Meyer Burger Technology AG — M&A Activity 2010

Feb 4, 2010

News Details

Ad-hoc | 4 February 2010 09:54

Roth & Rau AG signs joint venture agreement with Chinese company

Roth & Rau AG / Joint Venture

04.02.2010

Dissemination of an Ad hoc announcement according to § 15 WpHG, transmitted by
DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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Roth & Rau AG signs joint venture agreement with Chinese company
- Entry into Chinese cadmium telluride market planned
- Construction of a reference plant in Brandenburg

Hohenstein-Ernstthal, 03 February 2010 - The Roth & Rau Group is pressing
ahead with the strategic expansion of its activities in its cadmium
telluride thin film (CdTe) division. To this end, Roth & Rau AG and its
subsidiary Roth & Rau CTF Solar GmbH (CTF) have signed a joint venture
agreement with a Chinese company for the construction and operation of
systems to manufacture CdTe solar modules in China. In the first stage, a
specimen plant with an annual capacity of 80 MW is to be built in
Brandenburg, Germany. This will produce CdTe solar modules on a turnkey
production line to be supplied by CTF and will act as a reference plant for
future operations in China. The order for Roth & Rau's subsidiary CTF to
supply the turnkey line to the joint venture company to be established is
expected to be worth almost EUR 100 million. However, the terms governing
the supply of the turnkey line still have to be negotiated in detail.
Performance of the joint venture agreement is subject to the conditions
precedent of approval by the relevant bodies at the Chinese joint venture
partner and the Supervisory Board of the Roth & Rau AG, the agreement of
terms for the supply of a turnkey line by CTF to the joint venture company,
approval by the Federal Antitrust Office and the granting of approval by
the relevant Chinese authorities for foreign investments.

This joint venture and the planned entry into the Chinese CdTe market
represent a milestone in the company's development. For the operation of
the specimen plant, Roth & Rau AG and its contract partner will initially
found a joint venture company (limited liability company - GmbH), in which
Roth & Rau AG will hold a 49% share of the capital. In line with its
shareholding, Roth & Rau will contribute an amount of EUR 19.6 million to
the new company's capital reserve. Once the specimen plant in Brandenburg
is successfully up and running, corresponding production plants are to be
developed in China. Roth & Rau will have the opportunity to hold a 32%
stake in these. Roth & Rau will be the preferred supplier for equipping the
Chinese plants with turnkey lines.

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Information and Explaination of the Issuer to this News:

'This joint venture represents a further milestone,' commented Dr. Dietmar
Roth, CEO of Roth & Rau AG, 'coming as it does less than a year after our
takeover of CTF Solar GmbH, which provided us with substantial expertise
for our strategic entry into CdTe technology. By setting up a reference
production site in Brandenburg, we aim to prove the competitiveness of our
new CdTe technology line and expand our market position in the thin film
business.'

With production costs of less than EUR 1.00/Wp (pro Watt peak), CdTe
technology is currently notably cheaper than most other thin film
technologies and also requires comparatively low investment costs.
Moreover, CdTe modules now already achieve efficiency rates of more than
10% in production and more than 16% in laboratory conditions.

About Roth & Rau AG:
Roth & Rau AG, based in Hohenstein-Ernstthal, has been one of the world's
leading suppliers of production equipment and innovative production
technologies for the photovoltaics industry for more than 10 years now. In
its photovoltaics segment, Roth & Rau focuses on providing antireflective
coating systems and turnkey production lines for use in the manufacture of
crystalline silicon solar cells. Further products include thermal
processing systems also used in the manufacture of crystalline silicon
solar cells, as well as coating systems and turnkey production lines for
the manufacture of thin film solar modules. Roth & Rau Microsystems, a
subsidiary located in the Wüstenbrand district, develops and produces
process systems for plasma and ion beam enhanced thin film and surface
processing methods tailored to customers' specific needs. The customers
served by this division particularly include companies in the semiconductor
industry, R&D departments in various other industrial sectors, research
institutes and universities. The portfolio of the Roth & Rau Group is
supplemented by software products in the field of systems management,
production monitoring and maintenance and service offerings. Roth & Rau
posted sales of EUR 272.1 million in the 2008 financial year. Sales for the
first nine months of 2009 amounted to EUR 159.5 million, with EBIT of EUR
13.1 million. The Roth & Rau Group had a total workforce of 857 employees
as of 30 September 2009.

Contact:
Roth & Rau AG
Dr. Silvia Roth
Tel.: +49 (0) 3723/6685-333
E-Mail: investor@roth-rau.de

Haubrok Investor Relations GmbH
Simone Gorny
Tel.: +49 (0) 211/30126-130
E-Mail: s.gorny@haubrok.de

04.02.2010 Ad hoc announcement, Financial News and Media Release distributed by DGAP.
Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de

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Language: English
Company: Roth & Rau AG
An der Baumschule 6-8
09337 Hohenstein-Ernstthal
Deutschland
Phone: 03723 6685-0
Fax: 03723 6685-100
E-mail: info@roth-rau.de
Internet: www.roth-rau.de
ISIN: DE000A0JCZ51
WKN: A0JCZ5
Indices: TecDAX
Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr
in Berlin, München, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart

End of News DGAP News-Service

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