Managing Board of SMA Solar Technology AG Lowers the Forecast for Fiscal Year 2013 and Gives Positive Outlook for 2014

“As the world market leader, SMA is particularly affected by the changed conditions on the global photovoltaic market. The market is characterized by high price pressure worldwide. Furthermore, we have a strongly declining demand in our core markets in Europe, that cannot be compensated by the new Asian and American markets. As a result, we adjusted the structures to the changed market conditions and devaluated assets. In addition, there are the start-up losses of Zeversolar. In total, SMA will close the fiscal year 2013 with a loss of €80 million to €90 million,” explains SMA CEO Pierre-Pascal Urbon. “With more than €300 million Net Cash at the end of 2013 SMA continues to have a very solid balance-sheet structure and can finance its further development from its own resources.”

“With our existing strategy and the measures already introduced, we have taken the necessary steps to be able to return to profitability and sales growth in 2014. Especially the cost reduction and personnel adjustment measures already started will be fully effective for the first time in 2014. With launching the Sunny Tripower in the U.S. and Japan, we will also profit from the strong growth expected in these regions. In addition, we will launch first products from our completely newly developed product platforms. SMA offers highly innovative solutions exactly tailored to the requirements of our future energy supply, which allow us to set ourselves apart from competitors particularly in this attractive growth segment,” says Urbon.

In 2014, the SMA Managing Board therefore expects the group's sales to increase to between €1.0 and €1.3 billion and to reach its profitability again.

Background information on the market and forecast for 2013 and 2014 is available at www.SMA.de/IR/FinancialReports. In addition, the SMA Managing Board will inform the capital market within the scope of an analyst call on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2013.


About SMA
The SMA Group generated sales of €1.5 billion in 2012 and is the global market leader for solar inverters, a key component of all PV plants  and, as an energy management group, offers innovative key technologies for future power supply structures. It is headquartered in Niestetal, near Kassel, Germany, and is represented internationally in 21 countries. The Group employs more than 5,000 people worldwide. SMA’s broad product portfolio includes a compatible inverter for every type of module on the market and for all system sizes. The product range includes both inverters for PV systems connected to the grid and inverters for off-grid systems. SMA is therefore able to provide ideal technical inverter solutions for all system sizes and types. Since 2008, the Group’s parent company, SMA Solar Technology AG, has been listed on the Prime Standard of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (S92) and also in the TecDAX index. In recent years, SMA has received numerous awards for excellence as an employer and achieved first place in the nationwide “Great Place to Work®” competition in 2011 and 2012 and fourth place in 2013.


SMA Solar Technology AG
Sonnenallee 1
34266 Niestetal
Germany

Head of Corporate Communications:
Anja Jasper
Tel.: +49 561 9522-2805
Presse@SMA.de

Press contact:
Susanne Henkel
Manager Corporate Press
Tel.: +49 561 9522-1124
Fax:    +49 561 9522-421400
Presse@SMA.de

Investor Relations contact:
Julia Damm
Manager Investor Relations
Tel.: +49 561 9522-2222
Fax +49 561 9522-2223
IR@SMA.de


Disclaimer:

This press release serves only as information and does not constitute an offer or invitation to subscribe for, acquire, hold or sell any securities of SMA Solar Technology AG (the “Company”) or any present or future subsidiary of the Company (together with the Company, the “SMA Group”) nor should it form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract to purchase or subscribe for any securities in the Company or any member of the SMA Group or commitment whatsoever. Securities may not be offered or sold in the United States of America absent registration or an exemption from registration under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

This press release may contain future-oriented statements. Future-oriented statements are statements which do not describe facts of the past. They also include statements about our assumptions and expectations. These statements are based on plans, estimations and forecasts which the Managing Board of SMA Solar Technology AG (SMA or company) has available at this time. Future-oriented statements are therefore only valid on the day on which they are made. Future-oriented statements by nature contain risks and elements of uncertainty. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors can lead to considerable differences between the actual results, the financial position, the development or the performance of the corporation and the estimates given here. These factors include those which SMA has discussed in published reports. These reports are available at www.SMA.de. The company accepts no obligation whatsoever to update these future-oriented statements or to adjust them to future events or developments.