News
5N Plus Inc. has taken 66,67% stake in Sylarus Technologies LLC
Montreal high-purity metals producer 5N Plus Inc. has taken a two-thirds stake in Utah's Sylarus Technologies LLC, a leading producer of germanium substrates for solar cells, by converting a $3-million (U.S.) debenture into Sylarus shares. Sylarus is a customer of Firebird Technologies, a U.S. subsidiary of 5N Plus that provides high-purity germanium feedstock and recycling for germanium-containing residues. Also, 5N will provide Sylarus with $766,000 in immediate funding and will support its working capital and development expenses as needed.
5N President and CEO Jacques l'Ecuyer said: "We are excited by the opportunities that Sylarus brings to the group through their unique product offering. They are one of the very few germanium substrate manufacturers qualified for space applications and are well positioned to take advantage of the anticipated growth in concentrator photovoltaics for terrestrial applications. 5N Plus is now one of the leading producers of germanium with a full range of related products for the infrared optics, LED and photovoltaic markets as a result of Firebird's product portfolio and supply agreements with Teck Metals. Although the acquisition of Sylarus is not expected to be immediately accretive, as Sylarus gradually ramps up production and completes its development work, we expect that within a 24 month-period it will have a positive impact on the earnings of the group."
Mr. L'Ecuyer continued, "We continue to expect further strengthening of our base business, especially in the solar sector, as our main customer in this market continues to grow and to demonstrate leadership in terms of cost effectiveness. Developments made by our other customers in this market remain encouraging . Now that our new photovoltaic module recycling facility in Wisconsin is operational, we believe that we are uniquely positioned to service all of these customers and take advantage of the resulting anticipated growth in this market segment."
Mr. L'Ecuyer added, "As for our Firebird subsidiary, we are making steady progress in the construction of our new facility in Trail which is now almost complete. We expect the facility to be fully commissioned during the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year and Firebird to begin generating significant germanium related revenues in the first quarter of fiscal 2012. Together with the investment made in Sylarus and announced recently, this will form the basis of our germanium related activities and position us as one of the leading producers of germanium products for electronic applications".
5N President and CEO Jacques l'Ecuyer said: "We are excited by the opportunities that Sylarus brings to the group through their unique product offering. They are one of the very few germanium substrate manufacturers qualified for space applications and are well positioned to take advantage of the anticipated growth in concentrator photovoltaics for terrestrial applications. 5N Plus is now one of the leading producers of germanium with a full range of related products for the infrared optics, LED and photovoltaic markets as a result of Firebird's product portfolio and supply agreements with Teck Metals. Although the acquisition of Sylarus is not expected to be immediately accretive, as Sylarus gradually ramps up production and completes its development work, we expect that within a 24 month-period it will have a positive impact on the earnings of the group."
Mr. L'Ecuyer continued, "We continue to expect further strengthening of our base business, especially in the solar sector, as our main customer in this market continues to grow and to demonstrate leadership in terms of cost effectiveness. Developments made by our other customers in this market remain encouraging . Now that our new photovoltaic module recycling facility in Wisconsin is operational, we believe that we are uniquely positioned to service all of these customers and take advantage of the resulting anticipated growth in this market segment."
Mr. L'Ecuyer added, "As for our Firebird subsidiary, we are making steady progress in the construction of our new facility in Trail which is now almost complete. We expect the facility to be fully commissioned during the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year and Firebird to begin generating significant germanium related revenues in the first quarter of fiscal 2012. Together with the investment made in Sylarus and announced recently, this will form the basis of our germanium related activities and position us as one of the leading producers of germanium products for electronic applications".
