Qimonda: sale is progressing

Further sales are expected for the coming weeks. "Even for parts of the activities in Munich and Dresden, solutions are being negotiated", says the insolvency administrator Dr. Michael Jaffé. Earlier, he succeeded in selling the Qimonda shares in the Advanced Mask Technology Center (Dresden), the NaMLab gGmbH (Dresden), as well as the Dresden Chip Academy to interested parties that guaranteed the continuation of activities. Investors have been interested in parts of the activities in Dresden and Munich. "We are on a good path to secure the development potential, technologies and jobs" says Dr. Jaffé. He specifically named the the product field 'Graphics' (Munich): "The negotiations with a new investor are in their final stages." There are also positive signs for Dresden, where similar solutions are discussed. Negotiations with a prospective buyer for an office building an a clean room are well advanced: "Our efforts, to secure Dresden as a technology location, are being pursued vigorously and - at least in part - are certainly not hopeless." Efforts continue to attract investors Through political contacts and through direct contact, the insolvency administrator has continued its efforts - over recent weeks - to negotiate an overall solution with the remaining interested parties from China and Russia. However, so far none of the parties has signalled any willingness to start negotiations. As part of the worldwide search for investors, more than 70 potential investors have been contacted. In addition, a number of other contacts have been made. Given the continuing price decline on the world market for memory chips and an uncertain macro-economic perspective - all of these prospective investors were extremely reserved. "We are looking for further discussions. Potentially interested parties can still acquire an innovative technology with a competitive advantage and the basic structure of an international high-tech company, "says Dr. Jaffé. There are currently 240 staff working in Dresden and 226 in Munich, to ensure the smooth operation of the insolvency proceedings, the maintenance of basic operational functions as well as the secure the access to any necessary expertise know-how. The industrial memory chip production at the Dresden facility was suspended on April 1, 2009. The machines are in a standby mode and will be further maintained by professionals so that damage to the sensitive equipment can be avoided. Qimonda's remaining 2,700 former employees are currently employed through transfer organisations in Munich and Dresden.