“some things
we want to keep forever 
“we do not inherit the 
  earth from our ancestors
  we borrow it from our children ” 
nativeamerican proverb
annual report and accounts 2009
symphony environmental technologies plc 
6 elstree gate
elstree way
borehamwood
hertfordshire
wd6 1jd
t el 44 020 8207 5900
fax 44 020 8207 5960
wwwd2wnet
infod2wnet
symphony environmental technologies plc  annual report and accounts 2009 company registration number 
3676824
registered office 
6 elstree gate
elstree way
borehamwood
hertfordshire
wd6 1jd
directors 
n j deva dl frsa mep  non executive chairman 
m n laurier  chief executive officer
i bristow fcca  finance director
m stephen – commercial director  deputy chairman 
m f stephens – t echnical director
n clavel – non executive director
h swire – non executive director 
secretary 
i bristow
nominated adviser and broker 
allenby capital limited
claridge house
32 davies street 
london
w1k 4nd
bankers 
hsbc bank plc
101 103 station road
edgware
middlesex 
ha8 7jj
solicitors 
olswang
90 high holborn 
london
wc1v 6xx
auditor 
grant thornton uk llp
chartered accountants
registered auditors
grant thornton house
202 silbury boulevard
central milton keynes
mk9 1lw
registrars 
capita registrars limited
 the registry
 34 beckenham road
 beckenham
 kent
 br3 4tu 
company information
symphony is also developing processes for the destruction of and creation of value from 
used tyres it is the lead partner in a uk government grant funded collaboration project
symphony environmental technologies plc is a british public company and head  
of a group established in 1995 dedicated to controlledlife plastic it has over  
50 distributors around the world and is present in more than 90 countries 
symphony has its own laboratories in england with the latest equipment  
where it constantly tests develops and improves its products 
symphony is a member of the oxobiodegradable plastics association wwwbiodegorg 
the society for the chemical industry uk and the american society for testing and 
materials astm symphony holds an iso 90012008 certificate for quality management 
and is represented on the british standards institute
symphony’s technical department includes more than 30 years experience in the 
manufacture of plastic products symphony is therefore able to provide a firstclass 
product and aftersales service without parallel in the industry
symphony has developed a range of oxobiodegradable products marketed  
as d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic with ever increasing markets and applications
company profile
d
2
w
®
 technology
plastic is a very useful material which is indispensible for 
modern life but the problem is that it can lie or float around 
for decades if it gets into the environment symphony has 
developed a lowcost insurance it is a special formulation 
called d
2
w
®
 which is added to the plastic when it is being 
made it breaks the molecular chains within the polymer 
and makes plastic selfdestruct in the presence of oxygen on 
land or water at the end of its servicelife but until then it has 
no effect on the product which can be reused many times
d
2
w
®
 plastic can be made to biodegrade from as little as two 
months onwards leaving no fragments nor “heavy metals” 
and without emitting methane even when buried in landfill 
it can be recycled with normal plastics see httpwww
biodegorgpositionpapersrecyclingdomainbiodegorg 
or incinerated for energyrecovery d
2
w
®
 is certified safe for 
foodcontact and has been proved not to be ecotoxic
when d
2
w
®
 plastics reach the fragmentation stage they  
are no longer plastic they have a completely different 
molecular structure and can be bioassimilated in the  
same way as a leaf
d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic products are made from  
a byproduct of oil which used to be wasted so nobody  
is importing extra oil to make them they can be made  
with the same machinery and workforce and the same 
polymers as ordinary plastic so there is no need to disrupt 
the supplychain and there is little or no oncost and no  
loss of jobs 
symphony’s d
2
w
®
 additive formulation is so effective that it 
can be included at rates starting as low as 1 – resulting in 
considerable savings in cost transport and storage it is 
manufactured under licence from symphony by carefully 
selected and audited companies around the world 01
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
highlights
• 	 	 r e v e n u e s 	 i n c r e a s e d 	 b y 	 3 1  	 t o 	 £ 7  0 4 	 m i l l i o n	 
 2 0 0 8  	 £ 5  3 6 	 m i l l i o n 	
• 	 	 o p e r a t i n g 	 p r o f i t 	 i n c r e a s e d 	 b y 	 £ 0  9 8 	 m i l l i o n 	 t o	 
£083 	 million 	 2008 	 l os s 	 of 	 £015 	 million
•	 	 pr ofit 	 bef or e 	 t ax 	 incr eased 	 by 	 £104 	 million 	 t o	 
£064 	 million 	 2008 	 l os s 	 of 	 £040 	 million
• 	 	 p r o f i t 	 a f t e r 	 t a x 	 i n c r e a s e d 	 b y 	 1 5 1  	 t o 	 £ 0  9 2 	 m i l l i o n	
 2 0 0 8  	 £ 0  3 7 	 m i l l i o n 	
•	 gr os s 	 pr ofit 	 mar gins 	 incr eased 	 t o 	 55 	 2008 	 44
•	 	 cash 	 gener at ed 	 fr om 	 oper ations 	 incr eased 	 by	 
£ 1  2 1 	 m i l l i o n 	 t o 	 £ 0  5 7 	 m i l l i o n 	  2 0 0 8  	 c a s h 	 c o n s u m e d	
£064 	 million
• 	 	 b a s i c 	 e a r n i n g s 	 p e r 	 s h a r e 	 i n c r e a s e d 	 b y 	 1 2 9 	 
t o 	 080p 	 2008 	 035p
•	 number 	 of 	d
2
w
®
	 dis tribut or s 	 incr eased 	 fr om 	 45 	 t o 	 50
•	 adr’ s 	 no w 	 tr aded 	 in 	 ne w 	 y ork
contents
1	 highlights	
2	 chairman’ s	st at ement
4	 	 about	symphony	 
envir onment al	t echnol ogies
6	 the	pr obl em	with	plas tic
8	 the	d
2
w
®
	solution
10	 chief	ex ecutiv e’ s	re vie w	
12	 dir ect or s ’	report
14	 remuner ation	report
15	 independent	audit or’ s	report
16	 	 consolidat ed	s t at ement	of	
c ompr ehensiv e	inc ome
17	 	 consolidat ed	s t at ement	 
of	financial	position
18	 	 consolidat ed	s t at ement	 
of	changes	in	equity
19	 consolidat ed	c ash	fl o w	s t at ement
20	 	 not es	t o	the	annual	report	 
and accounts
40	 company	balanc e	sheet
41	 not es	t o	the	company	balanc e	sheet
ibc	 company	inf ormation
revenue
£’000
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
3778
5355
7038
	 07	 08	 09
gross profit 
margin 
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
22
44
55
	 07	 08	 09
profit before tax
£’000
1000
500
0
500
1000
1500
2000
1948
398
638
	 07	 08	 09
gross profit
£’000
4
3
2
1
0
819
2374
3875
	 07	 08	 09 02
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
i 	 am 	 delight ed 	 t o 	 r eport 	 these 	 r esults 	 which	
r efl ect 	 the 	 achie v ement 	 of 	 the 	 goals 	 set 	 out	 
in 	 las t 	 y ear’ s 	 annual 	 report 	 signific ant	
g r o w t h 	 w a s 	 a c h i e v e d 	 i n 	 g r o u p 	 r e v e n u e	
r e s u l t i n g 	 i n 	 a 	 m a i d e n 	 p r o f i t 	 b e f o r e 	 t a x 	 o f	
£064 	 million 	 the 	 gr oup’ s 	 debt 	 position 	 was	
r e d u c e d 	 b y 	 £ 0  3 4 	 m i l l i o n 	 t o 	 £ 1  0 1 	 m i l l i o n 	
the aim for the next year is to build on the achievements to date whilst 
continuing to develop new markets the group has improved its technical 
facilities and increased its team to ensure that product development is 
continually advanced
the group is working closely with its distributors and will be investing in 
various marketing opportunities during the forthcoming year to ensure 
that revenue growth for d
2
w
®
 controlledlife products is maximised 
these products show strong growth globally and are currently being sold 
into 90 countries
developments on symphony energy are progressing with the aim of 
commercialisation as soon as practical
these impressive results reflect the efforts of all involved within the 
group whom i thank and we look forward to building on this excellent 
foundation i would like to congratulate and thank the many people 
associated with helping the group become what it is today a group that is 
profitable cashflow positive and one that is in good position to capture a 
substantial part of the potentially large and developing oxobiodegradable 
plastics market thank you also to our many loyal shareholders and staff 
who have worked tirelessly over the years and have supported the 
management team since inception it is due to this remarkable and long 
standing effort that our technology the d
2
w
®
 brand is visible in more 
than 90 countries worldwide and this in itself is an achievement with no 
parallels by any other firm in this industry sector 
n deva dl frsa mep 
chairman
29 	 mar ch 	 2010
chairman’ s statement 03
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
the aim for the next  
year is to build on the 
achievements to date 
whilst continuing to 
develop new markets 
maiden pretax 
profit of £064m 04
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
in particular  the group is a world leader in the development and 
marketing of controlledlife plastics and sells both prodegradent 
additives and finished plastic products through a growing network of 
international distributors and agents the group has chosen not to 
manufacture products itself but to subcontract this work to carefully 
selected and audited companies around the world this flexibility 
provides security of supply local availability and significant cost  
benefits to the group and its customers
the registered office and headquarters of symphony’s global 
operations are located in borehamwood hertfordshire which is  
just north of london our laboratory is in great yarmouth norfolk  
the group employs directly around 30 staff 
the group was founded in 1995 specialising in the procurement and 
distribution of polythene bags sheet film and other related products  
in the uk in particular 
towards the end of 1997  the group realised the need for  and worldwide 
market potential of plastic which could be made biodegradable 
symphony started to market biodegradable plastics under licence
in august 2000 shares in the company were first publicly traded 
following admission to the ofex market in november 2001 its shares 
were admitted to the alternative investment market of the london stock 
exchange with an open offer of shares to the public in 2008 adrs in 
symphony’s shares became available in the us through the bank of  
new york
symphony 	 specialises 	 in 	 de v el oping 	 and	
m a r k e t i n g 	 a 	 r a n g e 	 o f 	 e n v i r o n m e n t a l	
t echnol ogies 	 and 	 oper at es 	 thr ough 	 its	
dis tribut or s 	 c o v ering 	 mor e 	 than	
90 	 c ountries 	 w orldwide
about symphony environmental t echnologies
distributing in more 
than 90 countries 
worldwide 05
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
overview
• 		 s h a r e s 	 t ra d e d 	 o n 	 ai m 	 m a rk e t 	 o f 	 t h e 	 l o n d o n 	 s t o c k 	 ex c h a n g e 	 a ls o	
o n 	 t h e 	 p l u s 	 m a rk e t 	 i n 	 l o n d o n 	 a n d 	 i n 	 n e w 	 y o rk 	 u n d e r 	 b a n k 	 o f 	 ny	
ad r 	 p r o g ra m
• 		 own e rs h i p 	 a n d 	 d e v e l o p m e n t 	 o f 	 e n vi r o n m e n t a l 	 p la s t i c 	 t e c h n o l o g i e s
• 	 s t r o n g 	d
2
w
®
	 b ra n d 	 r e c o g n i t i o n
• 	 	 c a p i t a l 	 e f f i c i e n t 	 d i s t r i b u t i o n 	 m o d e l 	 – 	 g l o b a l 	 n e t w o r k 	 i n 	 m o r e	 
t h a n 	 90 	 c o u n t ri e s
• 	 p o t e n t i a l 	 va l u e 	 i n 	 e n e rgy 	 r e la t e d 	 d e v e l o p m e n ts
• 	 th r e e 	 fa c i l i t i e s 	 i n 	 t h e 	 u k 	 i n c l u d i n g 	 o n e 	 d e d i ca t e d 	 t e s t 	 c e n t r e
• 	 n e w 	d
2
p 	 a n t i m i cr ob i a l 	 t e ch n ol o g y
adding value to waste 
effective and efficient waste management is currently one of the 
hardest challenges for modern society as a consumer society we 
produce a lot of waste the best method for dealing with this problem 
is to transform the waste into goods again
scrap “tyre mountains” are unsightly and make 
unproductive use of vast areas of land – they  
are also a publichealth hazard mosquitoes
breed in the rainwater that collects in tyre 
carcasses and go on to spread malaria dengue 
and other dangerous diseases symphony 
energy ltd has addressed this problem and is 
developing the w
2
v
®
 system for creating value 
from this untilnow rejected material
in june 2003 symphony developed its own additive which has since  
then been sold under the “d
2
w
®
” trademark 
in april 2007 there was a major reorganisation of the management 
structure and the number of distributors worldwide was increased  
from 7 to over 50 today 
in april 2008 a consortium of companies of which symphony energy  
ltd is the lead partner was awarded a uk government grant for  
research and development in the area of high value manufacturing  
relating to a rubber product enhanced recovery technology project  
the “rµpert” project the project is programmed to last three years 
with the aim to commercialise as soon as practicable
in august 2009  symphony launched d
2
p antimicrobial technology  
this is applied within the plastics manufacturing process similarly  
to d
2
w
®
 the markets for d
2
p are also similar to d
2
w
®

d
2
p antimicrobial – design to protect
product description
d
2
p is an additive system that gives plastic products antimicrobial and 
fungicidal performance
d
2
p is a masterbatch designed for specific applications the inorganic 
nature small particlesize and high temperaturetolerance of the active 
ingredient makes it ideal for use in a wide range of polymer processes
how does it work…silver based biocide
silver is widely accepted as having broadspectrum antimicrobial 
activity in order to understand why this is so it is necessary to examine 
the action of silver ions against microbes
stage 1   silver ions enter microorganism’s membrane and cause 
damage and disruption to the cellular wall before 
penetrating the cell
stage 2  silver ions are highly reactive with enzymes and can 
deactivate vital molecules
stage 3  silver ions interact with the dna cell and prevent replication
d
2
p a successful protection against microorganisms
d
2
p is effective against grampositive bacteria gramnegative bacteria 
mold and yeast 06
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
plastic is strong durable versatile 
lightweight safe and is the most effective 
and costeffective material for most 
packaging applications 
however modern plastic is virtually 
indestructible and can last for many 
decades after its useful life 
over the last decade businesses consumers and governments have 
sought to minimise their impact upon the environment be it through 
reactive or proactive measures tighter legislation has changed the 
business landscape to one seeking alternative technology applications 
which are environmentally friendly
the group’s enthusiasm for  and particular emphasis on degradable 
plastics derives from the significant and growing increase in interest  
in the environment in general and in particular  on the adverse effects  
of the durability of traditional plastics and the major problems caused  
by plastic litter 
this enthusiasm is being matched by many companies who are  
pursuing genuine corporate social responsibility csr objectives  
and from consumers who understand their responsibilities towards  
the environment and who are providing those companies who use 
degradable plastics with a real marketing benefit 
the pressure towards the use of degradable plastics is simultaneously 
coming from governments who in some cases are introducing legislation
most recently the advertising standards authority of south africa has 
ruled that bread bags made with symphony’s d
2
w
®
 controlledlife  
plastic can be advertised as biodegradable 
the problem with plastic
