DGAP-News: iQ Power AG / Key word(s): Miscellaneous iQ Power Now Biggest Shareholder in Slovenian Battery Maker Akubat with Nearly 37 Percent 02.03.2011 / 10:38 --------------------------------------------------------------------- iQ Power Now Biggest Shareholder in Slovenian Battery Maker Akubat with Nearly 37 Percent - Slovenian authorities approve iQ Power GmbH's participation in company - Shareholding of 36.86 percent following debt-to-equity swap - Slovenian iQ Power d.o.o. as future supply chain coordinator Zug/Switzerland, 2 March 2011: iQ Power AG (ISIN: CH0020609688, WKN: A0DQVL, Symbol: IQPB), the developer and supplier of eco-friendly and technologically advanced starter batteries for motor vehicles, has announced that its subsidiary iQ Power GmbH has acquired an equity interest of approximately 37 percent in the Slovenian battery maker Akubat d.o.o. As part of the due diligence that was conducted, the potential conditions for an equity investment in Akubat on the part of iQ Power AG were examined and found to be favorable. It was with the approval of the Slovenian authorities and the passing of formal deadlines that iQ Power GmbH used a debt-to-equity swap (i.e. the exchange of receivables for equity in Akubat) to acquire 36.86 percent of the shares of the company. This makes iQ Power the biggest shareholder in Akubat. The remaining shares are held by an Akubat subsidiary and a group of original shareholders. The Slovenian company iQ Power d.o.o., which was established in July of last year as a wholly owned subsidiary of iQ Power AG, will handle all on-site supply chain management in the future and thus guarantee efficient coordination between iQ Power and Akubat. In the meantime, negotiations will continue with shareholders and banks regarding future investments to further expand the manufacturing capacity at the Akubat plant in the Slovenian city of Maribor. One option here is for iQ Power GmbH to take over additional shares in the company. In light of what are constructive negotiations, there is confidence that an agreement can be reached soon, and which could increase current production capacity by an additional mid-six-digit number of battery units per year. 'We are delighted to hold some 37 percent of the shares in Akubat and to have established a stable structure together with the other partners,' said Charles Robert Sullivan, the CEO of iQ Power AG. 'One of the next steps going forward will be to fully take over the management and organization of the operation. Akubat, with the help of the team from iQ Power, has already managed to increase capacity through internal improvement measures. This equity investment now puts us in a position where we can more flexibly access Akubat's existing development and manufacturing resources,' stressed Sullivan. The CEO About iQ POWER iQ Power AG is a developer and supplier of innovative starter batteries for motor vehicles. The products are technologically advanced, deliver greater efficiency, and are environmentally sound and lighter in weight. The company's many achievements include the development of the world's first software-controlled smart car battery. Industrial batteries and system solutions for electrical energy management in vehicles help round out its operational portfolio. The company's operational element is iQ Power GmbH in Chemnitz (Germany), which is a wholly owned subsidiary of iQ Power AG. Headquartered in Zug (Switzerland), iQ Power AG is a publicly listed stock corporation whose shares are traded on the regulated market (General Standard segment) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, over the counter on the securities exchanges in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Munich and Stuttgart, as well as on Xetra (ISIN: CH0020609688, WKN: A0DQVL, IQPB). Company Contact: iQ Power AG Metallstrasse 9 6304 Zug Schweiz Tel.: +41(0) 41 768 03 63 Fax: +41(0) 41 768 03 68 info@iqpower.com www.iqpower.com Investor Relations Contact: GFEI Aktiengesellschaft Hamburger Allee 26-28 D-60486 Frankfurt am Main Tel.: +49 (0)69 - 74 30 37 00 Fax: +49 (0)69 - 74 30 37 22 iQPower@gfei.de www.gfei.de End of Corporate News --------------------------------------------------------------------- 02.03.2011 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. DGAP's Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de --------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Company: iQ Power AG Metallstrasse 9 6304 Zug Schweiz Phone: +41 41 7680360 Fax: +41 41 768 03 68 E-mail: investor-relations@iqpower.com Internet: www.iqpower.com ISIN: CH0020609688 WKN: A0DQVL Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt; Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, München, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News-Service --------------------------------------------------------------------- 114124 02.03.2011
DGAP-News: iQ Power Now Biggest Shareholder in Slovenian Battery Maker Akubat with Nearly 37 Percent
| Source: EQS Group AG