- Complete integration of STANGL can be achieved ahead of schedule
- Consistent expansion of Solar activities planned
- System business will be set up
Kahl am Main, December 07, 2009 - The SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES AG (SINGULUS), Kahl, acquired the remaining 49 % of the STANGL Semiconductor Equipment AG (STANGL), Fürstenfeldbruck near Munich. A relevant agreement was signed today on December 7, 2009. SINGULUS expects the closing to be completed by the end of the year and will own 100 % of the shares of STANGL after the acquisition.
SINGULUS thus succeeded in advancing the purchase of the STANGL shares ahead of plans and to pay a significantly lower purchase price than for the first tranche in 2007.
With the complete acquisition of STANGL SINGULUS lays the foundation for an even faster expansion in the Solar segment. “STANGL was the first acquisition outside of our traditional work area of optical production machines. It enabled us to gain the strategically very important market access to the solar industry. We will focus more intensively on the system business with production equipment for solar cells and leverage our know-how in coating and automation technologies as well as in the system business”, comments Roland Lacher, Chief Executive Officer of the SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES AG.
Roland Lacher adds: “Customers’ demand is increasingly focused on improved cell concepts with higher efficiency and optimized production technologies with production costs declining at the same time. The required improvements affect all processing steps of both the silicon and the thin-film solar technology. SINGULUS and STANGL are cooperating with leading cell producers in the development of new technologies and new plant concepts”.
SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES together with STANGL will systematically expand the Solar activities. STANGL is one of the key providers of wet-chemical machines for both the crystalline silicon solar technology as well as for the thin-film solar technology. Combined with STANGL’s machines SINGULUS offers important machine groups for a production line for crystalline silicon solar cells with wet-chemical, vacuum coating and wafer handling technology. New production expertise is integrated and offered for thin-film solar technology as well.
The goal is to expand the position for production machines and systems for solar cells in the next couple of years and to benefit from the future growth in this market.