underlying measuring shares, and in no event may the number of shares of our common stock issued pursuant to the SAR exceed the number of shares then available for issuance under the plans. The vesting of the SAR will accelerate in full upon a change in control, as defined in the offer letter.

 

   

Eligibility to participate at the same level as other executives reporting directly to our Chief Executive Officer in any bonus plan adopted by us from time to time, subject to the terms of any such plan, with an annual bonus target of 35% of base salary, based on annual performance and financial targets developed by the Chief Executive Officer:

 

   

The following benefits, as well as such other medical, dental, retirement and other benefits as are made available from time to time to our other senior executives:

 

   

An automobile allowance not to exceed $750.00 per month;

 

   

Reimbursement for long-term disability and term life insurance coverage premiums paid by Mr. Thomas, in an amount not to exceed $3,500.00 per year;

 

   

Four weeks’ paid vacation per year; and

 

   

Reimbursement for expenses of relocation, including the expenses of selling his existing residence, purchasing a new residence and moving, as well as temporary housing expenses of up to $1,500 per month for a period of six months.

 

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The offer letter further provides that, notwithstanding the fact that Mr. Thomas will be an employee-at-will, he will be entitled to severance equal to 12 months of his then current base salary if he is terminated as a result of job elimination or termination without cause, as defined in the offer letter, and not as a result of discharge for cause, retirement, disability, death or voluntary resignation, with such severance payable in a lump sum upon termination. In addition to severance, Mr. Thomas will also be entitled to 12 months of continued medical benefits coverage.

Employment Offer Letter with Dennis Haines

On October 11, 2006, we entered into an employment offer letter with Dennis Haines regarding Mr. Haines’ employment as our Vice President and General Counsel. The employment offer letter provides for the following principal terms:

 

   

An annual salary of $210,000, which salary was increased to $221,000, effective May 1, 2008.

 

   

The grant of one or more non-statutory stock options to purchase an aggregate of 100,000 shares of our common stock, vesting in three installments of 25,000 shares each on the six, 12 and 24 month anniversaries of Mr. Haines’ hire date, and with respect to an additional 25,000 shares in the event that the closing price of our common stock equaled or exceeded $10.00 per share on or before December 31, 2007. The options have an exercise price equal to the fair market value of our common stock on the date of grant. Mr. Haines will be eligible for future awards under equity compensation plans adopted by us from time to time for which our senior executives are generally eligible, with the level, terms and conditions of such participation determined by the our Board of Directors in its sole discretion.

 

   

Eligibility to participate at the same level as other executives reporting directly to our Chief Executive Officer in any bonus plan adopted by us from time to time, subject to the terms of any such plan.

 

   

The following benefits, as well as such other medical, dental, retirement and other benefits as are made available from time to time to our other senior executives:

 

   

An automobile allowance not to exceed $750.00 per month;

 

   

Reimbursement for long-term disability and life insurance coverage premiums paid by Mr. Haines, in an amount not to exceed $5,000.00 per year; and

 

   

Reimbursement for the costs of continuing legal education, professional license fees and membership in a professional organization, up to a maximum of $1,750.00 annually.

Mr. Haines’ employment offer letter further provides that, notwithstanding the fact that Mr. Haines will be an employee-at-will, he will be entitled to severance equal to 12 months of his then current base salary if he is terminated as a result of job elimination or termination without cause, and not as a result of discharge for cause, retirement, disability, death or voluntary resignation, with such severance payable in a lump sum upon termination. In addition to severance, Mr. Haines will also be entitled to reimbursement for 12 months of continued medical coverage.

Information Relating to Equity Awards and Holdings

The following table sets forth information regarding unexercised stock options and stock appreciation rights, stock that has not vested and equity incentive plan awards for each of the named executive officers outstanding as of December 31, 2009.

