Solon raises forecast for 2007 following strong Q3

The company's management now expects to see a year-on-year increase of around 40 percent in both revenue and profit for the SOLON Group. Group revenue increased by 53 percent to EUR 333.9 million in the first nine months of 2007 (2006: EUR 218 million). Its EBITDA rose by 64 percent to EUR 32.7 million (2006: EUR 19.9 million), while EBIT increased by 73 percent to EUR 26.8 million (2006: EUR 15.5 million). Net profit attributable to the Group improved from EUR 9.5 million in the first nine months of 2006 to EUR 20.2 million for the comparable period in 2007, resulting in earnings per share of EUR 2.09 (2006: EUR 1.04). Excluding non-recurrent items, net profit attributable to the Group for the nine-month period was EUR 15.3 million, with earnings per share of EUR 1.59. At the end of the third quarter of 2007, the SOLON Group employed 649 people, an increase of 20 percent on the previous year. The strength of the Spanish business contributed to the positive results for the third quarter of 2007. Spain is currently the world's fastest growing market for solar technology and has seen a further acceleration in growth. There has been particularly strong growth in demand for turnkey, multi-megawatt power station projects. This has enabled SOLON AG to register new orders for projects in Spain with a combined volume of more than 100 megawatts in the past quarter alone. The management of SOLON AG anticipates further growth in demand during 2008, both in the Spanish and German markets, and is forecasting a year-on-year increase of around 75 percent in both Group revenue and profit for the year 2008.