Press Releases

Colombia Clean Power & Fuels Strengthens Internal Controls and Investor Communications Functions: Hires External Experts Vibato and CCG Investor Relations

Posted by Nancy Johnson on Mar 15, 2011 10:19:00 AM

SAN RAFAEL, Calif., March 15, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Colombia Clean Power & Fuels, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: CCPF, "Colombia Clean Power & Fuels" or the "Company"), an exploration-stage coal mining and clean energy technology company with headquarters in California, and operations in Colombia, today announced that it has strengthened its internal controls and investor relations and strategic communications functions by hiring two professional services firms, Vibato and CCG Investor Relations.

Colombia Clean Power & Fuels has enhanced management and corporate procedures since adopting its current operating strategy last year. Working with experienced professional services firms helps the Company to implement best-practice financial and internal controls and investor communication to support its anticipated growth.

"We chose Vibato and CCG as partners because of their respective cost-effective and efficient solutions and solid track record and expect both partners to help us cultivate our corporate infrastructure during this critical development stage," said Daniel Carlson, Chief Financial Officer of Colombia Clean Power & Fuels.

"Vibato offers an ideal solution for establishing comprehensive internal control procedures as they deliver everything needed for quick implementation and smooth operation. We highly value CCG's experience and are confident that this cooperation will enhance our visibility in the investment community and with financial media, while helping us develop our shareholder base."

Vibato implements the Vibato Internal Controls Suite™ (VICS), an integrated, standardized internal controls solution based upon the external audit and risk analysis methodologies of the Big Four and large regional CPA firms. Vibato performed an on-site implementation at the Company's California headquarters that included a risk assessment, best-practice controls implementation and risk mitigation, segregation of duties analysis, and complete supplemental documentation to execute each control. This modular, scalable approach provides standardized controls across locations, and support for corporate-level controls at the Company's headquarters.

"Public, private, and non-profit organizations can all benefit from our comprehensive and scalable offerings," said Bill Bockwoldt, Chief Executive Officer of Vibato. "Delivering an all-inclusive package allows our clients to hit the ground running and begin benefitting immediately from the integration and efficiency we provide."

At CCG, investor relations and strategic communications are the primary focus, and the agency has developed customized solutions to address the needs of companies ranging from start-ups to established industry leaders and Fortune 500 companies. Communicating effectively with the capital market requires creativity, discipline, an understanding of legal and accounting issues and most importantly, daily interaction with Wall Street. CCG has started to implement an investor and media relations campaign for Colombia Clean Power & Fuels in sync with the broader strategic goals that support growing shareholder value.

"We are excited to design and apply a comprehensive communications campaign for Colombia Clean Power & Fuels and look forward to experiencing the advancement of this growth story. Colombia is one of the largest producers and exporters of coal in the world and has the largest known coal reserves in Latin America," said Crocker Coulson, the President of CCG Investor Relations. "We believe Colombia Clean Power & Fuels is in a prominent position to exploit these high quality coal reserves given its top-quality management team and the improved logistical infrastructure in the northern inland area where Colombia Clean Power & Fuels' efforts are focused."

About Vibato
Vibato delivers a comprehensive audit methodology that helps public, private, and non-profit organizations efficiently and cost-effectively identify and mitigate business risks in order to meet financial reporting requirements and improve their financial operations. The Vibato Internal Control Suite™ is scalable, affordable, rapidly deployed, and highly effective. It has been tested across organization of all sizes and industry profiles with the same results: successful implementation and standardization of all internal controls; optimized control counts; and ongoing cost savings.

About CCG Investor Relations
CCG is a leading global investor relations and strategic communications consulting firm. In business for more than 30 years, the agency provides a complete range of investor communications, counseling, and IT and data solutions through our global network to over 300 clients across multiple capital markets. CCG has been awarded a number of industry honors for its handling of complex investor relations and crisis communications matters. The agency's corporate headquarters is in Los Angeles with additional offices in Hong Kong, New York, Beijing, Shanghai, Frankfurt, and Tel Aviv.

About Colombia Clean Power & Fuels, Inc.
Colombia Clean Power & Fuels, Inc. (OTCBB: CCPF.OB) is developing coal mining, coal coking and clean coal technology operations in the Republic of Colombia. The Company plans to build mines to produce both metallurgical coal and high-grade thermal coal and implement advanced coal technologies, such as coal gasification and coal-to-liquids, to produce metallurgical coke, urea, liquid fuels, power and other clean energy solutions. Colombia is the world's tenth largest producer and fourth largest exporter of coal, with an estimated 7 billion metric tons ("MT") of recoverable reserves and 17 billion MT of potential reserves.The Company's current operations are focused on coal exploration and development activities. The Company has retained leading engineering and geological services firms in the U.S. and Colombia to conduct exploration work in selected concessions already acquired and others under consideration for acquisition by the Company. The Company's team of executives, advisors and partners is comprised of experienced entrepreneurs and business professionals in the U.S., Colombia and China that have a breadth of experience in coal mining and clean coal technologies as well as substantial industry relationships.For more information please visit www.colombiacleanpower.com or www.vibato.com.