 

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OUTSTANDING EQUITY AWARDS AT FISCAL YEAR-END

 

     Option Awards    Stock Awards

Name

   Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options/SARs
Exercisable
   Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options/SARs
Unexercisable
    Equity
Incentive Plan
Awards:
Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Unearned
Options
   Option/
SAR
Exercise
Price
   Option/ SAR
Expiration
Date
   Number
of Shares
or Units
of Stock
That
Have Not
Vested
    Market
Value of
Shares
or Units
of Stock
That
Have Not
Vested(1)
   Equity
Incentive
Plan
Awards:
Number of
Unearned
Shares,
Units or
Other
Rights
That
Have Not
Vested
   Equity
Incentive
Plan
Awards:
Market
or Payout
Value of
Unearned
Shares,
Units or
Other
Rights
That
Have Not
Vested

Richard E. Kessel

   —      100,000 (2)    —      $ 0.55    8/18/2019    —          —      —      —  
   250,000    —        —      $ 6.30    7/16/2016    —          —      —      —  
   150,000    —        —      $ 5.52    6/2/2018    —          —      —      —  
   16,639    16,639 (3)    —      $ 5.52    6/2/2018    —          —      —      —  
   —      —        —        —      —      50,000 (4)    $ 9,500    —      —  
   —      —        —        —      —      8,250 (5)    $ 1,568    —      —  

Michael E. Thomas

   —      25,000 (2)    —      $ 0.55    8/18/2019    —          —      —      —  
   50,000    —        —      $ 6.75    5/20/2017    —          —      —      —  
   5,832    5,833 (37)    —      $ 5.52    6/2/2018    —          —      —      —  
   —      —        —        —      —      12,500 (4)    $ 2,850    —      —  
   —      —        —        —      —      2,500 (5)    $ 475    —      —  

Dennis Haines

   —      25,000 (2)    —      $ 0.55    8/18/2019    —          —      —      —  
   75,000    —        —      $ 5.05    10/15/2016    —          —      —      —  
   25,000    —        —      $ 5.52    6/2/2018    —          —      —      —  
   5,544    5,545 (3)    —      $ 5.52    6/2/2018    —          —      —      —  
   —      —        —        —      —      12,500 (4)    $ 2,850    —      —  
   —      —        —        —      —      2,500 (5)    $ 475    —      —  

 

(1) The amounts in this column are calculated based on a price per share of $0.19, the closing market price per share of our common stock on December 31, 2009.
(2) Represents shares subject to SARs vesting as to one-third of the shares subject thereto on each of August 19, 2010, 2011 and 2012.
(3) Represents shares subject to SARs vesting on May 1, 2010.
(4) Represents shares subject to a restricted stock award vesting as to one-third of the shares subject thereto on each of August 19, 2010, 2011 and 2012.
(5) Represents shares subject to a restricted stock award vesting on May 1, 2010.

2009 OPTION/SAR EXERCISES AND STOCK VESTED

 

     Option Awards    Stock Awards

Name

   Number of Shares
Acquired on Exercise(1)
   Value Realized
on Exercise(2)
   Number of Shares
Acquired on Vesting
   Value Realized
on Vesting

Richard E. Kessel

   —      —      8,250    $ 3,878

Michael E. Thomas

   —      —      2,500    $ 1,175

Dennis Haines

   —      —      2,500    $ 1,175

 

(1) The amounts in the “Number of Shares Acquired on Exercise” represent the number of shares issued to the executive in question, net of a number of shares having a fair market value necessary to pay the exercise price of the shares issued, based on the market price per share of our common stock on the date of exercise.
(2) The amounts in the “Value Realized on Exercise” column are calculated based on the market price per share of our common stock on the date of exercise or vesting, multiplied by the number of shares issued to the executive.

 

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Payments upon Termination or Change of Control

We have entered into employment agreements with each of the named executive officers. These employment agreements provide for payments and benefits to the executive officer upon termination of employment or a change of control of Environmental Power under specified circumstances. For information regarding the specific circumstances that would trigger payments and the provision of benefits, the manner in which payments and benefits would be provided and conditions applicable to the receipt of payments and benefits, see “—Employment and Severance Arrangements.”

The following tables set forth information regarding potential payments and benefits that each named executive officer who was serving as an executive officer on December 31, 2009 would receive upon termination of employment or a change of control of Environmental Power under specified circumstances, assuming that the triggering event in question occurred on December 31, 2009, the last business day of the fiscal year.