 f a c t  plastics can take many 
decades to break down almost  
all the plastics ever made can  
still be found somewhere 07
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
 f a c t  global production and consumption of plastics has increased 
from 5 million tonnes in 1950 to 245 million tones in 2006
plastics europe the compelling facts about plastics – an analysis of plastics production 
demand and recovery for 2006 in europe january 2008
 f a c t  recent surveys show that consumers believe that packaging 
is the top environmental problem in relation to the products they 
buy less packaging and more recyclable recycled or 
biodegradable packaging came at the top of their wish list
httpwwwdefragovukenvironmentwastestrategyfactsheetspackaginghtm
 f a c t  uk government defra research shows that 80 per cent  
of people reuse plastic carrier bags in the home evidence from 
members of the carrier bag consortium who make and supply  
bin liners and refuse sacks shows a plastic bag tax introduced in 
ireland resulted in an increase of 300  500 per cent in the sale of 
plastic refuse bags and bin liners
httpwwwbrcorgukdetails04asp id 1 109kcatkdata263scatretailmyths
 f a c t  when oxobiodegradable plastic has reached the 
fragmentation stage it is no longer a plastic and is “biodegradable” 
in the same way as nature’s wastes such as straw and twigs the 
process continues until the material has biodegraded to nothing 
more than co
2
 water  and humus and it does not leave fragments 
of petropolymers in the soil
httpwwwbiodegorgfaq how does d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic technology work
stage 1
d
2
w
®
 is an additive technology that is included in the basic polymer resin 
during the manufacturing process it breaks the molecular chains after  
a predetermined lifespan
carbon 
hydrogen 
oxygen 
microorganism stenotrophomonas sp pseudomonas sp rhodococcus sp acinetobacter sp etc  
stage 1 stage 2 stage 3
08
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
all plastics will eventually become 
embrittled and will fragment and be 
bioassimilated but the difference made  
by symphony’s d
2
w
®
 technology is that  
the process is accelerated 
d
2
w
®
 plastic is intended to address the environmental problem caused  
by plastic waste which gets accidentally or deliberately into the open 
environment because it is designed to degrade in the presence of  
oxygen at the end of its useful life the process will be accelerated by  
heat and ultraviolet light but they are not essential and the process  
is not inhibited by moisture until the material has degraded it has the 
same strength impermeability printability recyclability and other 
characteristics of normal plastic
the d
2
w
®
 additives which cause accelerated degradation are added to 
conventional plastics at the extrusion stage these additives are not 
phytotoxic and do not contain toxic metal substances ie lead mercury 
cadmium and hexavalent chromium as d
2
w
®
 additives are included  
at very low rates there is little or no oncost and d
2
w
®
 plastics can be 
made with the same machinery as ordinary plastics
it is important to note that while all plastics fragment as they degrade  
the fragments created by oxidative degradation do not remain in the 
environment for extended periods this is because the molecularweight 
of the material is reduced by d
2
w
®
 to the point where it no longer has the 
molecular structure of a plastic and can be bioassimilated in the same 
way as twigs and straw
the applications for which d
2
w
®
 plastics are normally used can vary  
from very shortlife products designed to last only a few weeks after 
unpacking to durable shopping bags designed to last five years or more 
the conditions under which they are likely to be discarded can also vary 
from cold and wet conditions to hot and dry desert conditions it is for  
the companies producing or using these products to evaluate test results 
to judge the suitability of the tested material for those applications and 
conditions and to describe and market them accordingly 
timescale in the natural environment depends on the amount of heat 
light and stress to which the material is subjected nature’s wastes such 
as twigs and straw may take ten years or more to completely biodegrade 
but d
2
w
® 
 plastics will do so more quickly – and much more quickly than 
ordinary or recycled plastic
the d
2
w
®
 solution
responsible use of plastic – the three r’s 
  reduce  plastic is a very efficient use of resources  
a plastic bag can hold 2500 times its  
own weight d
2
w
®
 can help to reduce the 
burden of plastic waste in the environment
  reuse  d
2
w
®
 based products can be reused many 
times during their servicelife
  recycle  d
2
w
®
 based products can be recycled and 
made from recycled plastic polymers
see a plastic bag degrading thanks to d
2
w
®
 
controlledlife plastic technology at
 httpwww youtubecomwatchvi3tgqcpwjtm then the plastic starts degrading at the end of its servicelife by a process of 
oxidation in the presence of air which is accelerated by light heat and stress 
when the molecular weight has been reduced the material is no longer a 
plastic and can be bioassimilated in the same way as straw and twigs
finally biodegradation is completed by 
microorganisms
stage 2 stage 3
carbon 
hydrogen 
oxygen 
microorganism stenotrophomonas sp pseudomonas sp rhodococcus sp acinetobacter sp etc  
stage 1 stage 2 stage 3
carbon 
hydrogen 
oxygen 
microorganism stenotrophomonas sp pseudomonas sp rhodococcus sp acinetobacter sp etc  
stage 1 stage 2 stage 3
09
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
by contrast vegetablebased or “compostable” plastics do not readily 
degrade in the open environment as they are designed for industrial 
composting industrial composting is not the same as biodegradation  
in the environment the fact that compostable plastics are designed to 
convert to co
2
 gas within 180 days is not useful even for composting 
because it contributes to climate change instead of contributing to the 
fertility of the soil nature’s lignocellulosic wastes and d
2
w
®
 plastics  
do not behave in this way
it as a positive factor that ordinary plastics and d
2
w
®
 plastics are  
made from byproducts of oil natural gas or coal for so long as the 
world needs these materials as fuels it makes good environmental  
sense to use the byproduct and nobody is extracted these resources  
to make plastics 
it is not desirable to send otherwise recoverable plastic to landfill but  
if oxobiodegradable plastics do end up in landfill they are designed to 
disintegrate and biodegrade in contact with oxygen any particles in 
anaerobic conditions deep in landfill are likely to be minimal and will not 
be converted to methane in significant amounts – unlike compostable 
plastics and unlike paper and wood which are major components  
of landfill
so far as recycling is concerned oxobiodegradable plastic can be 
recycled in the same way as ordinary plastic see httpwwwbiodegorg
positionpapersrecyclingdomainbiodegorg  “compostable” plastic 
cannot be recycled with ordinary plastic and will ruin the recycling 
process if it gets into the waste stream 
products available pe and pp
• bread wrappers and snackfood packets
• bags to contain dog faeces collected in parks gardens etc
• ‘‘bubblewrap’’
• carrier bags or “shopperbags”
• frozen food packaging garbage sacks and bin liners
• gloves and aprons
• newspaper and magazine wrappers
• rigid products such as bottles tubs and cups
• shrinkwrap and palletwrap
normal plastic 
used throughout industry and has 
been tested and proven safe for 
food medical farming and many 
other applications
can be reused
it takes seconds to make normal 
plastic but too long to disappear it 
will eventually degrade to co
2
 and 
h
2
o but can take many decades
will not meet any biodegradable or 
degradable standards
can be recycled though stabilisers 
will normally be required to replace 
properties lost during the reheating 
process
why choose d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic
d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic 
d
2
w
®
 improves the excellent 
properties of normal plastic  
by controlling and reducing its 
lifespan and therefore making  
it more environmentally 
acceptable
can be reused
no change in performance  
and optical properties of  
the normal plastic product 
low cost because products 
made with d
2
w
®
 technology 
comprise more than 995 
normal polymer and are made 
with the same machines
can be recycled before it 
degrades
  carbon     hydrogen     oxygen 
carbon 
hydrogen 
oxygen 
microorganism stenotrophomonas sp pseudomonas sp rhodococcus sp acinetobacter sp etc  
stage 1 stage 2 stage 3
 
microorganism stenotrophomonas sp pseudomonas sp rhodococcus sp acinetobacter sp etc 10
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
d u r i n g 	 2 0 0 9 	 t h e 	 c o m p a n y 	 c o n t i n u e d 	 t o	
c onc entr at e 	 its 	 r esour c es 	 on 	 the 	d
2
w
®
 
p r o d u c t s 	 w i t h 	 f u r t h e r 	 l a u n c h e s 	 i n 	 s o u t h	
americ a 	 and 	 ne w 	 launches 	 in 	 north 	 afric a	
the 	 middl e 	 eas t 	 and 	 parts 	 of 	 eas t ern 	 eur ope
the group has continued to invest in research and development for new 
products together with improvements to existing products as well as 
testing and compliance protocols 
costs have been carefully monitored with increases to support the 
growth in revenues the group has reduced its interest bearing debt by 
£034 million leading to a reduction in finance costs this reduction in 
debt was limited due to a substantial increase in trade toward the end of 
the last quarter resulting in higher working capital balances reported at 
the end of the year  including amounts payable on invoice discounting
working with our distributors we continue to monitor and have an 
influence on legislation in certain parts of the world and we are making 
considerable efforts to maximise awareness of d
2
w
®
 products
these reported figures reflect the impact of the considerable work  
and investment being made as well as the achievements to date in 
expanding sales and markets for d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic technology 
and products
trading results
i am pleased to report group revenues increased by 31 during the year 
from £536 million to £7 04 million group gross profit margins increased 
from 44 to 55 these factors resulted in a 63 increase in the 
contribution from gross profit from £237 million in 2008 to £388 million  
in 2009
the group made an operating profit of £083 million compared to an 
operating loss of £0 15 million in 2008 resulting in the group’s maiden 
profit before tax of £064 million compared to a loss before tax of £040 
million in 2008 
development costs of £023 million were capitalised in 2009 a £001 
million research and development tax credit was received during  
the year
the symphony environmental limited d
2
w
®
 division made a profit before 
taxation of £098 million and has recognised further deferred tax credit 
resulting in a carried forward deferred tax asset of £099 million at the  
end of the year  losses within the nondegradable division reduced to  
£0 16 million in 2009 compared to a loss of £047 million in 2008
the group primary selling currency is the us dollar  the group hedges 
where possible by purchasing in us dollars and has banking facilities  
in place in order to secure rates going forward as at 31 december 2009 
the group had a net balance of us dollar assets totalling 129 million 
 
chief executive’ s review 11
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
as a result of this financial performance the group reports a profit  
for the year of £092 million with basic earnings per share increasing  
to 080 pence 2008 035 pence 
cashflow
the group has recorded an improvement in cashflow of £121 million 
from 2008 by generating £057 million from operations 2008 £064 
million loss £004 million was invested in plant and equipment together 
with £023 million in product development which has been capitalised 
further research and development spend is included within expenses 
and was not capitalised as it does not meet the appropriate accounting 
criteria
debt was reduced by £034 million in 2009 the amount payable on the 
invoice discounting facility increased from £0 16 million in 2008 to £032 
million in 2009 this was due to increased revenues in the last quarter  
of 2009 resulting in high levels of amounts receivable and hence 
financeable at the end of the year 
the headstart loan has been repaid in accordance with the terms 
renegotiated in january 2009 at 31 december 2009 the balance of  
the loan was £40000 this has been settled in full since the year end
invoice financing and banking facilities remain in place for 2010 which 
together with the current trade profile show adequate resources are 
available for the foreseeable future 
operations 
total costs increased in 2009 due to the level of support required to 
service the growth in revenue and number of distributors
having developed a strong distributor base the main function for the 
group continues to be product support and development marketing  
and brandrecognition 
on 19 march 2010 the group moved its head office within borehamwood 
uk to premises more suited for the next five to ten years of operations
symphony energy
the group currently absorbs annual running costs of £0 18 million the  
rµpert project is in its second year out of three and the group is actively 
pursuing commercial outlets for the elements within the project 
outlook
as stated above the group has moved its global headquarters to a 
modern facility that is more than twice the size of the group’s original 
premises as a result of the growth in activities further investments will 
be made in technical support services research and development and 
also marketing activities these investments which are essential to a 
growing business of our size will be undertaken carefully so as not to 
materially undermine short term expectations
the symphony distributor network has a busy year ahead with 
exhibitions product development and other related projects on a global 
basis so far in 2010 d
2
w
®
 representatives have participated in six major 
events in the coming months we will be at the master investor show 
london chinaplas 2010 plast china exhibitions in central america and 
latin america and towards the end of the year at one of the world’s 
largest plastic events in germany the k t rade fair  product launches 
and other events are planned for the uk and other markets in the coming 
months details of these events will be communicated through our 
normal commercial channels
the current year has started well and in line with management’s 
expectations the board is confident that further expansion will be  
achieved during this year and that long term debt will continue to reduce 
michael laurier 
chief 	 ex ecutiv e
29 	 mar ch 	 2010 12
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
directors’ report
the directors present their report and the audited financial statements of the group for the year ended 31 december 2009 
principal activities and business review
the primary business activities of the group are the development and supply of environmental polythene and other polyolefin products to a global 
market and the development of waste to value projects the group also supplies other flexible polythene and related products
a review of the business and future developments is given in the chairman’s statement and chief executive’s review
