SMT Scharf AG starts share purchase plan for employees

Buyback of up to 14,400 shares planned in the first quarter of 2008

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shares

Hamm, January 7, 2008 (euro adhoc) - SMT Scharf AG (WKN 575198, ISIN
DE0005751986), world market leader for rail-bound railway systems in
mining, has resolved to initiate a share purchase plan for its
employees. To implement the program SMT Scharf AG will buy back
shares through an associated company in accordance with § 71 para. 1
section 2 German Stock Companies Act. The purchase of up to 14,400
shares will take place between January and March 2008 and will
accordingly be published on the company's website www.smtscharf.com.
The execution of the program - especially the maximum purchase price
for the shares - will be in accordance with Regulation (EC) No.
2273/2003. Thus, the company will repurchase shares at a maximum
price corresponding to the last official traded price at the stock
exchange respectively the current asked price. Further, SMT Scharf
will not buy more shares per trading day than 25% of the average
daily trading volume during the last month.

Friedrich Trautwein, CEO of SMT Scharf AG: "We want our staff to
participate in the successful development of our company through the
share purchase plan and thereby also create incentives for the
future."

Company profile The SMT Scharf Group develops, builds and maintains
rail-bound railway systems for mining and use in tunnels. The trains
are used all over the world, primarily in hard coal mines, gold mines
and in underground mining for platinum, diamonds, copper and nickel.
They are used to transport material and personnel with working loads
of up to 35t. Rail-bound trains are the only means of transport that
can be used underground on branching lines to cope with inclines of
more than 13 degrees. The SMT Scharf Group has subsidiaries in
Germany, Poland, South Africa and China, external employees in
Russia, and agencies around the world. The railways developed by SMT
Scharf are characterized, above all, by high-performance engines,
high working loads, high speed and low operating and maintenance
costs. SMT Scharf records more than 50% of its revenues abroad, in
2006 64% of order intake was from high-growth foreign markets such as
Russia, China and South Africa. The replacement parts and repairs
business constitutes around 55% of revenues. The advances in
exploitation of resources make underground conditions increasingly
difficult which in turn requires more high technology transport
solutions in mining. The total market for underground transport
technology comprises around EUR 5 billion to EUR 7 billion per year
according to company estimates. SMT Scharf AG has been listed in the
Prime Standard (regulated market) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange
since April 11, 2007.

end of announcement euro adhoc
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ots Originaltext: SMT Scharf AG
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Further inquiry note:

Investor Relations

cometis AG

Henryk Deter

Tel.: +49(0)611 - 205855-13

Fax: +49(0)611 - 205855-66

e-mail: deter@cometis.de

Branche: Machine Manufacturing
ISIN: DE0005751986
WKN: 575198
Börsen: Börse Frankfurt / regulated dealing/prime standard
Börse Berlin / free trade
Börse München / free trade