Sunfilm AG and Sontor GmbH merge to become one of the leading manufacturers of silicon-based thin film modules in the world

29. April 2009Corporate news announcement processed and transmitted by Hugin AS. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------- The new company, to be known as Sunfilm AG, - Combines expertise in production and research & development to take a leading position in the thin film silicon sector, - Reaches critical size to achieve higher productivity and accelerated growth, and - Continues with the full support of its shareholders Q-Cells, Good Energies and NorSun Bitterfeld-Wolfen/Grossroehrsdorf, 29 April 2009. Sunfilm AG, Grossroehrsdorf, and Sontor GmbH, Bitterfeld-Wolfen, merge to become one of the world's largest providers of tandem junction silicon based thin film modules. The new company will be named Sunfilm AG. In an increasingly competitive global photovoltaic market, Sunfilm will have the necessary size and expertise to significantly profit from the growing segment of thin film solar. Q-Cells SE, Good Energies and NorSun AS will be the shareholders of the new Sunfilm and are firmly committed to supporting the company on its future growth path. Sontor and Sunfilm merge to become a leading manufacturer of silicon-based tandem junction thin film modules With an installed capacity of approximately 85 megawatts peak (MWp) at the two current production sites in Bitterfeld-Wolfen and Grossroehrsdorf, plus an additional 60 MWp of capacity under construction in Grossroehrsdorf, Sunfilm is already one of the world's largest manufacturers of tandem junction silicon-based thin film modules. "Thin film is one of the most significant growth areas within the photovoltaic industry. After the merger, the new Sunfilm will participate significantly in this growth and we will establish our company as both a driving force in the market and as a technology leader", says Wolfgang Heinze, Chief Operating Officer and Chairman of the Executive Board of Sunfilm AG. Economies of scale and synergies add to future growth Sunfilm's size and market position will enable the company to create a competitive advantage through economies of scale, despite facing an increasingly crowded market. In addition, Sunfilm can achieve a variety of cost savings, including those from synergies in purchasing and those from consolidation of overlapping segments. The combined expertise in research and development forms an additional clear competitive advantage. As a result, Sunfilm can accelerate the further development of thin film technology and reduce production costs for solar energy in the midterm. "Sunfilm will take a top position in research and development and will significantly advance the technology of solar modules with an even higher performance", according to Dr. Torsten Brammer, Chief Scientist and member of the Executive Board of the new Sunfilm. Current shareholders continue to support new company Q-Cells, the sole owner of Sontor, will hold 50 percent of the new Sunfilm shares. Q-Cells is a leader within the global photovoltaic industry and is the world's largest producer of solar cells. "The new Sunfilm forms a central pillar in Q-Cells' global strategy for thin film technologies", says Dr. Florian Holzapfel, Board Member of Q-Cells, responsible for New Technologies. "This powerful merger will create even more growth momentum in this thin film sector." Good Energies, a leading global investor in renewable energy and energy efficiency industries, as well as NorSun AS, a Norwegian manufacturer of high performance monocrystalline silicon wafers, will also remain invested in Sunfilm and support the future growth of the new company. Good Energies will hold about 35 percent of the new company and about 15 percent will be owned by NorSun. "We believe the merger is the best way to capitalize on the enormous potential of tandem junction thin film technology and to establish a leading company in the market", explains Dr. Sven Hansen, Chief Investment Officer of Good Energies and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Sunfilm. Strengthening of Germany as a centre of Photovoltaics The new Sunfilm AG will have production sites in Grossroehrsdorf and Bitterfeld-Wolfen, while the centre for research and development will be located in Bitterfeld-Wolfen. The new company now has approximately 400 