the profit for the year after taxation amounted to £923000 2008 £368000
results and dividends
the trading results for the year and the group’s financial position at the end of the year are shown in the attached financial statements
the directors have not recommended a dividend
key performance indicators
the directors have monitored the progress of the overall group strategy by reference to certain financial and nonfinancial key performance 
indicators
key performance indicator  2009 2008 method of calculation
sales d
2
w
®
 £’000  6947 5127 sales revenue solely of d
2
w
®
 additives and products
gross profit margin  before nonrecurring items  551 443 the ratio of gross profit to sales
number of distributors  49 45 the number of distribution agreements signed
these are discussed within the chairman’s statement and chief executive’s review
research and development
the group is involved in the research and development of degradable polythene and other polyolefin products and waste to value systems
the directors and their interests
the directors who served during the year and their interests in the shares of the company are shown in the remuneration report on page 14
policy on the payment of creditors
it is the group’s policy to settle the terms of payment with suppliers when agreeing the terms of the transaction to ensure that suppliers are aware  
of these terms and abide by them t rade payables at the year end amount to 46 days 2008 – 47 of average supplies for the year for the group and  
47 days 2008 – 78 for the company 
statement of directors’ responsibilities
the directors are responsible for preparing the annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations
company law requires the directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year  under that law the directors have elected to prepare 
group financial statements in accordance with international financial reporting standards ifrs as adopted by the european union 
the parent company’s own financial statements continue to be prepared in accordance with united kingdom generally accepted accounting practice 
the financial statements are required by law to give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the group and the company and of the profit or loss of 
the group for that period in preparing these financial statements the directors are required to
select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently •	
make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent •	
state whether applicable ifrs or united kingdom accounting standards have been followed subject to any material departures disclosed and •	
explained in the financial statements 
prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the group will continue in business •	
the directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the 
group and the company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the companies act 2006 they are also responsible for 
safeguarding the assets of the group and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities 13
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
in so far as each of the directors is aware
there is no relevant audit information of which the group’s auditor  •	
is unaware and
the directors have taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that •	
the auditor is aware of that information
the directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the group’s website legislation 
in the united kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions
going concern
the group as a whole is performing profitably and generating positive cash flows taking this into account together with cashflow forecast the 
management has prepared for the ensuing twelve months the directors are of the opinion that it is appropriate to continue to adopt the going concern 
basis in preparing these financial statements
corporate governance
the group is committed to developing and adhering to high standards of corporate governance as an aim listed company it is not required to comply 
with the combined code as issued by the uk’s listing authority however  it seeks to follow the principles of good governance as far as management 
believes it is practical for a group of its size nature and circumstances 
financial risk management policies
the group’s financial risk management policies are detailed in note 3 to the financial statements
post balance sheet events
on 19 march 2010 symphony plastics limited entered into a new lease at 6 elstree gate elstree house elstree way borehamwood hertfordshire 
wd6 1jd the registered office and head office for the company and group companies changed to this new address the lease  
is for ten years with a five year break provision the net total rentals payable over the first five years total £452000
since the year end the group has committed to leasehold improvement and equipment costs totalling £200000
on 22 january 2010 the company issued 250000 options to each of the three non executive directors details are given in the remuneration report on 
page 14
auditor
a resolution to appoint grant thornton uk llp as auditor for the ensuing year will be proposed at the annual general meeting
by order of the board
i bristow 
secretary  
29 march 2010 14
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
directors’ emoluments
       2009 2008 
   basic salary share based   total total 
   or fees payments benefits pension emoluments emoluments 
   £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
n deva   35  – – 2 37 33
m laurier   192 – 10 19 221 202
i bristow   126 – 14 13 153 130
m stephen   135 – 5 – 140 112
m f stephens   167 – 9 13 189 131
n clavel    18 – – – 18 5
h swire    18 – – – 18 5
   691 – 38 47 776 618
the directors’ pensions where applicable are administered by those directors
the company has taken out insurance for its officers against liabilities in relation to the company under section 233 of the companies act 2006
since the year end a total of 750000 options over the company’s ordinary 1p shares have been granted and allocated as to 250000 each for nirj deva 
hugo swire and nicolas clavel the options granted are exercisable at any time after 18 december 2010 and before 18 december 2019 the exercise 
price is 9875p per ordinary 1p share being the mid market price on 18 december 2009
directors’ interests
the directors in office at the end of the year  together with their beneficial interests in the shares of the company were as follows
      at at 
      31 december 1 january 
ordinary shares of £001 each      2009 2009 
n deva       178425 17500
m laurier      14963600 10203142
i bristow       925818 847972
m stephen      335998 36764
m f stephens      311294 263448
n clavel      280000 –
h swire      394234 125000
share options
the following directors and directors of subsidiary companies have share options or agreements for share options
  exercise 
  price 
 number of pence 
 share options  per share exercisable from exercisable to
n deva 1500000 450 26 november 2008  26 november 2018
m laurier 2500000 450 26 november 2008  26 november 2018
i bristow 3000000 450 26 november 2008  26 november 2018
m stephen 2000000 450 26 november 2008  26 november 2018
m stephen 1200000 625 28 april 2007 28 april 2017
m stephens 1000000 450 26 november 2008  26 november 2018
n clavel 500000 450 16 october 2009 16 october 2019
h swire 500000 450 16 october 2009 16 october 2019
the above share options are hm revenue and customs unapproved see note 18 to the financial statements for the terms of the above options 
warrants
the following directors and directors of subsidiary companies have share warrants
  exercise 
  price 
 number of pence 
 warrants  per warrant exercisable from exercisable to
n deva 200000 1200 17 november 2005 17 november 2010
m laurier 1100000 1200 17 november 2005 17 november 2010
i bristow 990000 1200 17 november 2005 17 november 2010
remuneration report 15
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
we have audited the financial statements of symphony environmental t echnologies plc for the year ended 31 december 2009 which comprise the 
consolidated statement of financial position and parent company balance sheet the consolidated statement of comprehensive income the consolidated 
statement of cash flows the consolidated statement of changes in equity and the related notes the financial reporting framework that has been 
applied in the preparation of the group financial statements is applicable law and international financial reporting standards ifrss as adopted by the 
european union the financial reporting framework that has been applied in the preparation of the parent company financial statements is applicable 
law and united kingdom accounting standards united kingdom generally accepted accounting practice
this report is made solely to the company’s members as a body in accordance with sections 495 and 496 of the companies act 2006 our audit work 
has been undertaken so that we might state to the company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for 
no other purpose to the fullest extent permitted by law we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the company and the 
company’s members as a body for our audit work for this report or for the opinions we have formed
respective responsibilities of directors and auditors
as explained more fully in the directors’ responsibilities statement set out on page 12 the directors are responsible for the preparation of the 
financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view our responsibility is to audit the financial statements in accordance with 
applicable law and international standards on auditing uk and ireland those standards require us to comply with the auditing practices board’s 
apb’s ethical standards for auditors
scope of the audit of the financial statements
a description of the scope of an audit of financial statements is provided on the apb’s website at wwwfrcorgukapbscopeuknp
opinion on financial statements
in our opinion
the financial statements give a true and fair view of the state of the group’s and of the parent company’s affairs as at 31 december 2009 and of the •	
group’s profit for the year then ended 
the group financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with ifrs as adopted by the european union •	
the parent company financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with united kingdom generally accepted accounting •	
practice and
the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the companies act 2006 •	
separate opinion in relation to ifrss
as explained in note 2 to the group financial statements the group in addition to complying with its legal obligation to comply with ifrss as adopted by 
the european union has also complied with ifrss as issued by the international accounting standards board iasb
in our opinion the group financial statements comply with ifrss as issued by the iasb
opinion on other matter prescribed by the companies act 2006
in our opinion the information given in the directors’ report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the 
financial statements
matters on which we are required to report by exception
we have nothing to report in respect of the following matters where  
the companies act 2006 requires us to report to you if in our opinion
adequate accounting records have not been kept by the parent company or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches •	
not visited by us or
the parent company financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns or •	
certain disclosures of directors’ remuneration specified by law are not made or •	
we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit •	
simon jones
senior statutory auditor
for and on behalf of grant thornton uk llp
statutory auditor  chartered accountants
milton keynes
29 march 2010
independent auditor’s report to the members of symphony
environmental technologies plc 16
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
consolidated statement of comprehensive income
for the year ended 31 december 2009
   2009 

 2008
    note £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
revenue    5  7038  5355
cost of sales      3163  2981
gross profit      3875  2374
distribution costs      129  111
administrative expenses – recurring    6 2914  2358
administrative expenses – nonrecurring    6 –  53
administrative expenses    6  2914  2411
operating profitloss – recurring     832  95
operating profitloss – nonrecurring     –  53
operating profitloss    6  832  148
finance income    8  –  1
finance costs    8  194  251
profitloss for the year before tax      638  398
tax credit    9  285  766
profit for the year      923  368
t otal comprehensive income for the year      923  368
basic earnings per share    10  080p  035p
diluted earnings per share    10  078p  032p
all results are attributable to the parent company equity holders there were no discontinued operations for either of the above periods
the accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements 17
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
company number 3676824
       2009 2008 
      note £’000 £’000
assets
noncurrent
property plant and equipment      11 216 241
intangible assets      12 487 272
deferred income tax asset      9a 993 719
available for sale financial assets      14 15 15
       1711 1247
current
inventories      15 212 194
t rade and other receivables      16 1597 1236
cash and cash equivalents      17 34 92
       1843 1522
t otal assets       3554 2769
equity
equity attributable to shareholders of symphony environmental t echnologies plc
ordinary shares      18 1165 1087
share premium       18 13253 13176
other reserves       822 822
retained earnings       13447 14383
t otal equity       1793 702
liabilities
noncurrent
interest bearing loans and borrowings      20 274 289
       274 289
current
interest bearing loans and borrowings      20 731 1055
t rade and other payables      19 756 723
       1487 1778
t otal liabilities       1761 2067
t otal equity and liabilities       3554 2769
these financial statements were approved by the board of directors 29 march 2010 and authorised for issue on 29 march 2010 they were signed on 
its behalf by
i bristow fcca
finance director
the accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements
consolidated statement of financial position balance sheet
as at 31 december 2009 18
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
equity attributable to the equity holders of symphony environmental t echnologies plc
    share share other retained total 
    capital premium reserves earnings equity 
    £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
for the year to 31 december 2009
balance at 1 january 2009    1087 13176 822 14383 702
issue of share capital    78 77 – – 155
share based options    – – – 13 13
t ransactions with owners    78 77 – 13 168
profit and total comprehensive income for the year    – – – 923 923
balance at 31 december 2009    1165 13253 822 13447 1793
for the year to 31 december 2008
balance at 1 january 2008    1018 13048 822 14763 125
issue of share capital    69 128 – – 197
share based options    – – – 12 12
t ransactions with owners    69 128 – 12 209
profit and total comprehensive income for the year    – – – 368 368
balance at 31 december 2008    1087 13176 822 14383 702
the accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements
consolidated statement of changes in equity 19
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
       2009 2008 
      note £’000 £’000
operating activities
cash generatedconsumed in operations      21 566 635