Topics: Internal Controls, Sarbanes-Oxley Articles & Information, cost-effective, segregation of duties, 404 audit, best-practice, compliance, risk management, Sarbanes-Oxley, Vibato, efficient

Vibato Highlights SOX Success Story with ZAGG, Inc.

Posted by Teresa Bockwoldt on Dec 2, 2009 8:12:00 AM

Company completes a full Sarbanes-Oxley implementation in less than one week and for less than $45K for a $150M market cap company

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - December 2, 2009 - Vibato, a leading provider of innovative, efficient solutions helping companies of all sizes and industries minimize the costs associated with Sarbanes-Oxley and SAS-related compliance requirements, today announced that Zagg, Inc implemented Sox Compliance Made Simple (SCMS) in less than a week for less than $45K.  With companies like Zagg and a consistently growing customer roster, Vibato continues to see rapid adoption of the SCMS toolset.  Vibato customers and partners benefit from the rapid implementation time, integrated controls testing procedures, supplemental documentation to ensure proper control understanding and execution, and standardized approach based on best-practice methodologies.

Vibato customer-ZAGG

Zagg, Inc., a $150 million market cap company and the innovative consumer products manufacturer of the invisibleSHIELDTM clear protective film, has experienced rapid growth leading to a transition to accelerated public filer status for 2009.  This transition required an accelerated Sarbanes-Oxley implementation project that could be completed in a short time period and would not interfere with their rapid growth and demanding resource constraints.  Vibato was able to complete the initial implementation at Zagg in just two days which included a risk assessment, documentation of eight process cycles and a segregation of duties analysis, and will complete all required initial testing in just a few weeks.

"I was surprised and very satisfied that Vibato was able to complete the implementation and testing so quickly," said Brandon O'Brien, chief financial officer at Zagg, Inc.  "This really reduced our own anticipated internal resource effort, while keeping the costs down and still allowing us to be prepared for our year-end audit."

Zagg was referred to Vibato by their audit partner, Paul Skeen, at Hansen, Barnett, & Maxwell P.C. (HBM).  Based on a belief in Vibato's unique approach with SCMS®, HBM has referred several clients who need a truly cost-effective approach comprised of a comprehensive set of tools and documentation that can be completed in as little as one day.

"We are very supportive of Vibato because they really understand how to deliver value in their approach and we believe this provides the highest level of service to our clients," said Paul Skeen, partner at Hansen, Barnett, & Maxwell P.C.  "We are continually looking for ways to assist our clients in meeting their compliance needs and Vibato's unique approach is the best we have seen for helping our clients establish or refine a strong internal control infrastructure quickly and cost-effectively."

"We were delighted to work with a great growth company like Zagg; we really feel like we get what our customers need just like they do," said Teresa Bockwoldt, chief executive officer, Vibato.  "I am confident our approach can serve non-accelerated and accelerated filers of all sizes and needs, as well as those companies who have already completed their Sarbanes-Oxley work and are looking for a more efficient approach that reduces both cost and effort.  We share a common vision with HBM for delivering excellent customer service and value to our clients and our clients' shareholders.  This effort, combined with the great service provided by HBM, makes Sarbanes-Oxley implementations useful for clients."

ZAGG, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZAGG) is dedicated to protecting and enhancing the mobile experience.  ZAGG designs, manufactures and distributes protective clear coverings and accessories for consumer electronic and hand-held devices worldwide under the brand names invisibleSHIELD(TM) and ZAGGaudio(TM).  ZAGG continues to increase its product lines to offer additional electronic accessories and services to its tech-savvy customer base, including upcoming technologies like ZAGGbox, to be introduced at CES 2010, and HzO, a breakthrough gadget waterproofing technology.  The invisibleSHIELD is a protective, high-tech patented film covering designed for iPods, laptops, cell phones, digital cameras, PDAs, watch faces, GPS systems, gaming devices and other items.  The patent-pending invisibleSHIELD application of clear protective film covering a device is the first scratch protection solution of its kind on the market and has sold millions of units.  For more product or investor information, please visit the company's web site at here.

HBM has provided quality client service for more than 40 years and has built a solid understanding of businesses.  HBM's experience gives them the edge to help their clients grow and succeed.  Whether for traditional CPA services such as audit, tax and write-up, or for more specialized services such as SEC filings, profit enhancement, benefits consulting, litigation support and more, HBM's expert staff is ready to customize a portfolio of services designed to meet customer needs and exceed their expectations.  For more information, please visit http://www.hbmcpas.com/.

Vibato's game-changing modular approach allows scalability while also minimizing implementation and ongoing testing costs.  In addition, the integrated and standardized approach helps streamline the external audit effort, resulting in both cost and time savings for Vibato partners such as HBM and their clients.

The SCMS suite is currently available for companies of all sizes and industries.  For more information please visit this link or call (888) 4VIBATO.

About Vibato

Vibato, LLC is dedicated to providing the most cost-effective compliance solutions available.  Our mission is to help you reduce audit and compliance fees, improve financial transparency and run your business more efficiently.  For more information, please visit us at www.vibato.com or contact us directly at mail@vibato.com.

Topics: Internal Controls, segregation of duties, Vibato Success Stories, internal control