employees, but additional jobs will be created in the midterm as the expansion in Grossroehrsdorf comes on-line. The merger of the two companies is expected to become legally effective by the end of May 2009, but is still subject to approval by the competent antitrust agencies. About Q-Cells SE Founded in 1999, Q-Cells SE is today the world's biggest manufacturer of solar cells. In 2008 the company, which currently employs around 2,500 staff, produced mono- and multicrystalline solar cells with a total power of 570.4 Megawatt peak (MWp) and supplied them to solar module producers around the world. More than 250 scientists and engineers at Q-Cells are working on further developing the technology in order to attain the company's objective of rapidly and permanently reducing the cost of photovoltaic and making the technology affordable and competitive. As well as core business activities, since mid-2008 several Q-Cells SE subsidiaries have been producing photovoltaic modules on the basis of various thin-film technologies. In addition, in 2008 the company has entered the business of planning and developing large scale Photovoltaic power plants with its subsidiary Q-Cells International. Q-Cells SE is building a production plant in Malaysia, has branches in Hong Kong, China and Japan, is quoted on the Frankfurt stock exchange (QCE; ISIN DE0005558662) and is listed in the German technology index, TecDAX. www.q-cells.com About Sontor GmbH Founded in 2006, Sontor GmbH, based in Bitterfeld-Wolfen, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Q-Cells SE. The company develops, produces and markets solar modules based on the highly efficient silicon based tandem junction thin film technology. The modules are 1,8 m2 in size and available on the market since summer 2008. www.sontor.com About Sunfilm AG Sunfilm AG was established at the end of 2006 and is located in Grossroehrsdorf, Saxony, Germany. The company develops, produces and markets photovoltaic modules based on high efficiency tandem junction silicon-based thin film technology. These modules are up to 5.7m2 in size, while half-size and quarter-size modules are available as well. www.sunfilm.com About Good Energies Good Energies is a leading global investor in renewable energy and energy industries. The firm invests in solar, turbine-based renewables, green building technologies and other emerging areas within clean energy. Guided by the "3-P" principle of People-Planet-Profit, Good Energies looks for meaningful, long-term investments in companies with outstanding growth potential. The firm's mission is to accelerate the global transition to a low-carbon economy. Founded in 2001, Good Energies manages the renewable energy portfolio of COFRA, a family owned and managed group of companies. Good Energies currently has 35 investments in its portfolio. The firm operates globally from offices in London, New York, Toronto, Washington D.C. and Zug, Switzerland. www.goodenergies.com About NorSun AS NorSun is a Norwegian solar energy company that manufactures and markets high performance monocrystalline silicon ingots and wafers. Annual production capacity at the company's modern production facilities in Årdal, Norway and Vantaa, Finland is expected to exceed 200 MWp by the end of 2009. NorSun's customers are industry leading manufacturers of high efficiency solar cells that value quality, innovation and manufacturing excellence. The company is committed to grow economies of scale and deliver technological advances that contribute to an efficient and affordable conversion of sunlight into electricity. www.norsuncorp.no PRESS CONTACT Q-Cells SE/Sontor GmbH, Stefan Dietrich, Sonnenallee 17-21, 06766 Bitterfeld-Wolfen FON +49 3494 6699.10111 FAX +49 3494 6699.10000 E-MAIL s.dietrich@q-cells.com Sunfilm AG, Dr. Sicco W.T. Westra, Chief Business Development Officer FON +49 35952 280.1200 E-MAIL Sicco.westra@sunfilm.com --- End of Message --- Q-Cells SE OT Thalheim, Guardianstr. 16 Bitterfeld-Wolfen Germany WKN: 555866; ISIN: DE0005558662; Index: CDAX, GEX, Prime All Share, TecDAX; Listed: Prime Standard in Frankfurter Wertpapierbörse, Freiverkehr in Bayerische Börse München, Freiverkehr in Börse Berlin, Freiverkehr in Börse Düsseldorf, Freiverkehr in Hanseatische Wertpapierbörse zu Hamburg, Freiverkehr in Börse Stuttgart, Regulierter Markt in Frankfurter Wertpapierbörse;