tax received       11 48
net cash generatedconsumed in operations       577 587
investing activities
additions to property plant and equipment       44 89
proceeds from disposals of property plant and equipment       – 11
additions of intangible assets       230 109
interest received       – 1
net cash consumed in investing activities       274 186
financing activities
proceeds from loans       – 512
repayment of loans       319 62
new finance leases       – 42
discharge of finance lease liability        31 43
proceeds from share issue       155 140
interest paid       194 205
net cash consumedgenerated in financial activities       389 384
net change in cash and cash equivalents       86 389
cash and cash equivalents beginning of year       18 407
cash and cash equivalents end of year       68 18
the reconciliation to the cash and cash equivalents as reported in the balance sheet is as follows
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
loans and receivables
 cash at bank and in hand      17 34 92
financial liabilities measured at amortised cost
 bank overdraft       20 102 74
cash and cash equivalents end of year       68 18
the accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements 
consolidated cash flow statement
for the year ended 31 december 2009 20
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
1 general information
symphony environmental t echnologies plc ‘the company’ and subsidiaries together ‘the group’ develop and supply plastic degradable additives and 
products and develop waste to energy systems
the company a public limited company is the group’s ultimate parent company it is incorporated and domiciled in england company number 
3676824 the address of its registered office is 6 elstree gate elstree way borehamwood hertfordshire wd6 1jd england the company’s  
shares are listed on the aim market of the london stock exchange the plus market in london and as a level 1 adr in new york
2 summary of significant accounting policies
these consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of international financial reporting standards 
ifrs as adopted by the eu issued and effective or issued as at 31 december 2009 and also comply with ifrs as issued by the international 
accounting standards board iasb 
the accounting policies have remained unchanged from the previous year  except as noted below with regard to ias 1 and ifrs 8
the adoption of ias 1 revised 2007 has not affected the financial position or profits of the group but gives rise to additional disclosures ias 1 
revised 2007 introduces a “statement of comprehensive income” the group has chosen to prepare a single statement of comprehensive income 
which incorporates the income statement and statement of other comprehensive income the adoption of ifrs 8 requires the disclosure of significant 
customers that is those that comprise more than 10 of revenue as disclosed in note 5 under ifrs 8 the accounting policy for identifying segments 
is now based on the internal management reporting information that is regularly reviewed at board level this has not changed the segments 
reported as previously
the third balance sheet for the year ended 31 december 2007 has not been presented because the information is unchanged from the previously 
published financial statements
going concern
the group as a whole is performing profitably and generating positive cash flows taking this into account together with cashflow forecast the 
management has prepared for the ensuing twelve months the directors are of the opinion that it is appropriate to continue to adopt the going concern 
basis in preparing these financial statements
business combinations exemption
the group has not restated business combinations which took place prior to the transition date 
accordingly the classification of the combination remains unchanged from that used under uk gaap  the assets liabilities and other reserve are 
recognised at date of transition and are measured using their united kingdom generally accepted accounting practice gaap carrying amount
business combinations completed prior to date of transition to ifrs
the group financial statements consolidate the financial statements of the company and all subsidiary undertakings 
the acquisition of symphony plastics limited on 9 december 1999 was accounted for under merger accounting under uk gaap and has been treated 
in this manner under ifrs as the business combination exemption has been adopted in these annual report and accounts the merger accounting 
method requires assets and liabilities to not be adjusted to fair value and the results of the subsidiary to be included as if it had always been part of the 
group therefore the results of the group included both the results pre and postacquisition the other reserve was established as a result of this 
accounting method
segment reporting 
in identifying its operating segments management generally follows the group’s service lines which represent the main products and services 
provided by the group
the activities undertaken by the degradable segment includes the sale of degradable products the nondegradable segment includes the supply  
of nondegradable products to external customers the waste to value segment includes all activities involved in the development of waste to  
value systems
each of the operating segments is managed separately as each of these service lines requires different technologies and other resources as well as 
marketing approaches all intersegments transfers are carried out at arm’s length prices
notes to the annual report and accounts 21
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
the measurement policies the group uses for segment reporting under ifrs 8 are the same as those used in its financial statements except that
one off costs such as postemployment benefit expenses •	
expenses relating to sharebased payments •	
are not included in arriving at the operating profit of the operating segments in addition corporate assets which are not directly attributable to  
the business activities of any operating segment are not allocated to a segment in the financial periods under review this primarily applies to the 
group’s headquarters in borehamwood uk
segment information is presented in accordance with ifrs 8 for all periods presented ifrs 8 only requires disclosure of segment information  
no asymmetrical allocations have been applied between segments
revenue
degradable and nondegradable goods and services
revenue is stated at the fair value of the consideration receivable and excludes vat and trade discounts
revenue from the sale of goods is recognised when all of the following conditions have been satisfied
a ownership of the significant risks and rewards has been transferred to the buyer
b the group retains neither continuing managerial involvement to the degree usually associated with ownership nor effective control over the  
goods sold
c the amount of revenue can be measured effectively
d it is probable that the economic benefits associated with the transaction will flow to the entity and
e the costs incurred or to be incurred in respect of the transaction can be measured reliably
when the outcome of a transaction involving the rendering of services can be estimated reliably revenue associated with the transaction shall be 
recognised by reference to the stage of completion of the transaction at the balance sheet date the outcome of a transaction can be estimated 
reliably when all of the following conditions are satisfied
a the amount of revenue can be measured reliably
b it is probable that the economic benefits associated with the transaction will flow to the entity
c the stage of completion of the transaction at the balance sheet date can be measured reliably and
d the costs incurred for the transaction and the costs to complete the transaction can be measured reliably
government grants
government grants are included within the income statement once the group has fulfilled all obligations necessary to qualify for the grant
nonrecurring items
expenditure is classified as nonrecurring where the cost is considered to be material oneoff and will not continue in the future
intangible assets
 – research and development costs
expenditure on research or the research phase of an internal project is recognised as an expense in the period in which it is incurred 
development costs incurred on specific projects are capitalised when all the following conditions are satisfied
completion of the intangible asset is technically feasible so that it will be available for use or sale •	
the group intends to complete the intangible asset and use or sell it •	
the group has the ability to use or sell the intangible asset •	
the intangible asset will generate probable future economic benefits among other things this requires that there is a market for the output  •	
from the intangible asset or for the intangible asset itself or  if it is to be used internally the asset will be used in generating such benefits
there are adequate technical financial and other resources to complete the development and to use or sell the intangible asset and •	
the expenditure attributable to the intangible asset during its development can be measured reliably •	
development costs not meeting the criteria for capitalisation are expensed as incurred
the cost of an internally generated intangible asset comprises all directly attributable costs necessary to create produce and prepare the asset to  
be capable of operating in the manner intended by management the nature of the group’s activities in the field of development work renders some 
internally generated intangible assets unable to meet the above criteria at present
amortisation commences upon completion of the asset and is shown within administrative expenses and is included at the following rate
development costs d
2
w
®
   – 15 years straight line  22
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
2 summary of significant accounting policies continued
careful judgement by the directors is applied when deciding whether the recognition requirements for development costs have been met this is 
necessary as the economic success of any product development is uncertain and may be subject to future technical problems at the time of 
recognition judgements are based on the information available at each balance sheet date 
– t rademarks
t rademarks represent the cost of registration and are carried at cost less amortisation
amortisation is calculated so as to write off the cost of an asset less its estimated residual value over the useful economic life of that asset as follows
t rademarks   – 10 years straight line
property plant and equipment
property plant and equipment are stated at cost net of depreciation and any provision for impairment
depreciation is calculated so as to write off the cost of an asset less its estimated residual value over the useful economic life of that asset as follows
plant and machinery   – 20 reducing balance
fixtures and fittings   – 25 reducing balance
motor vehicles   – 20 reducing balance
office equipment   – 25 straight line
the residual value is reconsidered annually
impairment testing of intangible assets and property plant and equipment
for the purposes of assessing impairment assets are grouped at the lowest levels for which there are separately identifiable cash flows cash
generating units as a result some assets are tested individually for impairment and some are tested at cashgenerating unit level those intangible 
assets not yet available for use are tested for impairment at least annually all other individual assets or cashgenerating units are tested for 
impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable
an impairment loss is recognised for the amount by which the asset’s or cashgenerating unit’s carrying amount exceeds its recoverable amount 
the recoverable amount is the higher of fair value reflecting market conditions less costs to sell and value in use based on an internal discounted 
cash flow evaluation all assets are subsequently reassessed for indications that an impairment loss previously recognised may no longer exist
inventories
inventories are valued at the lower of cost and net realisable value after making due allowance for obsolete and slow moving items cost is 
determined on the basis of purchase value on a firstin firstout basis
leased assets 
in accordance with international accounting standard ias 17 the economic ownership of a leased asset is transferred to the lessee if the lessee 
bears substantially all the risks and rewards related to the ownership of the leased asset the related asset is recognised at the time of inception of 
the lease at the fair value of the leased asset or  if lower  the present value of the minimum lease payments plus incidental payments if any to be 
borne by the lessee a corresponding amount is recognised as a finance leasing liability the interest element of leasing payments represents a 
constant proportion of the capital balance outstanding and is charged to the income statement over the period of the lease
all other leases are regarded as operating leases and the payments made under them are charged to the income statement on a straight line basis 
over the lease term lease incentives are spread over the term of the lease
pension costs
the group operates a defined contribution pension scheme for employees the assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the group  
the pension costs charged against profits are the contributions payable to the scheme in respect of the accounting period
t axation
current tax is the tax currently payable based on taxable profit for the year 
deferred income taxes are calculated using the liability method on temporary differences deferred tax is generally provided on the difference 
between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities and their tax bases tax losses available to be carried forward as well as other income tax 
credits to the group are assessed for recognition as deferred tax assets
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 23
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
deferred tax liabilities are provided in full with no discounting deferred tax assets are recognised to the extent that it is probable that the underlying 
deductible temporary differences will be able to be offset against future taxable income current and deferred tax assets and liabilities are calculated 
at tax rates that are expected to apply to their respective period of realisation provided they are enacted or substantively enacted at the balance  
sheet date
changes in deferred tax assets or liabilities are recognised as a component of tax expense in the income statement except where they relate to items 
that are charged or credited directly to equity in which case the related deferred tax is also charged or credited directly to equity
foreign currencies
monetary assets and liabilities in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rates of exchange ruling at the balance sheet date t ransactions 
in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rate of exchange ruling at the date of the transaction exchange differences are taken into 
account in arriving at the operating result
financial assets
financial assets are divided into the following categories loans and receivables and availableforsale financial assets financial assets are assigned 
to the different categories by management on initial recognition depending on the purpose for which they were acquired 
the designation of financial assets is reevaluated at every reporting date at which a choice of classification or accounting treatment is available
