EANS-News: WACKER Exits from Solar Wafer Business
- SCHOTT Solar acquires WACKER's shares in joint venture - WACKER is expecting from the transaction a non-recurring negative effect on pre-tax profit of about 50 million, financial debt to increase by some 65 million - CEO Staudigl: Focus on polysilicon production provides an excellent base for long-term competitiveness and profitability
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Company Information
Utl.: - SCHOTT Solar acquires WACKER's shares in joint venture - WACKER is expecting from the transaction a non-recurring negative effect on pre-tax profit of about 50 million, financial debt to increase by some 65 million - CEO Staudigl: Focus on polysilicon production provides an excellent base for long-term competitiveness and profitability =
Munich / Jena (euro adhoc) - September 30, 2009 - Wacker Chemie AG exits from the solar wafer business and will transfer its shares in its joint venture WACKER SCHOTT Solar GmbH (WSS) to its former partner SCHOTT Solar AG. WACKER and SCHOTT Solar have reached agreement on the key points of a sales transaction today. The reason for this move is WACKER´s decision to focus its solar activities from now on exclusively on its core competency which is the production of hyperpure polycrystalline silicon. SCHOTT Solar, on the other hand, concentrates on the downstream side of the photovoltaic value chain, the manufacturing of solar cells and modules. Already in the past, SCHOTT Solar has absorbed the major part of WSS´s wafer production.
In the context of this transaction, WACKER will perform its respective duties as a shareholder and will support WSS with a variety of measures. All in all, Wacker Chemie AG is expecting from its share in WSS a non-recurring negative impact on pre-tax profit of EURabout EUR50 million as well as an increase in financial debt of some EUR65 million. The corresponding financial precautions will be appropriately recorded in the company´s financial statements for Q3 2009.
"Focusing on hyperpure polysilicon production provides an excellent base for our long-term competitiveness and profitability", says WACKER Group´s CEO Rudolf Staudigl. "In this field, we can play out our technology leadership and our strong market position with maximum impact."
WACKER is currently the world´s second largest supplier of polysilicon for the solar and semiconductor industries and has under way an extensive investment program for the expansion of its production capacities.
This press release contains forward-looking statements based on assumptions and estimates of WACKER´s Executive Board. Although we assume the expectations in these forward-looking statements are realistic, we cannot guarantee they will prove to be correct. The assumptions may harbor risks and uncertainties that may cause the actual figures to differ considerably from the forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such discrepancies include, among other things, changes in the economic and business environment, variations in exchange and interest rates, the introduction of competing products, lack of acceptance for new products or services, and changes in corporate strategy. WACKER does not plan to update the forward-looking statements, nor does it assume the obligation to do so.
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Further inquiry note:
Christof Bachmair
Media Relations & Information
Tel.: +49 (0)89 6279 1830
E-Mail: christof.bachmair@wacker.com
Branche: Chemicals
ISIN: DE000WCH8881
WKN: WCH888
Index: Midcap Market Index, MDAX, CDAX, Classic All Share, HDAX,
Prime All Share
Börsen: Frankfurt / regulated dealing/prime standard
Original content of: Wacker Chemie AG, transmitted by news aktuell