SUMMARY OF POTENTIAL PAYMENTS UPON TERMINATION OR CHANGE OF CONTROL

 

     Termination without Cause*    Voluntary
Resignation

Name

   Cash
Payments(1)
   Value of
Benefits(2)
   Value of Options/SARs/
Stock Awards
with Accelerated
Vesting(3)
   Total    Cash
Payments

Richard E. Kessel

   $ 478,200    $ 41,644    $ 12,635    $ 532,479    —  

Michael E. Thomas

     227,700      7,516      —        235,216    —  

Dennis Haines

     221,000      7,630      —        228,630    —  

 

     Immediately
upon a Change
of Control
        Termination in Connection
with a Change of Control*
    

Name

   Value of Options/SARs/
Stock Awards
with Accelerated
Vesting(3)
   Cash
Payments(1)
   Value of
Benefits(2)
   Value of Options/SARs/
Stock Awards
with Accelerated
Vesting(3)
   Total

Richard E. Kessel

   $ —      $ 478,200    $ 41,644    $ 12,635    $ 532,479

Michael E. Thomas(4)

     0      227,700      7,516      3,325      238,541

Dennis Haines(4)

     —        221,000      7,630      3,325      231,955

 

* Potential payments also apply in the case of termination of employment by Mr. Kessel for good reason, as defined in his employment agreement.
(1) The amounts in this column reflect a lump sum payment based upon annual base salary in effect on December 31, 2009. Mr. Kessel would also be entitled to a pro-rata portion of any bonus to which he would have been eligible. Mr. Kessel will not be paid a bonus in respect of his services for 2009.
(2) Represents:

 

   

In the case of Mr. Kessel, the aggregate value of automobile expense reimbursement, 401(k) match, and medical, dental and life insurance premiums provided or expected to be provided to the named executive, in each case based on the amount of such benefits which he received in 2009.

 

   

In the case of Messrs. Haines and Thomas, the aggregate value of medical insurance premiums for a 12-month period following termination of employment, in each case based on the annualized amount of such benefits to which the executive was entitled in 2009.

(3) The amounts in this column represent the value of restricted stock awards with accelerated vesting and are calculated based on $0.19, the closing market price per share of our common stock on December 31, 2009. In the case of options or SARs subject to accelerated vesting, because the exercise price of any such options or SARs exceeded the closing market price per share of our common stock on December 31, 2009, such options or shares would not have had any value as of such date.
(4) Messrs. Haines and Thomas would be entitled to receive the payments and benefits set forth in this table irrespective of whether their employment is terminated in connection with a change-in-control.

 

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Table of Contents

Compensation of Directors

The following table sets forth information for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 regarding the compensation of our directors who are not also named executive officers.

DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

 

Name

   Fees Earned but
Not Paid in Cash
   SAR
Awards(1)
   All Other
Compensation
   Total

Roger S. Ballentine

   $ 48,000    $ 2,029    —      $ 50,029

John R. Cooper

     58,000      2,029    —        60,029

Joseph E. Cresci

     84,000      3,551    —        87,551

Lon Hatamiya

     48,000      2,029    —        50,029

Steven Kessner

     48,000      2,029    —        50,029

Kamlesh R. Tejwani

     48,000      2,029    —        50,029

August Schumacher, Jr.

     48,000      2,029    —        50,029

Robert I. Weisberg

     48,000      2,029    —        50,029

 

(1) The amounts in the “SAR Awards” column reflect the aggregate grant date fair value computed in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718.

Non-Employee Director Compensation

Effective beginning July 1, 2007, we began compensating our non-employee directors as follows:

 

   

A monthly retainer of $4,000, except that the non-executive Chairman of the board of directors will receive a monthly retainer of $7,000, and the Chair of the Audit Committee of the board of directors will receive a monthly retainer of $4,833.33; and

 

   

the annual grant of a SAR under our 2006 Equity Incentive Plan based on 15,000 shares of our common stock, except that the Chairman of the board of directors will receive a SAR based on 26,250 shares of the our common stock.

In September 2008, our board of directors unanimously authorized us to defer payment of the monthly cash fees set forth above until further notice. We have been accruing these fees on our financial statements at such times as they would otherwise become due.

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

The members of the Compensation Committee during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 were Messrs. Hatamiya, Schumacher and Kessner. No member of the Compensation Committee was at any time during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009, or formerly, an officer or employee of Environmental Power or any subsidiary of Environmental Power, nor has any member of the Compensation Committee had any relationship with Environmental Power during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 requiring disclosure under Item 404 of Regulation S-K.

None of our executive officers has served as a director or member of the Compensation Committee (or other committee serving an equivalent function) of any other entity, one of whose executive officers served as a director or member of the Compensation Committee of Environmental Power.

