ATS Solar Group Secures Multi-Year Polysilicon Supply Contract with Industry-Leading WACKER Chemie AG
CAMBRIDGE, ON, Sept. 4 /CNW/ - ATS Automation Tooling Systems Inc. today
announced that its Photowatt France subsidiary has entered into a multi-year
agreement to purchase high-purity polysilicon from WACKER Chemie AG.
Under the agreement, WACKER will deliver polysilicon to support
approximately 14 megawatts of Photowatt solar production per annum. Deliveries
are expected to begin in January 2010 and continue for a nine year period. The
agreement requires advance payments that will be covered by a portion of the
proceeds raised from ATS's recent rights offering. For competitive reasons,
the terms of the contract were not released but management believes they are
similar to other long-term contracts recently secured in the solar industry.
"This polysilicon contract is an important next step in our plan to
continue to strengthen Photowatt in advance of its spin out," said Ron Jutras,
ATS President and CEO. "The agreement significantly improves our access to
scarce polysilicon by providing us with a contracted supply from a highly
respected global supplier at attractive long-term supply prices. It also
clearly establishes an important strategic supply relationship between
Photowatt and WACKER which we intend to build upon."
Photowatt has implemented an active silicon supply strategy to ensure it
has sufficient supply on hand, at reasonable prices, to meet its long-term
needs and support its future expansion. In support of this strategy, the
contract announced today is the fourth major long-term silicon agreement
Photowatt has signed in recent months. It previously announced two long-term
supply agreements with Deutsche Solar AG for the supply of polysilicon wafers
and a long-term supply agreement for refined metallurgical silicon with Dow
Corning. Photowatt's vertically-integrated technology and manufacturing
capability allow it to manufacture solar cells and modules using a broad range
of silicon feedstock, which it purchases based upon availability and cost.
About WACKER
WACKER (www.wacker.com) is a globally active chemical company
headquartered in Munich. With a wide range of state-of-the-art specialty
products, WACKER is a leader in numerous industrial sectors. Its products are
required in many high-growth end-user sectors such as photovoltaics,
electronics, pharmaceuticals and household/personal care products. The Group's
WACKER POLYSILICON business division is the world's second-largest producer of
hyperpure polycrystalline silicon for the semiconductor and photovoltaic
industries. In 2006, WACKER Group posted sales of some (euro)3.34 billion,
with approx. 80 percent being earned outside Germany. WACKER has about 14,700
employees at 22 production sites in Europe, the Americas and Asia and at some
100 sales offices worldwide. WACKER CHEMIE AG's shares (ISIN: DE000WCH8881)
are listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
About ATS
ATS Automation Tooling Systems Inc. provides innovative, custom designed,
built and installed manufacturing solutions to many of the world's most
successful companies. Founded in 1978, ATS uses its industry-leading knowledge
and global capabilities to serve the sophisticated automation systems' needs
of multinational customers in industries such as healthcare,
computer/electronics, automotive and consumer products. It also leverages its
many years of repetitive manufacturing experience and skills to fulfill the
specialized repetitive equipment manufacturing requirements of customers.
Through its Photowatt solar business, ATS participates in the growing solar
energy industry and through its precision components business it produces, in
high volume, precision components and subassemblies. ATS employs approximately
3,500 people at 24 manufacturing facilities in Canada, the United States,
Europe, southeast Asia and China. The Company's shares are traded on the
Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ATA. Visit the Company's website at
www.atsautomation.com.
For further information: Carl Galloway, Vice President and Treasurer, Gerry
Beard, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, (519) 653-6500