all financial assets are recognised when the group becomes a party to the contractual provisions of the instrument financial assets are initially 
recognised at fair value plus transaction costs 
the group currently has the following financial assets
– t rade receivables
t rade receivables are categorised as loans and receivables t rade receivables are nonderivative financial assets with fixed or determinable 
payments that are not quoted in an active market t rade receivables are measured subsequent to initial recognition at amortised cost using the 
effective interest method less provision for impairment any change in their value through impairment or reversal of impairment is recognised in the 
income statement
provision against trade receivables is made when there is objective evidence that the group will not be able to collect all amounts due to it in 
accordance with the original terms of those receivables the amount of the writedown is determined as the difference between the asset’s carrying 
amount and the present value of estimated future cash flows
– available for sale financial assets
availableforsale financial assets are nonderivative financial assets that are either designated to this category or do not qualify for inclusion in any of 
the other categories of financial assets the group’s availableforsale financial assets are the equity investments in bin hilal llc and oxobioplast inc
the equity investments in bin hilal llc and oxobioplast inc are measured at cost less any impairment charges as their fair values cannot currently 
be estimated reliably impairment charges are recognised in profit or loss
an assessment for impairment is undertaken at least at each balance sheet date
a financial asset is derecognised only where the contractual rights to the cash flows from the asset expire or the financial asset is transferred and 
that transfer qualifies for derecognition a financial asset is transferred if the contractual rights to receive the cash flows of the asset have been 
transferred or the group retains the contractual rights to receive the cash flows of the asset but assumes a contractual obligation to pay the cash 
flows to one or more recipients a financial asset that is transferred qualifies for derecognition if the group transfers substantially all the risks and 
rewards of ownership of the asset or if the group neither retains nor transfers substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership but does transfer 
control of that asset
financial liabilities
financial liabilities are obligations to pay cash or other financial assets and are recognised when the group becomes a party to the contractual 
provisions of the instrument 
the group’s financial liabilities include trade payables other creditors bank overdraft convertible loan and other loans these are classified as 
financial liabilities measured at amortised cost
financial liabilities also include conversion rights and warrants which are embedded derivatives held at fair value through profit and loss – held for 
trading
financial liabilities measured at amortised cost are recognised at fair values net of direct issue costs finance charges are charged to the income 
statement where applicable on an accruals basis using the effective interest method and are added to the carrying amount of the instrument to the 
extent they are not settled in the period in which they arose 24
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
2 summary of significant accounting policies continued
where a financial liability contains embedded derivatives they are bifurcated into financial liabilities measured at amortised cost and financial 
liabilities held at fair value through profit and loss – held for trading by fair valuing the embedded derivative
financial liabilities categorised as at fair value through profit and loss are remeasured at each reporting date at fair value with changes in fair value 
being recorded in the income statement 
a financial liability is derecognised only when the obligation is extinguished that is when the obligation is discharged or cancelled or expires
cash and cash equivalents
cash and cash equivalents comprise cash in hand and demand deposits together with other shortterm highly liquid investments that are readily 
convertible into known amounts of cash and which are subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value
equity settled share based payments
all sharebased payment arrangements granted after 7 november 2002 that had not vested prior to 1 january 2007 are recognised in the financial 
statements
all goods and services received in exchange for the grant of any sharebased payment are measured at their fair values where employees are 
rewarded using sharebased payments the fair values of the instrument granted are determined using the blackscholes model this fair value is 
appraised at the grant date and excludes the impact of new market vesting conditions the fair value is charged to the income statement between  
the date of issue and the date the share options vest with a corresponding credit taken to shareholders’ funds
warrants granted to employees which relate to salary sacrifice arrangements are attributed a fair value by reference to the services provided this 
fair value is charged to the income statement when the service is provided with a corresponding credit taken to shareholders’ funds
equity
equity comprises the following
“share capital” represents the nominal value of equity shares •	
“share premium” represents the excess over nominal value of the fair value of consideration received for equity shares net of expenses of the •	
share issue and
“other reserve” is a reserve established following the adoption of merger accounting the company was entitled to merger relief offered by •	
section 131 of the companies act 1985 in respect of consideration received in excess of the nominal value of the equity shares issued in connection 
with the acquisition of symphony plastics limited on 9 december 1999
standards and interpretations not yet effective
at the date of authorisation of these financial statements certain new standards amendments and interpretations to existing standards have been 
published but are not yet effective and have not been adopted early by the group
management anticipates that all of the pronouncements will be adopted in the group’s accounting policy for the first period beginning after the 
effective date of the pronouncement information on new standards amendments and interpretations that are expected to be relevant to the group’s 
financial statements is provided below certain other new standards and interpretations have been issued but are not expected to have a material 
impact on the group’s financial statements
ifrs 3 business combinations revised 2009 effective from 1 july 2009
the standard is applicable for business combinations occurring in reporting periods beginning on or after 1 july 2009 and will be applied 
prospectively the new standard introduces changes to the accounting requirements for business combinations but still requires use of purchase 
method and will have a significant effect on business combinations occurring in future reporting periods
ias 27 consolidated and separate financial statements revised 2009 effective from 1 july 2009
the revised standard introduces changes to the accounting requirements for the loss of control of a subsidiary and for changes in the group’s interest 
in subsidiaries these changes will be applied prospectively in accordance with the transitional provisions and so do not have an immediate effect on 
the group’s financial statements
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 25
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
annual improvements 2009 effective from 1 july 2009 and later
the iasb has issued improvements for international financial reporting standards 2009 most of these amendments become effective in annual 
periods beginning on or after 1 july 2009 or 1 january 2010 the group expects the amendments to ias 17 leases to be relevant to the group’s 
accounting policies prior to the amendment ias 17 generally required a lease of land to be classified as an operating lease the amendment now 
requires that leases of land are classified as finance or operating applying the general principles of ias 17  the group will need to reassess the 
classification of the land elements of its unexpired leases at 1 january 2010 on the basis of information existing at the inception of those leases any 
newly classified finance leases are recognised retrospectively preliminary assessments indicate that the effect on the group’s financial statements 
will not be significant
ifrs 9 financial instruments effective from 1 january 2013
the iasb aims to replace ias 39 financial instruments recognition and measurement in its entirety by the end of 2010 with the replacement 
standard to be effective for annual periods beginning 1 january 2013 ifrs 9 is the first part of phase 1 of this project the main phases are
phase 1 classification and measurement
phase 2 impairment methodology
phase 3 hedge accounting
in addition a separate project is dealing with derecognition management have yet to assess the impact that this amendment is likely to have on the 
financial statements of the group however  they do not expect to implement the amendments until all chapters of the ias 39 replacement have been 
published and they can comprehensively assess the impact of all changes
3 financial risk management
the main risks arising from the group’s financial instruments are liquidity risk interest rate risk currency risk and credit risk the directors review 
and agree policies for managing each of these risks and they are summarised below these policies have remained unchanged from previous years 
the group’s financial assets and liabilities are summarised as follows
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
financial assets
available for sale        15 15
loans and receivables       1492 1133
       1507 1148
financial liabilities
financial liabilities measured as amortised costs       1412 1703
held for trading       1 9
       1413 1712
liquidity risk
the group seeks to manage financial risk to ensure financial liquidity is available to meet foreseeable needs and to invest cash assets safely and 
profitably shortterm flexibility is achieved through trade finance arrangements
the maturity of financial liabilities as at 31 december 2009 is summarised as follows
    trade convertible other 
    payables loan loans  bank total 
gross cash flows    £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
zero to sixty days    447 42 314 102 905
sixty one days to three months    – – – – –
four months to six months    – – – – –
seven months to one year    – – 584 – 584
one year to three years    – – – – –
more than three years    – – – – –
    447 42 898 102 1489 26
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
3 financial risk management continued
the maturity of financial liabilities as at 31 december 2008 is summarised as follows
    trade convertible other 
    payables loan loans  bank total 
gross cash flows    £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
zero to sixty days    438 – 212 74 724
sixty one days to three months    – 390 16 – 406
four months to six months    – – 49 – 49
seven months to one year    – – 315 – 315
one year to three years    – – 295 – 295
more than three years    – – – – –
    438 390 887 74 1789
interest rate risk
the group’s exposure to interest rate risk as at 31 december 2009 is summarised as follows
     fixed variable zero total 
     £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
cash and cash equivalents     – 34 – 34
t rade receivables     – – 1386 1386
vat     – – 68 68
other debtors     – – 72 72
     – 34 1526 1560
t rade payables     – – 447 447
bank overdraft     – 102 – 102
convertible loan     40 – – 40
other loans     510 314 – 824
     550 382 1079 147
sensitivity increase in interest rates of 5     – 20 – 20
sensitivity decrease in interest rates of 1     – 1 – 1
the group’s exposure to interest rate risk as at 31 december 2008 is summarised as follows
     fixed variable zero total 
     £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
cash and cash equivalents     – 92 – 92
t rade receivables     – – 953 953
vat     – – 75 75
other debtors     – – 88 88
     – 92 1116 1208
t rade payables     – – 438 438
bank overdraft     – 74 – 74
convertible loan     380 – – 380
other loans     510 310 – 820
     890 292 678 504
sensitivity 5 rate increase of current rate     – 1 – 1
sensitivity 5 rate decrease of current rate     – 1 – 1
sensitivity shows the effect on equity and the income statement
currency risk
the group operates in overseas markets and is subject to currency exposure on transactions undertaken during the year  the group hedges the 
transactions where possible by buying goods and selling them in the same currency the group also has bank facilities available for hedging 
purposes
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 27
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
a summary of foreign currency financial assets and liabilities as stated in the balance sheet together with a sensitivity analysis showing the effect of a 
10 change in rate with sterling is shown below
      currency  currency 
     sterling balance sterling balance 
     2009 2009 2008 2008 
    currency £’000 c’000 £’000 c’000
financial assets    euro 54 €60 41 €42
financial liabilities    euro 222 €247 119 €132
net balance    euro 168 €187 78 €90
effect of 10 sterling increase     15  8
effect of 10 sterling decrease     15  8
financial assets    usd 1165 1894 711 1028
financial liabilities    usd 371 602 281 410
net balance    usd 794 1292 430 618
effect of 10 sterling increase     72  43
effect of 10 sterling decrease     72  43
sensitivity shows the effect on equity and the income statement
credit risk
the group’s exposure to credit risk is limited to the carrying value of financial assets at the balance sheet date summarised as follows
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
loans and receivables
 trade receivables       1386 953
 cash and cash equivalents       34 92
       1420 1045
the credit risk associated with the cash is limited as the counterparties have high credit ratings assigned by international creditrating agencies the 
principal credit risk arises therefore from trade receivables the seven largest customer balances at the end of the year make up 75 of the above 
trade receivables
in order to manage credit risk the directors set limits for customers based on a combination of payment history third party credit references and use 
of credit insurance these limits are reviewed regularly
the maturity of overdue debts is set out in note 16 during the period no debts were written off
capital requirements
interest bearing loans and borrowings are monitored regularly to ensure the group has sufficient liquidity and its exposure to interest rate risk is 
mitigated management consider the capital of the group comprises the share capital and interest bearing loans and borrowings management satisfy 
the companies act 2006 requirement to hold £50000 issued and authorised share capital the rule that 25 must be paid up is also satisfied by 
reference to note 18
4 critical accounting estimates and judgements
estimates and judgements are evaluated continually and are based on historical experience and other factors including expectations of future events 