 

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Table of Contents

Compensation Committee Report

The Compensation Committee has reviewed and discussed the Compensation Discussion and Analysis required by Item 402(b) of Regulation S-K with management. Based on this review and discussion, the Compensation Committee has recommended to the Board of Directors that the Compensation Discussion and Analysis be included in the Annual Report of Environmental Power Corporation on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2009 and the proxy statement of Environmental Power for its 2010 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.

 

By the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors of Environmental Power Corporation
 
Lon Hatamiya, Chair
August Schumacher, Jr.
Steven Kessner

 

ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

Stock Ownership Information

Beneficial Ownership of Common Stock

The following table sets forth information regarding beneficial ownership of our common stock as of February 28, 2010 by:

 

   

each person, entity or group of affiliated persons or entities known to us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of the outstanding shares of our common stock;

 

   

each of our directors;

 

   

each of the named executive officers and an additional executive officer with respect to whom we have elected to provide beneficial ownership and compensation disclosure; and

 

   

all of our directors and executive officers as a group.

Beneficial ownership is determined in accordance with the applicable rules of the SEC and includes voting or investment power with respect to shares of our common stock. Shares of common stock issuable under stock options and warrants that are currently exercisable or exercisable within 60 days of February 28, 2010 are deemed to be beneficially owned by the person holding the option or warrant for purposes of calculating the percentage ownership of that person but are not deemed outstanding for purposes of calculating the percentage ownership of any other person. The information set forth below is not necessarily indicative of beneficial ownership for any other purpose, and the inclusion of any shares deemed beneficially owned in this table does not constitute an admission of beneficial ownership of those shares.

 

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Table of Contents

Name and Address of Beneficial Owner (1), (2)

   Number of
Outstanding
Shares
Beneficially
Owned
   Shares
Underlying
Options,
Warrants or
Other
Securities
Currently
Exercisable or
Convertible
   Additional
Shares
Underlying
Options,
Warrants or
Other
Securities
Exercisable or
Convertible
within 60
Days
   Total
Number of
Shares
Beneficially
Owned
   Percentage of
Common
Stock
Beneficially
Owned
 

5% Stockholders

              

Joseph E. Cresci (3)

   765,222    342,858    0    1,108,080    6.90

Chairman

              

Black River Commodity Clean Energy Investment Fund LLC (4)

   0    1,743,460    0    1,743,460    9.99

Other Directors

              

Kamlesh R. Tejwani

   0    571,429    0    571,429    3.51

Vice Chairman

              

John R. Cooper

   9,094    57,858    0    66,952    0.42

Lon Hatamiya

   2,250    29,286    0    31,536    0.20

Steven Kessner (5)

   542,677    72,037    0    614,714    3.90

August Schumacher, Jr.

   18,142    65,001    0    83,143    0.53

Robert I. Weisberg (6)

   68,442    65,003    0    133,445    0.85

Roger S. Ballentine

   0    0    0    0    0.00

Richard E. Kessel

   113,767    400,000    0    513,767    3.19

President and Chief Executive Officer

              

Other Named Executive Officers

              

Michael E. Thomas

   16,671    0    0    16,671    0.11

Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer

              

Dennis Haines

   26,597    100,000    0    126,597    0.80

Vice President and General Counsel

              

All executive officers and directors as a group (11 persons, consisting of 3 officers (including an employee director) and 8 non-employee directors)

   1,562,862    1,703,472    0    3,266,334    18.76

 

Footnotes

 

