Meyer Burger To Focus On Manufacturing

Meyer Burger Technology Ltd is merging individual production locations as part of its current concentration programme, thus optimising the existing production capacities within the Group. The solar technology centre Thun is being sustainably strengthened with the inclusion of module technology. At the same time, the Company is expanding its marketing and sales activities in the new emerging markets.

As was already announced at the half-year media conference on 16 August 2012, the Meyer Burger Group is convinced that, despite the current difficult market situation, the long-term prospects for photovoltaics remain positive. New photovoltaic markets in Asia, South America, in the Arabian region and also in Africa will ensure high demand-side growth in coming years. Various government programmes and initiatives for the promotion of renewable energy on a long-term basis will lead to further growth in the industry. Renewable energy has the potential to reduce the costs of energy generation. Meyer Burger today has a wide product portfolio encompassing the most important technologies along the entire photovoltaic value chain at its disposal. This enables the Group's customers to reduce their manufacturing costs for solar cells and modules and as a result to optimise their total cost of ownership. Meyer Burger aims to cover a significant portion of energy generation by solar technologies using robust and simple plug and play processes while positioning itself as an undisputed technology leader in the new markets.

The planned concentration measures and the strengthening of Meyer Burger's solar technology centre in Switzerland will actively contribute to the current worldwide consolidation and adjustment phase in the photovoltaic industry. The Group's strategic long-term technology approach of looking at the entire photovoltaic value chain and of coordinating the technologies along the various processes (wafer, cell, module, solar system) with one another in an optimal manner strengthens its market position and will become a clear competitive advantage during the recovery of the solar industry.

In a further step in its concentration and optimisation programme, Meyer Burger intends to integrate its location in Lyss into the solar technology centre Thun and at the same time to merge the two subsidiaries Meyer Burger Ltd and 3S Swiss Solar Systems Ltd. The new Meyer Burger Group headquarters in Thun offers room for a total of 650 employees and guarantees a job for all employees from Lyss. Even after the intended merger, the 3S Modultec and 3S Photovoltaics technology brands will remain within the Meyer Burger Group's umbrella brand strategy and will be further developed. The inclusion should be completed at the end of March 2013. The Group's other main production locations are located in Hohenstein-Ernstthal (DE), Zuelpich (DE) and Colorado Springs (USA).

A solar technology centre will be created at the new headquarters in Thun focussing on the competencies of wafering and modules. The second technology centre is located in Hohenstein-Ernstthal where the development of innovative cell technologies in the field of high efficiency cells is being pushed ahead, striving for cell efficiencies of >21%.