that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances although these estimates are based on management’s best knowledge of current events 
and actions actual results may ultimately differ from those actions
in preparing these accounts the following areas were considered to involve significant judgement
– recoverability of capitalised development cost
judgements relating to capitalised development costs are detailed in note 12
– going concern
judgements relating to going concern are detailed in note 2 28
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
4 critical accounting estimates and judgements continued
in preparing these accounts the following areas were considered to involve significant estimates
– bad debts
provisions for bad debts are shown in note 16 where there is no provision then it is due to adequate credit insurance being in place or cash has been 
received since the end of the year  or adequate information exists to support the recoverability of the debt
– recognition of deferred tax assets
judgements relating to a deferred tax asset are detailed in note 9a
5 segmental information
management currently identifies the group’s three service lines as operating segments as further described in note 2 these operating segments are 
monitored and strategic decisions are made on the basis of adjusted segment operating results excluding oneoff items such as employee settlement 
costs
the segmental results for the year ended 31 december 2009 are as follows 
     degradable non waste to 
business segments     d
2
w
®
 degradable value group 
12 months to 31 december 2009     £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
segment revenues     6947 91 – 7038 
share based payments     9 4 – 13
apportioned costs     5956 249 182 6387
profitloss for the year before tax     982 162 182 638
taxation     285 – – 285
profitloss for the year     1267 162 182 923
the segmental results for the year ended 31 december 2008 are as follows
     degradable non waste to 
business segments     d
2
w
®
 degradable value group 
12 months to 31 december 2008     £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
segment revenues     5127 228 – 5355
share based payments     12 – – 12
apportioned costs     4919 697 125 5741
profitloss for the year before tax     196 469 125 398
taxation     766 – – 766
profitloss for the year     962 469 125 368
nonrecurring items in above     13 40 – 53
profitloss for the year before nonrecurring items     975 429 125 421
revenues stated are from external customers
there were no intersegment revenues for the above periods
there has been no change in the basis of segmentation since the last annual financial statements
there has been no change in total assets other than in the ordinary course of business 
segmental assets primarily consist of property plant and equipment intangible assets inventories trade and other receivables and cash and cash 
equivalents unallocated assets comprise availableforsale financial assets
segmental liabilities comprise operating liabilities
the segment assets and liabilities at 31 december 2009 and capital expenditure for the year then ended are as follows
    degradable non waste to 
£’000    d
2
w
®
 degradable value unallocated group
assets    3133 207 199 15 3554
liabilities    1314 407 – 40 1761
capital expenditure    185 2 87 – 274
depreciation and amortisation    50 34 – – 84
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 29
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
the segment assets and liabilities at 31 december 2008 and capital expenditure for the year then ended are as follows
    degradable non waste to 
£’000    d
2
w
®
 degradable value unallocated group
assets    2398 244 112 15 2769
liabilities    1225 462 – 380 2067
capital expenditure    101 50 47 – 198
depreciation and amortisation    32 15 – – 47
geographical areas
the group’s revenues from external customers and its noncurrent assets other than financial instruments investments accounted for using the 
equity method deferred tax assets and postemployment benefit assets are divided into the following geographical areas
      non  non 
      current  current 
     revenue assets revenue assets 
     2009 2009 2008 2008 
geographical areas     £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
uk     886 703 1099 513
europe     1330 – 985 –
americas     3691 – 2143 –
other     1131 – 1128 –
total     7038 703 5355 513
material customers
within degradable d
2
w
®
 two customers accounted for greater than 10 of total group revenues for 2009 2008 one customer one customer 
accounted for £1083000 or 16 the other customer £746000 or 1 1 £609 000 or 1 1 of total group revenues for 2008 
6 operating loss
the operating result is stated after chargingcrediting
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
depreciation       69 33
amortisation       15 14
loss on disposal of fixed assets       – 5
operating lease rentals
 land and buildings       60 55
 plant and equipment       5 5
fees payable to the company’s auditor for the audit of the financial statements     10 10
fees payable to the company’s auditor for other services 
 audit of the financial statements of the company’s subsidiaries pursuant to legislation    27 27
 interim review       2 6
 other services relating to taxation       21 7
net foreign exchange lossgain       22 37
nonrecurring items
 exemployee settlement       – 53
7 employee benefit expense
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
wages and salaries       1526 1159
social security costs       175 142
other pension costs       47 40
       1748 1341 30
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
7 employee benefit expense continued
average number of people employed
       2009 2008
t esting and technical       6 5
selling       7 6
administration       8 8
management       6 6
marketing       1 –
t otal average headcount       28 25
remuneration in respect of the directors was as follows
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
emoluments       729 578
pension contributions       47 40
       776 618
key management remuneration
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
shortterm employee benefits       658 535
share based payment charges       – –
postemployment benefits       45 40
       703 575
the executive directors are considered to be the key management personnel of the group further details on directors’ remuneration and share 
options are set out in the remuneration report on page 14
8 finance income and costs
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
interest expense
 bank borrowings       2 2
 convertible loan       79 113
 other interest       108 132
 finance charges       5 4
total finance costs       194 251
finance income
 interest income on shortterm bank deposits       – 1
total finance income       – 1
net finance costs       194 250
9 t ax credit
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
net deferred tax credit see note 9a       274 719
rd tax credit       11 47
t otal income tax credit       285 766
no tax arises on the profit for the year due to the utilisation of tax losses brought forward
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 31
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
the tax assessed for the year is different from the standard rate of corporation tax in the uk of 28 2008 28 the differences are explained  
as follows
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
profitloss for the year before tax       638 398
tax calculated by rate of tax on the result       179 111
expenses not deductible for tax purposes       8 4
depreciation for the period in excess of capital allowances       – 4
tax losses utilisednot utilised       187 103
net deferred tax credit       274 719
rd tax credit       11 47
t otal income tax credit       285 766
9a deferred income tax asset
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
deferred income tax asset brought forward       719 –
notional tax charge       187  – 
recognised in the year       461 719
deferred income tax asset carried forward       993 719
there are tax losses of approximately £12300000 2008 £12900000
of these losses a deferred tax asset of only £46 1000 has been recognised in this year’s accounts 2008 £719 000 the recognition of this asset is 
based on sensitised forecasts where symphony environmental limited has started to generate profits as recorded in this year’s accounts
10 earnings per share and dividends
the calculation of basic earnings per share is based on the profit attributable to ordinary shareholders divided by the weighted average number of 
shares in issue during the year 
the calculation of diluted earnings per share is based on the basic earnings per share adjusted to allow for the issue of shares on the assumed 
conversion of all dilutive options and warrants
reconciliations of the profit and weighted average numbers of shares used in the calculations are set out below
basic and diluted
      2009 2008
profit attributable to equity holders of the company     £923000 £368000
weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue     115767185 105628745
basic earnings per share     080 pence 035 pence
dilutive effect of weighted average options and warrants     2424588 7719605
total of weighted average shares together with dilutive effect of weighted options and warrants  118191773 113348350
diluted earnings per share      078 pence 032 pence
no dividends were paid for the year ended 31 december 2009 2008 £nil 32
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
1 1 property plant and equipment
    plant  fixtures motor office 
     machinery   fittings vehicles equipment total 
    £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
at 1 january 2008
cost    85 83 166 167 501
accumulated depreciation    43 54 62 141 300
net book amount    42 29 104 26 201
year ended 31 december 2008
opening net book amount    42 29 104 26 201
additions    46 – 30 13 89
disposals    – – 16 – 16
depreciation charge    9 3 16 5 33
closing net book amount    79 26 102 34 241
at 1 january 2009
cost    131 83 163 180 557
accumulated depreciation    52 57 61 146 316
net book amount    79 26 102 34 241
year ended 31 december 2009
opening net book amount    79 26 102 34 241
additions    26 2 – 16 44
disposals    – – – – –
depreciation charge    21 7 15 26 69
closing net book amount    84 21 87 24 216
at 31 december 2009
cost    157 85 163 196 601
accumulated depreciation    73 64 76 172 385
net book amount    84 21 87 24 216
included within the net book amount of £216000 is £51000 2008 £88000 relating to assets held under finance leases and hire purchase contracts 
the depreciation charged to the financial statements in the year in respect of such assets amounted to £10000 2008 £13000
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 33
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
12 intangible assets
      development 
      costs trademarks total 
      £’000 £’000 £’000
at 1 january 2008
cost      183 28 211
accumulated amortisation      20 14 34
net book amount      163 14 177
year ended 31 december 2008
opening net book amount      163 14 177
additions      107 2 109
amortisation charge      12 2 14
closing net book amount      258 14 272
at 1 january 2009
cost      290 30 320
accumulated amortisation      32 16 48
net book amount      258 14 272
year ended 31 december 2009
opening net book amount      258 14 272
additions      220 10 230
amortisation charge      12 3 15
closing net book amount      466 21 487
at 31 december 2009
cost      510 40 550
accumulated amortisation      44 19 63
net book amount      466 21 487
the group relies on the continued development of its product range and in so doing is maintaining satisfactory goals in fulfilling its strategy see 
chairman’s statement and chief executive’s review after taking this into account together with the considerations of liquidity risk see note 3  
the directors do not believe that an impairment provision is required
development costs are capitalised in accordance with note 2 
the significant judgements within the sensitivity analysis were sales forecasts and foreign exchange rates 
13 subsidiary undertakings
principal subsidiaries
   proportion proportion 
   of ordinary of ordinary 
   shares held shares held 
name country of incorporation nature of business by parent by the group
symphony plastics limited england and wales supply of polythene products 100 100
symphony packaging limited england and wales dormant 0 100
d
2
w
®
 limited england and wales dormant 0 100
symphony environmental limited england and wales supply of environmental polythene products 0 100
symphony energy limited england and wales development of waste to value systems 100 100
symphony environmental jamaica limited jamaica supply of environmental polythene products 0 100
all of the above subsidiaries are consolidated in the group financial statements
14 available for sale financial assets
       2009 2008 
all noncurrent       £’000 £’000
beginning of year       15 15
additions       – –
impairment provision in year       – –
end of year       15 15 34
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
14 available for sale financial assets continued
the group holds 30 of the ordinary share capital in symphony bin hilal llc a company incorporated in the united arab emirates the directors 
consider this an investment as they have no significant influence and have no management rights in the strategic tactical or operational decisions 
made by symphony bin hilal llc the value of the investment in the company is recognised at cost as the equity investment is unquoted and the value 
cannot be measured reliably the group does not intend to dispose of the investment in the foreseeable future
a value of £nil has been assigned to the shares held in oxobioplast inc to which the company owns c5 of that company’s issued common stock
the directors cannot assign a fair value of oxobioplast inc as the equity investment is unquoted and the value cannot be measured reliably
there is no collateral on the above amounts
15 inventories
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
finished goods and goods for resale       212 194
the cost of inventories recognised as an expense and included in ‘cost of sales’ amounted to £3 181000 2008 £2906000 included within the above 
assets is a provision for impairment of £nil 2008 £5000
there is no collateral on the above amounts
16 t rade and other receivables
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
loans and receivables
 trade receivables       1386 953
 other debtors       72 88
vat       68 75
prepayments       71 120
       1597 1236
the directors consider that the carrying value of trade and other receivables approximates to their book values there is a provision of £150000  
for impairment of receivables 2008 £150000 the maximum credit risk exposure at the balance sheet date equates to the fair value of trade 
receivables further disclosures are set out in note 3
t rade receivables that are less than three months old are not considered impaired as of 31 december 2009 trade receivables of £101000 2008 
£64000 were past due but not impaired the ageing analysis of these trade receivables is as follows
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
more than three months but less than six months       – 12
more than six months but not more than one year       24 4
more than one year       77 48
       101 64
due to the different markets that the group operates in trade terms vary from cash on shipment of goods to payment 90 days from shipment
there is no collateral on the above amounts
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 35