(1) Unless otherwise indicated, the address of each beneficial owner is care of Environmental Power Corporation, One Cate Street, 4th Floor, Portsmouth, NH 03801.
(2) Except as otherwise indicated in the footnotes below, the named person has sole voting and investment power with respect to the shares indicated, except, where applicable, to the extent authority is shared by spouses under community property laws, and all shares are held beneficially and of record by the named person.
(3) Includes (i) 582,577 shares held in the Joseph E. Cresci Revocable Trust U/T/A DTD 4/3/96 of which Mr. Cresci is the trustee, (ii) 8,532 shares held in the Joseph J. Cresci & Mildred E. Cresci Trust, as to which Mr. Cresci has shared voting and investment power, (iii) 142,857 shares deposited in a 50-year voting trust on November 20, 1996, as to which David K. Mulhern, the trustee of the voting trust, has beneficial ownership in his capacity as trustee with sole voting power, but as to which Mr. Cresci has beneficial ownership through voting trust certificates held by The Cresci Family Limited Partnership, of which Mr. Cresci is the sole general partner with sole dispositive power, and (iv) 342,858 shares that Mr. Cresci has the right to acquire pursuant to currently exercisable stock options. Does not include 2,857 shares owned by Mr. Cresci’s wife, as to which shares Mr. Cresci has neither voting nor investment power and as to which shares he disclaims beneficial ownership. Of the shares beneficially owned by Mr. Cresci, 164,286 shares are pledged as security for Mr. Cresci’s obligations under promissory notes held by Environmental Power having an aggregate outstanding principal amount of $179,146.
(4) This stockholder has an address at 12700 Whitewater Drive, Minnetonka, MN 55343. This stockholder has the right to acquire a total of 2,249,930 shares of our common stock issuable upon conversion of 224,993 shares of our series A 9% cumulative convertible preferred stock, referred to as the series A preferred stock, held by this stockholder, and 1,124,965 shares of our common stock issuable upon exercise of currently exercisable warrants held by this stockholder. The terms of the series A preferred stock and the warrants held by this stockholder provide that this stockholder may not convert shares of series A preferred stock, or exercise warrants, if, after giving effect to such conversion or exercise, the stockholder, together with its affiliates, would beneficially own more than 9.99% of the outstanding shares of our common stock. The number of shares beneficially owned by this stockholder reflects the application of this limitation based on the number of shares of our common stock issued and outstanding as of November 15, 2007. Black River Asset Management LLC is the stockholder’s investment advisor and may be deemed to beneficially own the shares held by this stockholder insofar as it has the power to vote and dispose of such shares. Peter J. Lee, as a Managing Director of Black River Asset Management LLC, may be deemed to beneficially own the shares held by this stockholder insofar as he has the authority, with others, to vote or dispose of such shares. Black River Asset Management LLC and Mr. Lee each disclaim beneficial ownership of the shares beneficially owned by the fund, except to the extent of its or his pecuniary interest therein, if any.
(5) Includes (i) 445,257 outstanding shares held by RE Funding, LLC, of which Mr. Kessner is the sole officer and director and over which he has sole voting and investment control, (ii) 77,936 outstanding shares held in equal amounts by the Adam Kessner Trust, the Michael Kessner Trust, the Richard Kessner Trust and the Robert Kessner Trust. Mr. Kessner is the sole trustee of each of the foregoing trusts and has sole voting and investment control over the shares held by such trusts and (iii) 19,484 outstanding shares held by Mr. Kessner as custodian for Jonathan Kessner, over which Mr. Kessner exercises sole voting and investment control.

 

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(6) Of the shares beneficially owned by Mr. Weisberg, 11,428 shares are pledged as security for Mr. Weisberg’s obligations under a promissory note held by Environmental Power having an outstanding principal amount of $48,575.

Beneficial Ownership of Our Series A 9% Cumulative Convertible Preferred Stock

The following table sets forth information regarding beneficial ownership of our series A 9% cumulative convertible preferred stock, referred to as the series A preferred stock, as of February 28, 2010 by each person, entity or group of affiliated persons or entities known to us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of the outstanding shares of our series A preferred stock. Each share of series A preferred stock is entitled to vote at all regular and special meetings of our stockholders on an “as converted” basis, with one vote per share of common stock into which such shares of series A preferred stock are convertible, and having voting rights and powers equal to those of the holders of common stock. Each share of series A preferred stock is currently convertible into approximately 10.04 shares of common stock. Our series A preferred stock is not registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

The information set forth below is not necessarily indicative of beneficial ownership for any other purpose, and the inclusion of any shares deemed beneficially owned in this table does not constitute an admission of beneficial ownership of those shares.

