EANS-News: ROFIN-BAASEL Lasertech and centrotherm photovoltaics draw positive interim assessment of their strategic cooperation in the advanced cell technology area

• Successful launch of laser diffusion for turnkey projects and
of upgrade package for Chinese customer Dongfang Magi Solar
•
Laser technology caters for above-market-average efficiency of more
than 18.5 percent in industrial solar cell production
•
Cooperation also in centaurus rear side technology

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Subtitle: • Successful launch of laser diffusion for turnkey projects and of
upgrade package for Chinese customer Dongfang Magi Solar
• Laser technology caters for above-market-average efficiency of more
than 18.5 percent in industrial solar cell production
• Cooperation also in centaurus rear side technology

Blaubeuren (euro adhoc) - June 6, 2011 - The strategic cooperation
between the two technology leaders ROFIN-BAASEL Lasertech GmbH & Co.
KG and centrotherm photovoltaics AG is proving worthwhile in the
selective emitter technology area: Dongfang Magi Solar, a Chinese
customer of centrotherm photovoltaics, is achieving an average
efficiency of more than 18.5 percent, and charges of up to
18.7 percent, through the deployment of the recently installed
upgrade package entailing a laser-based selective emitter. These cell
efficiencies are significantly above the levels of around 18 percent
that are otherwise standard on the market.

"Our cooperation with ROFIN is proving very fruitful. Deployment of
the ROFIN laser, which requires only minor additional investment
costs, significantly improves solar cells' efficiency", was how Dr.
Peter Fath, CTO of centrotherm photovoltaics AG, commented on the
strategic cooperation that has existed since September 2009. "This
reduces manufacturing costs per watt peak, and allows our customers
to extend their cost leadership." Very low consumption costs for
laser technology comprise a further advantage. For this year,
centrotherm photovoltaics anticipates that selective emitter
technology will hold a sales potential in the double-digit area in
millions of euros.

centrotherm photovoltaics has meanwhile proved higher efficiencies in
mass production through upgrades at further cell manufacturers. The
selective emitter is currently being retrofitted at several Asian
customers. In addition, turnkey projects for production lines for
mono- and multi-crystalline ("Si") silicon solar cells with selective
emitter technology have been successfully concluded. Several millions
of highly efficient selective emitter solar cells have already been
manufactured in ongoing three-shift production.

The technology to produce selective emitter structures that has been
developed with ROFIN Laser boosts solar cell efficiency by up to 0.4
percentage points. Conventional emitters exhibit a high degree of
phosphorus concentration which results in a significant portion of
the incoming light being converted into heat instead of electricity.
Selective emitter technology significantly reduces this heat loss by
using the laser to position the highly phosphorus concentration in
only the requisite areas. The solar cell converts more light into
electricity as a consequence.

A further application area for the ROFIN laser is in centrotherm
photovoltaics' centaurus rear side technology. The new rear side
technology replaces the aluminum rear side through a passivation
coating with local contacts that covers the entire area. This
improves sensitivity to long-wave light, and more electricity is
generated. Cell voltage is also improved. Efficiencies of
significantly above 19 percent are achieved as a result.

"Lasers represent universal materials processing tools, and are
excellently suited to photovoltaics applications", commented Stephan
Geiger, Managing Director of ROFIN-BAASEL Lasertech GmbH & Co. KG.
"With our lasers, we ensure that even higher performing solar cells
are produced with selective emitter technology." With more than
38,000 installed systems, the ROFIN Group is one of the global
technology and market leaders for lasers and laser-based system
solutions in industrial materials processing.

About centrotherm photovoltaics AG centrotherm photovoltaics AG,
which is based at Blaubeuren, Germany, is the world's leading
technology and equipment provider for the photovoltaics sector. The
company equips well-known solar companies and new sector entrants
with turnkey production lines and single equipment to manufacture
silicon, crystalline solar cells and thin film modules. As a
consequence, the Group possesses a broad and well-founded
technological basis, as well as key equipment at practically all
steps of the photovoltaics value chain. centrotherm photovoltaics
guarantees its customers important performance parameters such as
production capacity, efficiencies, and completion deadlines. The
Group employs over 1,700 staff members, and operates in Europe, Asia
and the USA. centrotherm photovoltaics achieved revenue in the 2010
financial year of EUR 624.2 million, EBIT of EUR 75.4 million. The
company is listed in the TecDax of the Frankfurt Securities Exchange.
Further information can be found at www.centrotherm.de.

About Rofin With its operating headquarters in Hamburg, Germany, and
Plymouth, Michigan (USA), ROFIN-SINAR Technologies Inc. develops,
produces and markets a broad product range of laser beam sources and
laser-based system solutions for highly varied applications. With
production locations in the USA, Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden,
Finland, Switzerland, Singapore and China, ROFIN-SINAR is one of the
world's leading manufacturers of lasers and laser systems for
industrial materials processing. The company looks after more than
4,000 customers around the world, and commands an installed base of
more than 38,000 lasers. The ROFIN- SINAR share is listed on the
NASDAQ Global Select Market under ticker symbol RSTI, as well as on
the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under ISIN
US7750431022. ROFIN is included in the Standard & Poor's SmallCap 600
and in the Russell 2000 indices. Further information can be found on
the ROFIN- SINAR website at http://www.rofin.com.

Contact:

centrotherm photovoltaics AG ROFIN-BAASEL Lasertech GmbH & Co. KG
Dr. Torsten Knödler Petra Fischer
Manager Public Relations Marketing Communications
Tel: +49 7344 918-8898 Tel: +49 8151 776-4113

E-mail: torsten.knoedler@centrotherm.de E-mail:
petra.fischer-speck@baasel.de

end of announcement euro adhoc
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company: centrotherm photovoltaics AG
Johannes-Schmid-Str. 8
D-89143 Blaubeuren
phone: +49 (0) 7344 91880
mail: info@centrotherm.de
WWW: http://www.centrotherm.de
sector: Energy
ISIN: DE000A0JMMN2
indexes: TecDAX
stockmarkets: regulated dealing/prime standard: Frankfurt, free trade: Berlin,
Hamburg, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf, München
language: English

ots Originaltext: centrotherm photovoltaics AG
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Further inquiry note:

Dr. Torsten Knödler
Manager Public Relations
Tel.: 07344 - 918-8898
E-Mail: torsten.knoedler@centrotherm.de

Branche: Energy
ISIN: DE000A0JMMN2
WKN: A0JMMN
Index: TecDAX
Börsen: Frankfurt / regulated dealing/prime standard
Berlin / free trade
Hamburg / free trade
Stuttgart / free trade
Düsseldorf / free trade
München / free trade