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
17 cash and cash equivalents
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
loans and receivables 
 cash at bank and in hand        34 92
the carrying amount of cash equivalents approximates to their fair values 
there is no collateral on the above amounts
18 share capital and premium 
     ordinary ordinary share 
     shares shares premium total 
group and company     number £’000 £’000 £’000
at 1 january 2008    101772999 1018 13048 14066
proceeds from shares issued    6946037 69 128 197
at 31 december 2008    108719036 1087 13176 14263
at 1 january 2009    108719036 1087 13176 14263
proceeds from shares issued    7765541 78 77 155
at 31 december 2009    116484577 1165 13253 14418
the total number of authorised 1p ordinary shares is 150000000 all issued ordinary shares are fully paid
the following ordinary shares were issued during the year
 ordinary shares  consideration premium 
date number details £ £
19 january 2009 2202384 convertible loan 41845 19821
28 january 2009 5263157 convertible loan 100000 47368
25 september 2009 300000 warrants conversion 12375 9375
share options
as at 31 december 2009 the group maintained an approved sharebased payment scheme for employee compensation for the options granted to 
vest the group must achieve an earnings per share in excess of 0001p and employees must serve a specified amount of time 
all sharebased employee compensation will be settled in equity the group has no legal or constructive obligation to repurchase or settle the 
options as at 31 december 2009 there were 2675000 staff options outstanding 1525000 were issued in 2009 
the group has also issued unapproved share options approved and unapproved share options and weighted average exercise price are as follows for 
the reporting periods presented
 2009 

 2008
     weighted   weighted 
     average   average 
     exercise   exercise 
     price   price
    number £  number £
outstanding at 1 january    13915960 005 11570000 005
granted    2025000 003 2945960 003
forfeited    100000 025 600000 003
exercised    – – – –
expired    – –  – –
outstanding at 31 december    15840960 005  13915960 005
the number of share options exercisable at 31 december 2009 was 12665960 2008 1520000
the weighted average exercise price of those shares exercisable was 5p 2008 1 15p  36
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
18 share capital and premium  continued
500000 options were granted on 1 january 2009 and are exercisable from 1 january 2010 for a period of four years thereafter at an exercise price of 
5p per share
1525000 staff options were granted on 20 march 2009 and are exercisable from 20 march 201 1 for a period of eight years thereafter at an exercise 
price of 2375p per share 
having considered the fair value of the options issued to employees there is a charge of £13000 2008 – £12000 in the income statement
since the year end a total of 750000 options were granted to the non executive directors and are exercisable from 18 december 2010 for a period of 
nine years thereafter at an exercise price of 9875p per share 
warrants
the warrants outstanding at the end of the year are as follows
number of warrants  exercise price pence per share exercisable from exercisable to
89 700  14000 18 april 2008 18 april 2010
4080000  12000 17 november 2005 17 november 2010
500000  4125 13 december 2006  13 december 2011
300000  4125 27 september 2007 27 september 2012
 warrants issued as part of salary reduction scheme in 2005
 warrants issued under the terms of the convertible loan see note 20 300000 of the warrants were exercised on 25 september 2009
no warrants were granted during the year
directors
directors’ interests in shares and share incentives are contained in the remuneration report on page 14
fair value of options granted
the fair values of options granted were determined using the blackscholes pricing model that takes into account factors specific to the share 
incentive plans the following principal assumptions were used in the valuation
      2009  2008
weighted average exercise price     £003  £003
expected volatility     115117  26113
expected life     48 years  410 years
average riskfree rate     345  49
expected dividends      0  0
the underlying expected volatility was determined by reference to historical data of the group’s shares over a period of time since its flotation on aim 
no special features inherent to the options granted were incorporated into measurement of fair value
in total £13000 of employee remuneration expense all of which related to equitysettled sharebased payment transactions has been included in 
profit or loss for 2009 2008 £ 12000 and credited to retained earnings
19 t rade and other payables
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
current
financial liabilities measured at amortised cost
 trade payables       447 438
social security and other taxes       140 65
accruals and deferred income       169 220
       756 723
fair value is not materially different to book value there is no collateral on the above amounts
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 37
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
20 interest bearing loans and borrowings
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
noncurrent
financial liabilities measured at amortised cost
 other loan       250 250
lease purchase liabilities       24 39
       274 289
current
financial liabilities measured at amortised cost
 bank overdraft       102 74
 convertible loan       39 371
 other loans       574 570
lease purchase liabilities       15 31
financial liabilities held at fair value through profit and loss held for trading embedded derivatives
 conversion rights       – 2
 warrants       1 7
       731 1055
the noncurrent other loan is repayable on 1 february 201 1 interest is charged at 15 per annum
the bank overdraft of £102000 2008 £74000 is included within the cashflow statement within cash and cash equivalents
convertible loan
the terms of the convertible loan were amended on 28 january 2009 the loan  of which £40000 is outstanding at 31 december 2009  is totally 
repayable by the 20 february 2010
the table below shows conversions that were made during the year
       number of consideration 
date       shares £
19 january 2009       2202384 41845
28 january 2009       5263157 100000
       7465541 141845
other loans – which include
an amount due to michelle laurier  spouse of michael laurier  of £260000 interest is charged at 2 per month see note 23
amounts due to davenham t rade finance totalling £314000 interest is charged at 22 over national westminster bank plc base rate per annum
commitments under finance leases and hire purchase agreements mature as follows
     gross gross  net net 
     2009 2008 2009 2008 
     £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
amounts payable within 1 year     18 36 15 31
amounts payable between 1 and 2 years     8 18 7 15
amounts payable between 3 and 5 years     17 25 17 24
     43 79 39 70
the finance leases are for the purchase of sundry equipment note 1 1
there is no collateral on the above amounts except for lease purchase liabilities which are secured against the asset that they finance and amounts 
due to davenham t rade finance which are secured against trade receivables 38
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
21 cash generated from operations
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
profit after tax       923  368 
adjustments for
 depreciation       69 33
 amortisation       15 14
 loss on disposal       – 5
 share based payments       13 12
 tax credit       285 766
 interest income       – 1
 interest expense       194 251
changes in working capital
 inventories       18 39
 t rade and other receivables       362 475
 t rade and other payables       17 115
cash generatedconsumed in operations       566 635
22 commitments
the future aggregate minimum lease payments under noncancellable operating leases are as follows
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
no later than one year       14 –
later than one year and no later than five years       34 60
       48 60
23 related party transactions
in respect of the loan made by michelle laurier  spouse of michael laurier  interest on the loan is calculated at 2 per month £260000 was 
outstanding at 31 december 2009 2008 £260000 
24 post balance sheet events
on 19 march 2010 symphony plastics limited entered into a new lease at 6 elstree gate elstree house elstree way borehamwood hertfordshire 
wd6 1jd the registered office and head office for the company and group companies changed to this new address the lease is for ten years with a 
five year break provision the net total rentals payable over the first five years total £452000
since the year end the group has committed to leasehold improvement and equipment costs totalling £200000
on 22 january 2010 the company issued 250000 options to each of the three non executive directors details are given in the remuneration report on 
page 14
25 capital management
the group’s capital management objectives are
to ensure the group’s ability to continue as a going concern and •	
to provide an adequate return to shareholders •	
by pricing products and services commensurately with the level of risk
the group monitors capital on the basis of the carrying amount of equity plus its subordinated loan less cash and cash equivalents as presented on 
the face of the statement of financial position
the group’s goal in capital management is to maintain a capitaltooverall financing ratio of 1 1 to 13 
the group sets the amount of capital in proportion to its overall financing structure ie equity and financial liabilities the group manages the capital 
structure and makes adjustments to it in the light of changes in economic conditions and the risk characteristics of the underlying assets in order to 
maintain or adjust the capital structure the group may adjust the amount of dividends paid to shareholders return capital to shareholders issue new 
shares or sell assets to reduce debt
notes to the annual report and accounts continued 39
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
capital for the reporting periods under review is summarised as follows
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
total equity       1793 702
cash and cash equivalents       34 92
capital       1759 610
total equity       1793 702
borrowings       1005 1344
overall financing       2798 2046
capitaltofinancing ratio       063 030
the ratioincrease during 2009 is primarily a result of improved cash flow position and repayment and conversions to share capital of the loans
the following pages contain the balance sheet and accompanying notes for the parent company prepared under uk gaap  40
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
company number 3676824
       2009 2008 
      note £’000 £’000
fixed assets
tangible assets      27 72 91
investments      28 150 150
       222 241
current assets
debtors      29 7678 7895
cash at bank and in hand       1 –
       7679 7895
creditors amounts falling due within one year      30 132 526
net current assets       7547 7369
t otal assets less current liabilities       7769 7610
creditors amounts falling due after more than one year      31 255 262
       7514 7348
capital and reserves
share capital      34 1165 1087
share premium account      35 13253 13176
profit and loss account      35 6904 6915
       7514 7348
the company has applied the exemption under section 408 of the companies act 2006 not to present a profit and loss account for the year ended 31 
december 2009
these financial statements were approved by the directors on 29 march 2010 and are signed on their behalf by
i bristow fcca
finance director
the accompanying notes form an integral part of these financial statements
company balance sheet
at 31 december 2009 41
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
notes to the company balance sheet
26 principal accounting policies
basis of accounting
the company financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with united kingdom generally 
accepted accounting practice gaap
fixed assets
tangible fixed assets are stated at cost net of depreciation and any provision for impairment
depreciation is calculated so as to write off the cost of an asset less its estimated residual value over the useful economic life of that asset as follows
plant and machinery   – 20 reducing balance
fixtures and fittings   – 25 reducing balance
motor vehicles   – 20 reducing balance
office equipment   – 25 straight line
leasing and hire purchase commitments
assets held under finance leases which are leases where substantially all the risks and rewards of ownership of the asset have passed to the 
company and hire purchase contracts are capitalised in the balance sheet and are depreciated over their useful lives the capital elements of future 
obligations under the leases and hire purchase contracts are included as liabilities in the balance sheet
the interest elements of the rental obligations are charged in the consolidated profit and loss account over the periods of the leases and hire 
purchase contracts and represent a constant proportion of the balance of capital repayments outstanding
rentals payable under operating leases are charged in the consolidated profit and loss account on a straight line basis over the lease 
term
pension costs
company pensions are operated within the group pension scheme the group operates a defined contribution pension scheme for employees the 
assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the group the annual contributions payable in respect to the company are charged to the 
profit and loss account
deferred taxation
deferred tax is recognised in respect of all timing differences that have originated but not reversed at the balance sheet date where transactions or 
events have occurred at that date that will result in an obligation to pay more or a right to pay less or to receive more tax with the following exception 
deferred tax assets are recognised only to the extent that the directors consider that it is more likely than not that there will be suitable taxable profits 
from which the future reversal of the underlying timing differences can be deducted
deferred tax is measured on an undiscounted basis at the tax rates that are expected to apply in the periods in which timing differences reverse 
based on tax rates and laws enacted or substantively enacted at the balance sheet date
foreign currencies
monetary assets and liabilities in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rates of exchange ruling at the balance sheet date t ransactions 
in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rate of exchange ruling at the date of the transaction exchange differences are taken into 
account in arriving at the operating profit
investments
investments are included at cost or fair value less amounts written off
financial instruments
financial liabilities and equity instruments are classified according to the substance of the contractual arrangements entered into an equity 
instrument is any contract that evidences a residual interest in the assets of the entity after deducting all of its financial liabilities
where the contractual obligations of the financial instruments including share capital are equivalent to a similar debt instrument those financial 
instruments are classified as financial liabilities financial liabilities are presented as such in the balance sheet finance costs are calculated so as to 
produce a constant rate of return on the outstanding liability