 

Name and Address of Beneficial Owner(1)

   Number of
Outstanding
Shares of
Series A
Preferred
Stock
Beneficially
Owned
   Percentage of
Series A
Preferred
Stock
Beneficially
Owned
 

Black River Commodity Clean Energy Investment Fund LLC(2)

   224,993    80.00

Leonard Brecken and Affiliate (3)

   56,248    20.00

 

(1) Except as otherwise indicated in the footnotes below, the named person has sole voting and investment power with respect to the shares indicated, and all shares are held beneficially and of record by the named person.
(2) See footnote 4 to the preceding table for additional information.
(3) Based in part on a Schedule 13G filed by Mr. Brecken and Brecken Capital, LLC on August 8, 2007. Mr. Brecken and Brecken Capital, LLC have an address of 346 Hartshorn Drive, Short Hills, NJ 07078. The number of shares of series A preferred stock beneficially owned is comprised of 9,400 shares of series A preferred stock held Mr. Brecken personally and 46,848 shares of series A preferred stock held by Brecken Capital Management, LLC. These stockholders also hold warrants to purchase 46,967 and 234,273 shares of our common stock, respectively. The terms of the series A preferred stock and the warrants held by these stockholders provide that these stockholders may not convert shares of series A preferred stock, or exercise warrants, if, after giving effect to such conversion or exercise, either stockholder, together with its affiliates, would beneficially own more than 4.99% of the outstanding shares of our common stock. The foregoing beneficial ownership limitation may be waived by each stockholder, at its election, upon not less than 61 days’ prior notice to us, to change the limitation to 9.99% of the number of shares of the common stock outstanding immediately after giving effect to the issuance of shares of common stock upon conversion of series A preferred stock or exercise of warrants held by such stockholder. Thereafter, the 9.99% limitation may not be waived. We believe that Mr. Brecken is also the owner of 559,634 shares of our common stock. Mr. Brecken is the Managing Director of Brecken Capital, LLC, which is the general partner of Brecken Capital Management Fund LLC; both Mr. Brecken and Brecken Capital, LLC may be deemed to beneficially own the shares held by Brecken Capital Management Fund LLC, insofar as they exercise voting and investment authority with respect to such shares.

 

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Table of Contents

Equity Compensation Plan Information

The following table sets forth information as of December 31, 2009 regarding securities authorized for issuance under our equity compensation plans.

 

Plan Category

   Number of Securities to Be
Issued Upon Exercise of
Outstanding Options,
Warrants and Rights (a)
   Weighted-
Average Exercise
Price of
Outstanding
Options,
Warrants and
Rights (b)
   Number of Securities
Remaining Available for
Future Issuance Under
Equity Compensation Plans
(Excluding Securities
Reflected in Column (a)) (c)

Equity compensation plans approved by stockholders(1)

   2,502,664    $ 5.72    617,750

Equity compensation plans not approved by stockholders(2)

   1,304,088    $ 5,04    —  
                

Total

   3,806,752    $ 5.49    617,750

 

(1) Consists of our 1993 Director Option Plan, our Restated 2001 Stock Incentive Plan, our Restated 2002 Director Option Plan, our 2005 Equity Incentive Plan, our 2006 Equity Incentive Plan and our 2006 Director Option Plan. The information in columns (a), (b) and (c) does not include or give effect to 1,154,534 shares of our common stock underlying stock appreciation rights having a weighted average exercise price of $3.41 granted under our 2005 Equity Incentive Plan and our 2006 Equity Incentive Plan. Such stock appreciation rights may be settled in cash, shares or a combination thereof, at our election, and we cannot now determine the number of shares of our common stock which may be issued upon exercise of such stock appreciation rights.
(2) Consists of the following options and warrants:

 

   

A ten-year option for 14,286 shares of common stock issued in 2002 to Madison Power in consideration of certain services. This option has an exercise price of $4.06 per share and vested May 2003.

 

   

Five-year warrants to purchase an aggregate of 88,000 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $6.33 per share, subject to adjustment as set forth in such warrants, issued to Ladenburg Thalman & Co., Inc. and certain of its affiliates as compensation for Ladenburg’s services as underwriter in our public offering completed in February 2005.

 

   

Five-year warrants to purchase an aggregate of 168,745 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $5.271 per share, subject to adjustment as set forth in such warrants, issued to Westminster Securities Corporation and certain of its affiliates as compensation for Westminster’s services as placement agent in our private placement completed in November 2006.

