EANS-Adhoc: Semperit AG Holding Semperit Aims to Realign Its Joint Venture in
Thailand
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ad-hoc disclosure transmitted by euro adhoc with the aim of a Europe-wide
distribution. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this
announcement.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Joint Ventures/Cooperation/Collaboration
17.07.2014
Semperit AG Holding is striving to achieve a realignment of its 50/50 joint
venture with the Sri Trang Agro Industry Group (Sri Trang) of Thailand.
Discussions with Sri Trang with respect to restructuring the partnership between
the two companies have not led to results so far. Recently, decisions regarding
the company's business practices, which were made by the Board of Directors of
Siam Sempermed Corporation (SSC), the joint subsidiary of Semperit and Sri
Trang, have been contested in a Thai court by a Non-Executive Director nominated
by Sri Trang. Therefore, the Management Board of Semperit resolved today to
initiate all the legal steps necessary to uphold Semperit's rights as a
shareholder in the joint venture SSC.
The agreements concluded more than 25 years ago proved their worth over a long
period of time, and served as the basis for the successful establishment of
production sites for protective and examination gloves as well as hoses in
Thailand. However, in recent times, from Semperit's point of view, the
partnership has no longer been able to fulfill current requirements for
increased transparency as well as the necessary objectivity, corporate
governance and accountability of management decisions.
Furthermore, as of the beginning of the year 2015, the marketing of the
protective and examination gloves manufactured by the joint venture in Thailand
will be realigned. Whereas the sales and distribution of the gloves in Europe
and the Middle East will continue to be exclusively handled by Sempermed's
business operations in Austria, the markets in Asia, Africa and South America
will be handled independently from one another. In contrast, sales and
distribution in the USA will continue to be coordinated by the joint venture
company Sempermed USA for the time being.
About Semperit
The publicly listed company Semperit AG Holding is an internationally-oriented
group that develops, produces, and sells in more than 100 countries highly
specialised rubber and plastic products for the medical and industrial sectors:
examination and surgical gloves, hydraulic and industrial hoses, conveyor belts,
escalator handrails, construction profiles, cable car rings, and products for
railway superstructures. The headquarters of this long-standing Austrian
company, which was founded in 1824, are located in Vienna, and the global R & D
centre is in Wimpassing, Lower Austria. The Semperit Group employs about 10,800
people worldwide, including more than 8,000 in Asia and more than 700 in Austria
(Vienna and production site in Wimpassing, Lower Austria). The Group has 22
manufacturing facilities worldwide and numerous sales offices in Europe, Asia,
and America. In 2013 the group generated sales of EUR 906 million and an EBITDA
of EUR 133 million.
About Sempermed
Sempermed is the largest segment of the Semperit Group and is ranked among the
international leading manufacturers of medical and industrial gloves. At
Sempermed's research centre in Wimpassing, Lower Austria, new products are
continually developed and tested in close co-operation with users and experts.
For more than 90 years Sempermed has been producing gloves of the highest
quality and has set standards in terms of quality and innovation. Sempermed
continually strives for optimum safety and reliability using the most modern
production technologies, highest production hygiene and strictest quality
checks. In 2013 Sempermed generated sales of EUR 435 million (about 48% of the
Group revenue) and an EBITDA of EUR 59 million (about 44% of the Group EBITDA).
Further inquiry note:
Martina Büchele
Head of Group Communications
Tel.: +43 676 8715 8621
martina.buechele@semperitgroup.comwww.semperitgroup.com
Stefan Marin
Investor Relations
Tel.: +43 676 8715 8210
stefan.marin@semperitgroup.com
end of announcement euro adhoc
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
issuer: Semperit AG Holding
Modecenterstrasse 22
A-1030 Wien
phone: +43 1 79 777-210
FAX: +43 1 79 777-602
mail: investor@semperitgroup.com
WWW: www.semperitgroup.com
sector: Synthetics & Plastics
ISIN: AT0000785555
indexes: WBI, ATX Prime, ViDX, Prime Market, ATX Global Players
stockmarkets: official market: Wien
language: English