where the contractual terms of share capital do not have any terms meeting the definition of a financial liability then this is classified as an equity 
instrument dividends and distributions relating to equity instruments are debited direct to equity 42
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
26 principal accounting policies continued
equity settled share based payments
all sharebased payment arrangements granted after 7 november 2002 that had not vested prior to 1 january 2007 are recognised in the financial 
statements
all goods and services received in exchange for the grant of any sharebased payment are measured at their fair values where employees are 
rewarded using sharebased payments the fair values are determined by reference to the fair value of the instrument granted to the employee this 
fair value is appraised at the grant date and excludes the impact of nonmarket vesting conditions the fair value is charged to the profit and loss 
account between the date of issue and the date the share options vest with a corresponding credit taken to shareholders’ funds
warrants granted to employees which relate to salary sacrifice arrangements are attributed a fair value by reference to the services provided this 
fair value is charged to the profit and loss account when the service is provided with a corresponding credit taken to shareholders’ funds by reference 
to urgent issues task force uitf 44
27 t angible fixed assets
     plant  fixtures motor 
     machinery  fittings vehicles total 
     £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
cost
at 1 january 2009 and at 31 december 2009     36 11 114 161
depreciation
at 1 january 2008     14 8 48 70
charge for the year     7 3 9 19
at 31 december 2009     21 11 57 89
net book value
at 31 december 2009     15 – 57 72
at 31 december 2008     22 3 66 91
included within the net book value of £72000 is £20000 2008 £60000 relating to assets held under finance leases and hire purchase 
contracts the depreciation charged to the financial statements in the year in respect of such assets amounted to £4000 2008 
£14000
28 investments 
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
shares in group undertakings
at beginning and end of year       150 150
group undertakings are detailed in note 13
29 debtors 
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
amounts owed by group undertakings       7586 7771
vat       50 49
prepayments       42 25
other debtors       – 50
       7678 7895
30 creditors amounts falling due within one year 
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
convertible loan       40 380
trade creditors       27 57
other taxation and social security       3 –
amounts due under finance leases and hire purchase agreements      11 28
other creditors       – –
accruals       51 61
       132 526
notes to the company balance sheet continued 43
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
31 creditors amounts falling after more than one year 
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
other creditor       250 250
amounts due under finance leases and hire purchase agreements      1 12
amounts owed to group undertakings       4 –
       255 262
32 commitments under finance leases and hire purchase agreements 
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
amounts payable within one year       11 28
amounts payable between one and two years       1 11
amounts payable between three and five years       – 1
       12 40
33 contingent liabilities
the company has guaranteed all monies due to its bankers by symphony plastics limited and symphony environmental limited at 31 december 
2009 the net indebtedness of these companies amounted to £68000 2008 £nil 
34 share capital
the company’s share capital is detailed in note 18
35 reserves 
       share 
       premium profit and 
       account loss account 
       £’000 £’000
at 1 january 2009       13176 6915
retained profit for the year       – 11
new equity share capital subscribed       77 –
at 31 december 2009       13253 6904
36 parent company own accounts
symphony environmental t echnologies plc has not presented its own profit and loss account and related notes as permitted by section 408 of the 
companies act 2006 the profit for the financial year dealt with in the financial statements of the parent company is £1 1000 2008 £18000
37 directors and employees
all employees of symphony environmental t echnologies plc are directors see note 7 of the group consolidated accounts
the average number of staff employed by the company during the financial year amounted to
       2009 2008 
       no no
management       3 2
the aggregate payroll costs of the above were
       2009 2008 
       £’000 £’000
wages and salaries       71 35
other pension costs       2 –
equity settled share based payments       – 4
social security costs       7 3
       80 42 44
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
notes company registration number 
3676824
registered office 
6 elstree gate
elstree way
borehamwood
hertfordshire
wd6 1jd
directors 
n j deva dl frsa mep  non executive chairman 
m n laurier  chief executive officer
i bristow fcca  finance director
m stephen – commercial director  deputy chairman 
m f stephens – t echnical director
n clavel – non executive director
h swire – non executive director 
secretary 
i bristow
nominated adviser and broker 
allenby capital limited
claridge house
32 davies street 
london
w1k 4nd
bankers 
hsbc bank plc
101 103 station road
edgware
middlesex 
ha8 7jj
solicitors 
olswang
90 high holborn 
london
wc1v 6xx
auditor 
grant thornton uk llp
chartered accountants
registered auditors
grant thornton house
202 silbury boulevard
central milton keynes
mk9 1lw
registrars 
capita registrars limited
 the registry
 34 beckenham road
 beckenham
 kent
 br3 4tu 
company information
symphony is also developing processes for the destruction of and creation of value from used tyres it is the lead partner in a uk government grant 
funded collaboration project
symphony environmental technologies plc is a british public company and head  
of a group established in 1995 dedicated to controlledlife plastic it has over  
50 distributors around the world and is present in more than 90 countries 
symphony has its own laboratories in england with the latest equipment  
where it constantly tests develops and improves its products 
symphony is a member of the oxobiodegradable plastics association wwwbiodegorg 
the society for the chemical industry uk and the american society for testing and 
materials astm symphony holds an iso 90012008 certificate for quality management 
and is represented on the british standards institute
symphony’s technical department includes more than 30 years experience in the 
manufacture of plastic products symphony is therefore able to provide a firstclass 
product and aftersales service without parallel in the industry
symphony has developed a range of oxobiodegradable products marketed  
as d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic with ever increasing markets and applications
company profile
d
2
w
®
 technology
plastic is a very useful material which is indispensible for 
modern life but the problem is that it can lie or float around 
for decades if it gets into the environment symphony has 
developed a lowcost insurance it is a special formulation 
called d
2
w
®
 which is added to the plastic when it is being 
made it breaks the molecular chains within the polymer 
and makes plastic selfdestruct in the presence of oxygen on 
land or water at the end of its servicelife but until then it has 
no effect on the product which can be reused many times
d
2
w
®
 plastic can be made to biodegrade from as little as two 
months onwards leaving no fragments nor “heavy metals’ 
and without emitting methane even when buried in landfill 
it can be recycled with normal plastics see httpwww
biodegorgpositionpapersrecyclingdomainbiodegorg 
or incinerated for energyrecovery d
2
w
®
 is certified safe for 
foodcontact and has been proved not to be ecotoxic
when d
2
w
®
 plastics reach the fragmentation stage they  
are no longer plastic they have a completely different 
molecular structure and can be bioassimilated in the  
same way as a leaf
d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic products are made from  
a byproduct of oil which used to be wasted so nobody  
is importing extra oil to make them they can be made  
with the same machinery and workforce and the same 
polymers as ordinary plastic so there is no need to disrupt 
the supplychain and there is little or no oncost and no  
loss of jobs 
not surprisingly they are now being used by major 
companies around the world and last year symphony  
sold enough d
2
w
®
 to make 8 billion plastic products 
symphony’s d
2
w
®
 additive formulation is so effective that it 
can be included at rates starting as low as 1 – resulting in 
considerable  savings in cost transport and storage it is 
manufactured under licence from symphony by carefully 
selected and audited companies around the world “some things
we want to keep forever 
“we do not inherit the 
  earth from our ancestors
  we borrow it from our children ” 
nativeamerican proverb
annual report and accounts 2009
symphony environmental technologies plc 
6 elstree gate
elstree way
borehamwood
hertfordshire
wd6 1jd
t el 44 020 8207 5900
fax 44 020 8207 5960
wwwd2wnet
infod2wnet
symphony environmental technologies plc  annual report and accounts 2009


Summary:
 10
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
d u r i n g 	 2 0 0 9 	 t h e 	 c o m p a n y 	 c o n t i n u e d 	 t o	
c onc entr at e 	 its 	 r esour c es 	 on 	 the 	d
2
w
®
 
p r o d u c t s 	 w i t h 	 f u r t h e r 	 l a u n c h e s 	 i n 	 s o u t h	
americ a 	 and 	 ne w 	 launches 	 in 	 north 	 afric a	
the 	 middl e 	 eas t 	 and 	 parts 	 of 	 eas t ern 	 eur ope
the group has continued to invest in research and development for new 
products together with improvements to existing products as well as 
testing and compliance protocols 
costs have been carefully monitored with increases to support the 
growth in revenues the group has reduced its interest bearing debt by 
£034 million leading to a reduction in finance costs this reduction in 
debt was limited due to a substantial increase in trade toward the end of 
the last quarter resulting in higher working capital balances reported at 
the end of the year  including amounts payable on invoice discounting
working with our distributors we continue to monitor and have an 
influence on legislation in certain parts of the world and we are making 
considerable efforts to maximise awareness of d
2
w
®
 products
these reported figures reflect the impact of the considerable work  
and investment being made as well as the achievements to date in 
expanding sales and markets for d
2
w
®
 controlledlife plastic technology 
and products
trading results
i am pleased to report group revenues increased by 31 during the year 
from £536 million to £7 04 million group gross profit margins increased 
from 44 to 55 these factors resulted in a 63 increase in the 
contribution from gross profit from £237 million in 2008 to £388 million  
in 2009
the group made an operating profit of £083 million compared to an 
operating loss of £0 15 million in 2008 resulting in the group’s maiden 
profit before tax of £064 million compared to a loss before tax of £040 
million in 2008 
development costs of £023 million were capitalised in 2009 a £001 
million research and development tax credit was received during  
the year
the symphony environmental limited d
2
w
®
 division made a profit before 
taxation of £098 million and has recognised further deferred tax credit 
resulting in a carried forward deferred tax asset of £099 million at the  
end of the year  losses within the nondegradable division reduced to  
£0 16 million in 2009 compared to a loss of £047 million in 2008
the group primary selling currency is the us dollar  the group hedges 
where possible by purchasing in us dollars and has banking facilities  
in place in order to secure rates going forward as at 31 december 2009 
the group had a net balance of us dollar assets totalling 129 million 
 
chief executive’ s review 11
symphony environmental 
technologies plc 
annual report and accounts 2009
as a result of this financial performance the group reports a profit  
for the year of £092 million with basic earnings per share increasing  
to 080 pence 2008 035 pence 
cashflow
the group has recorded an improvement in cashflow of £121 million 
from 2008 by generating £057 million from operations 2008 £064 
million loss £004 million was invested in plant and equipment together 
with £023 million in product development which has been capitalised 
further research and development spend is included within expenses 
and was not capitalised as it does not meet the appropriate accounting 
criteria
debt was reduced by £034 million in 2009 the amount payable on the 
invoice discounting facility increased from £0 16 million in 2008 to £032 
million in 2009 this was due to increased revenues in the last quarter  
of 2009 resulting in high levels of amounts receivable and hence 
financeable at the end of the year 
the headstart loan has been repaid in accordance with the terms 
renegotiated in january 2009 at 31 december 2009 the balance of  
the loan was £40000 this has been settled in full since the year end
invoice financing and banking facilities remain in place for 2010 which 
together with the current trade profile show adequate resources are 
available for the foreseeable future 
operations 
total costs increased in 2009 due to the level of support required to 
service the growth in revenue and number of distributors
having developed a strong distributor base the main function for the 
group continues to be product support and development marketing  
and brandrecognition 
on 19 march 2010 the group moved its head office within borehamwood 
uk to premises more suited for the next five to ten years of operations
symphony energy
the group currently absorbs annual running costs of £0 18 million the  
rµpert project is in its second year out of three and the group is actively 
pursuing commercial outlets for the elements within the project 
outlook
as stated above the group has moved its global headquarters to a 
modern facility that is more than twice the size of the group’s original 
premises as a result of the growth in activities further investments will 
be made in technical support services research and development and 
also marketing activities these investments which are essential to a 
growing business of our size will be undertaken carefully so as not to 
materially undermine short term expectations
the symphony distributor network has a busy year ahead with 
exhibitions product development and other related projects on a global 
basis so far in 2010 d
2
w
®
 representatives have participated in six major 
events in the coming months we will be at the master investor show 
london chinaplas 2010 plast china exhibitions in central america and 
latin america and towards the end of the year at one of the world’s 
largest plastic events in germany the k t rade fair  product launches 
and other events are planned for the uk and other markets in the coming 
months details of these events will be communicated through our 
normal commercial channels
the current year has started well and in line with management’s 
expectations the board is confident that further expansion will be  
achieved during this year and that long term debt will continue to reduce 
michael laurier 
chief 	 ex ecutiv e
29 	 mar ch 	 2010