Press release
Leclanché's share price
Statement of Anil Srivastava, CEO
Yverdon, Switzerland, 21 October, 2015 - In the past months, Leclanché has been contacted by investors who have pointed out that our continuously declining share price does not seem to be in line with the company's progress in the implementation of its strategic plan.
Anil Srivastava, Leclanché's CEO, addresses the issue:
"First of all, I would like to thank all the shareholders who took part in the recent extraordinary shareholders' meeting (EGM held on October the 6th) for their outstanding support, with all proposed resolutions adopted at a 99% approval rate.
Leclanché has made significant progress in 2015 and its Growth Plan is on track, for which an update was provided during the EGM. In particular, I would like to highlight the following items, some of which are leading the global battery industry:
- 5 May 2015 - 8.5 million euros order for the Graciosa project in Portugal. It is one of the World's largest micro-grid project based on a Lithium Battery System;
- 9 June 2015 - 4.2 MWh battery system order for the World's largest electric ferryboat in Denmark;
- 31 August 2015 - major customer win for solar street lighting solutions in Saudi Arabia and a major new battery order for automatic guided vehicles;
- 19 October 2015 - Leclanché launches a new, highly-efficient "full-electric" bus at Busworld Europe in Belgium.
The Company takes this matter very seriously and we are monitoring the stock price development very closely. The management of Leclanché is fully committed to its Growth Plan and I can reconfirm the previous guidance given that the Company will reach an adjusted EBITDA* breakeven towards the end of the year."
*As previously recorded, 'Adjusted EBITDA breakeven' is defined as breakeven at the EBITDA level, after adjustment to exclude of any non-cash items and as further adjusted to exclude the negative effects of any growth initiatives and activities which are separately funded under Facility B or otherwise.
For further information:
Claude-Olivier Rochat, Voxia communication. Tel.: (+41) 079 203 52 19 - co.rochat@voxia.ch
Rohan Sant, Voxia communication. Tel.: (+41) 079 120 00 28 - rohan.sant@voxia.ch
About Leclanché
Leclanché, which is listed on the Swiss stock exchange (SIX:LECN), has a wide range of storage products for homes, small offices, large industries, electricity grids, hybridization for mass transport systems like fleet of buses, trams etc. Established in 1909 Leclanché has been a reliable partner for battery storage technologies. Founded in the tradition of Georges Leclanché, the inventor of the dry cell battery, Leclanché today has a rich portfolio of Energy Storage Systems that include Specialized Customer-specific Battery Systems to industry leading lithium-ion solutions.
Through the integration of a spin-off of the German Fraunhofer Institute in 2006 the company evolved from a traditional battery producer into one of the first developers and manufacturers of lithium-ion cells in Europe. Leclanché's Storage Solutions are optimized for various applications, in particular for the integration of renewable energy, diesel fuel reduction, electricity grid-connected ancillary services, peak power shaving for heavy industries but also for heavy duty transportation in buses, trams, trains or maritime vessels. Leclanché products are characterized by a very high cycle stability (both for cells with titanate and graphite anode) and long service life. Thanks to our patented separator technology, which is a core element of lithium ion batteries, Leclanché is able to make cells with very good safety characteristics in a highly automated production process.
Leclanché operates a fully automated plant for the production of large format lithium-ion cells at an annual maximum capacity of up to one million cells and is capable of running multiple chemistries through production for different cell characteristics. In addition, Leclanché offers a number of specialized battery systems through its Portable Business Unit, such as customer-specific energy storage systems for defense and medical applications. Leclanché also distributes primary and secondary batteries and accessories of other producers.