 

   

An option to purchase 571,429 shares of our common stock issued to Kamlesh R. Tejwani on July 3, 2003 as part of his overall compensation package, which option expires on January 3, 2011. The option is exercisable in two tranches, consisting of 357,143 options exercisable at $1.75 and 214,286 options exercisable at $7.00. The options were to vest upon the successful completion of one or more qualified financings, defined as the sale of equity securities of Environmental Power or Microgy on or before July 3, 2006, provided that the first such financing results in gross proceeds of at least $3,500,000. The options were to vest in the same percentage as the percentage of $8,000,000 that the gross proceeds in each qualified financing represents, with such percentage applied to the lower-priced options first. As of March 31, 2005, all of Mr. Tejwani’s options had vested.

 

   

A ten-year option to purchase 142,858 shares of our common stock issued to Joseph E. Cresci in March 2004 as part of his compensation package. This option has an exercise price of $7.00 per share, and vested in full in September 2004 upon the achievement of certain performance-based criteria.

 

   

A ten-year option to purchase 142,858 shares of our common stock issued to Donald A. Livingston in March 2004 as part of his compensation package. This option has an exercise price of $7.00 per share, and vested in full in September 2004 upon the achievement of certain performance-based criteria.

 

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A five-year warrant to purchase a total of 175,912 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $5.37 per share issued to Cargill, Incorporated in May 2007, pursuant to the terms of our Business Development Agreement with Cargill.

 

ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

Employment and Retirement Agreements

We have entered into employment and retirement arrangements with certain of our executive officers, former executive officers and directors. For additional information regarding these agreements, see “Information About Executive and Director Compensation—Employment, Transition, Retirement, Consulting and Severance Agreements” appearing in Part III, Item 11 of this report. Except for such agreements and the other compensation arrangements described in this Form 10-K/A, we did not enter into any transactions with related persons within the meaning of Item 404 of Regulation S-K during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 in which the amount involved exceeded $120,000.

Policies and Procedures Regarding Review, Approval or Ratification of Related Person Transactions

In March 2007, our Board of Directors adopted written policies and procedures for the review of any transaction, arrangement or relationship in which we are a participant, the amount involved exceeds $120,000 and one of our executive officers, directors, director nominees or 5% stockholders (or their immediate family members), each of whom we refer to as a “related person,” has a direct or indirect material interest.

If a related person proposes to enter into such a transaction, arrangement or relationship, which we refer to as a “related person transaction,” the related person must report the proposed related person transaction to our General Counsel, who we refer to as our chief legal officer. The policy calls for the proposed related person transaction to be reviewed and, if deemed appropriate, approved by our Audit Committee. Whenever practicable, the reporting, review and approval will occur prior to entry into the transaction. If advance review and approval is not practicable, the Audit Committee will review, and, in its discretion, may ratify the related person transaction. The policy also permits the chair of the Audit Committee to review and, if deemed appropriate, approve proposed related person transactions that arise between committee meetings, subject to ratification by the Audit Committee at its next meeting. Any related person transactions that are ongoing in nature will be reviewed annually.

A related person transaction reviewed under the policy will be considered approved or ratified if it is authorized by the Audit Committee after full disclosure of the related person’s interest in the transaction. As appropriate for the circumstances, the Audit Committee will review and consider:

 

   

the related person’s interest in the related person transaction;

 

   

the approximate dollar value of the amount involved in the related person transaction;

 

   

the approximate dollar value of the amount of the related person’s interest in the transaction without regard to the amount of any profit or loss;

 

   

whether the transaction was undertaken in the ordinary course of our business;

 

   

whether the terms of the transaction are no less favorable to us than terms that could have been reached with an unrelated third party;

 

   

the purpose of, and the potential benefits to us of, the transaction; and

 

   

any other information regarding the related person transaction or the related person in the context of the proposed transaction that would be material to investors in light of the circumstances of the particular transaction.

The Audit Committee may approve or ratify the transaction only if the Committee determines that, under all of the circumstances, the transaction is in, or is not in conflict with, our best interests. The Audit Committee may impose any conditions on the related person transaction that it deems appropriate.

 

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In addition to the transactions that are excluded by the instructions to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s related person transaction disclosure rules, our Board of Directors has determined that the following transactions do not create a material direct or indirect interest on behalf of related persons and, therefore, are not related person transactions for purposes of this policy:

 

   

interests arising solely from the related person’s position as an executive officer of another entity (whether or not the person is also a director of such entity), that is a participant in the transaction, where (a) the related person and all other related persons own in the aggregate less than a 10% equity interest in such entity, (b) the related person and his or her immediate family members are not involved in the negotiation of the terms of the transaction and do not receive any special benefits as a result of the transaction, and (c) the amount involved in the transaction equals less than the greater of $200,000 or 5% of the annual gross revenues of the company receiving payment under the transaction; and

 

   

a transaction that is specifically contemplated by provisions of our charter or bylaws.

The policy provides that transactions involving compensation of executive officers shall be reviewed and approved by the Compensation Committee in the manner specified in its charter.

There were no related person transactions presented for review in 2009.

Board Determination of Independence

Under applicable rules of The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC, a director will only qualify as an “independent director” if, in the opinion of our board of directors, that person does not have a material relationship with our company which would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director. Our board of directors has determined that none of Messrs. Ballentine, Cooper, Kessner, Schumacher, Weisberg or Hatamiya has a material relationship with our company which would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director, and therefore, that each of these directors is “independent” within the meaning of Rule 4200(a)(15) of the NASDAQ Marketplace Rules. In addition, none of the current members of our board of directors, other than Mr. Kessel, is an employee of Environmental Power or any of its subsidiaries. Furthermore, the board expects that Messrs. Cresci and Tejwani may become “independent” within the next couple of years if they remain on our board.

 

ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

Independent Auditor’s Fees

Caturano and Company, P.C. served as our independent auditors for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008. The fees billed for professional services rendered to us by Caturano and Company, P.C. in respect of services rendered in respect of 2009 and 2008 are described below.

 

Year

   Audit Fees(1)    Audit-
Related Fees(2)
   Tax Fees    All Other Fees

2009

   $ 319,138    $ 9,898    —      —  

2008

   $ 305,000    $ 83,455    —      —  

 

(1) Comprised of professional services rendered in connection with the audit of our financial statements and the reviews of financial statements included in each of our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the years indicated, as well as testing of management’s assessment of internal controls and procedures in compliance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
(2) Comprised of professional services rendered in connection with the preparation and review of registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and other matters arising out of the audit of our financial statements and relating to the offerings to which such registration statements related, including the issuance of consents and comfort letters.

Pre-Approval Policy and Procedures

The Audit Committee has adopted policies and procedures relating to the approval of all audit and non-audit services that are to be performed by our independent registered public accounting firm. This policy generally provides that we will not engage our independent registered public accounting firm to render audit or non-audit services unless the service is specifically approved in advance by the Audit Committee or the engagement is entered into pursuant to one of the pre-approval procedures described below.

 

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From time to time, the Audit Committee may pre-approve specified types of services that are expected to be provided to us by our independent registered public accounting firm during the next 12 months. Any such pre-approval is detailed as to the particular service or type of services to be provided and is also generally subject to a maximum dollar amount.

The Audit Committee has also delegated to the chair of the Audit Committee the authority to approve any audit or non-audit services to be provided to us by our independent registered public accounting firm.

 

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned.

 

ENVIRONMENTAL POWER CORPORATION
By:   /s/    RICHARD E. KESSEL        
  Richard E. Kessel
  President and Chief Executive Officer
Date:   April 30, 2010

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1934, this report has been signed by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

Signature

  

Title

  

Date

/s/    RICHARD E. KESSEL        

Richard E. Kessel

  

President, Chief Executive Officer and Director (Principal Executive Officer)

   April 30, 2010

/s/    MICHAEL E. THOMAS        

Michael E. Thomas

  

Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)

   April 30, 2010

*

Joseph E. Cresci

  

Chairman of the Board of Directors

   April 30, 2010

*

Kamlesh R. Tejwani

  

Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors

   April 30, 2010

*

John R. Cooper

  

Director

   April 30, 2010

*

Lon Hatamiya

  

Director

   April 30, 2010

*

Steven Kessner

  

Director

   April 30, 2010

*

August Schumacher, Jr.

  

Director

   April 30, 2010

*

Robert I. Weisberg

  

Director

   April 30, 2010

*

Roger S. Ballentine

  

Director

   April 30, 2010

 

*By:    /s/    MICHAEL E. THOMAS        
  Michael E. Thomas
  Attorney-in-Fact

 

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EXHIBIT INDEX

 

Exhibit No.

  

Description

31.1

   Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certifications of the Registrant’s Chief Executive Officer

31.2

   Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certifications of the Registrant’s Chief Financial Officer