Business: CeMAT 2008: Germany is top exporter of intralogistics technologies

Berlin (ANTARA News/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - Germany is one of the world's top investment locations and the largest exporter of intralogistics technologies. The leading intralogistics trade fair CeMAT 2008 is taking place in Hannover, Germany from May 27-May 31. It will feature 1,100 exhibitors from all over the world. Visitors will be able to learn about investment possibilities and industry developments in the host country.

Intralogistics describes the internal flow of materials between different logistics nodes in a company. Germany is Europe's largest intralogistics market and the third largest worldwide. According to the industry association VDMA, German intralogistics sales for 2007 approached EUR20 billion, an increase of 17% over the previous year. Germany is also the world's largest exporter of intralogistics technologies. In 2006, its exports approached EUR10 billion, 20% more than the
previous year and a total nearly twice as great as the second-place country.

The increasing need to move equipment and goods faster in a globalized economy is forcing businesses to seek solutions from intralogistics companies, creating demand for new market entrants. For example, the largest single-country export client of German intralogistics companies is the United States with estimated sales of over EUR1 billion in 2007.

Emerging markets also play a growing role in the German intralogistics sector. Sales to China jumped to an estimated EUR475 million in 2007, an increase of over 30% compared with 2005. Exports to Russia exceeded an estimated EUR500 million in 2007, an increase of 40% over 2005. In total, the 27-member EU is the largest market for intralogistics services from Germany.

Furthermore, companies choose Germany because of its educated workforce. Over 90% of German employees in the intralogistics sector, a workforce that approaches 100,000 individuals, have either a professional qualification or a university degree.

Invest in Germany is the inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. It provides investors with comprehensive support from site selection to the implementation of investment decisions. Invest in Germany can be found in the "Logistics Network" booth A16 in hall 12.

Invest in Germany GmbH
Headquarters:
Friedrichstasse 60,
10117 Berlin,
Germany,
T: +49-30-200-099-0,
F: +49-30-200-099-111,
office@invest-in-germany.com,
http://www.invest-in-germany.com;
Media Contact:
Eva Henkel,
T: +49-30-200-099-123,
F: +49-30-200-099-111,
henkel@invest-in-germany.com
SOURCE: Invest in Germany

Technology: SID Display Week 2008: Growing markets meet next-generation tech

Berlin, (ANTARA News/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - Germany is a leading European market for flat panel displays. In 2007, nearly 4.5 million units of liquid crystal display (LCD) and plasma television sets were sold in Germany.

Germany's large consumer market plus the country's strong R&D landscape and the presence of next-generation companies are attracting investors from all points on the value chain to Germany. Companies can learn about potential investment opportunities in Germany at the SID Display Week in Los Angeles, California, May 18-23, 2008.

Market volume in Germany for flat panel display (FPD) TVs has grown by an average annual rate of 167 per cent over the last five years. Germany's dense network of suppliers for materials, components, and equipment enables new entrants to be close to business partners as well as customers. Furthermore Germany's stellar infrastructure allows for products to move rapidly throughout the country and for firms to use Germany as a distribution point to any location worldwide.

The German market is also attracting flat panel display investors because it is a platform where a growing market can interact with market leaders engaging in next-generation research. For example, in printed electronics and organic semiconductor innovation, Germany is a center for groundbreaking industrial developments.

In 2007, the British company Plastic Logic Ltd. chose the eastern German city of Dresden as its location for volume production of flexible displays that will allow end-users to read books or newspapers in a hand-held and electric form.

This investment came soon after the Scottish firm Micro Emissive Displays (MED) announced that it would be opening a production location in Dresden to assemble its trademarked polymer organic-light-emitting-diode (P-OLED) eyescreen product.

The presence of world-renowned research institutes, such as the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems (IPMS), fast approval procedures, and the proximity to business partners were major reasons that the two companies chose Dresden and Germany.

These investments show that at all points on the supply chain companies can find success in Germany. Furthermore the availability of government incentives, that sometimes cover up to 50 per cent of investment costs, makes Germany an even more promising investment location.

Invest in Germany is the inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. It provides investors with comprehensive support from site selection to the implementation of investment decisions.

Media Contact: Eva Henkel, T. +49-30-200-099-173,
F. +49-30-200-099-111, henkel@invest-in-germany.com

SOURCE: Invest in Germany
CONTACT: Eva Henkel, +49-30-200-099-173,
Fax: +49-30-200-099-111, henkel@invest-in-germany.com

Automotive: Germany fertile ground for automotive battery manufacturers

Berlin (ANTARA News/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - Automotive batteries is one of the major topics in the global auto industry. This is because energy storage is crucial in developing low emission powertrains using hybrid or fully electric technologies.

According to the consultancy Advanced Auto Batteries, global growth in automotive batteries has increased more than ten-fold over the last six years and the global market will likely approach US$1.4 billion by 2010 and $2 billion by 2013. Growth in hybrids is especially strong in Germany, where registrations increased 44 per cent in 2007. Business opportunities in Germany will be presented at the Advanced Automotive Battery and Ultracapacitator Conference, AABC 2008, May 14-16th in Tampa, Florida, USA.

Major German automakers are working to develop new battery-powered drivetrains for which a reliable and long-lasting means of storing energy is essential. German OEMs are scheduled to release nine initial hybrid model series by 2010. These manufacturers encompass major players such as Daimler, BMW, Porsche, Audi, Volkswagen, and Opel.

Daimler holds 25 patents in lithium-ion battery technologies and is planning to integrate such batteries into its hybrid S-class Mercedes models by 2009. The supplier Continental is serving as Daimler's system integrator and battery supplier.

Other industry leaders such as BASF, Bosch, Evonik, and Volkswagen have joined forces under the "Lithium Ion Battery LIB 2015" innovation alliance.

They are investing EUR360 million in coming years in research and development of lithium-ion batteries. The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is contributing EUR60 million toward this effort, as part of the federal government's "high-tech strategy." Over a ten-year period, the federal government will provide EUR1.1 billion to applied research on automotive electronics, lithium-ion batteries, lightweight construction, and other automotive applications.

The German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) has recently launched a joint initiative among all the participating branches of industry, research institutes, and the BMBF to develop industry standards and a common base for future research in alternative storage systems. Opportunities exist for foreign investors to establish their own facilities in Germany, partner with German OEMs or suppliers, and apply for research funding.

Invest in Germany is the inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. It provides investors with comprehensive support from site selection to the implementation of investment decisions. Invest in Germany can be found at stand 44 during the AABC 2008.

Invest in Germany GmbH Headquarters: Friedrichstasse 60 10117 berlin Germany T: +49-30-200-099-0 F: +49-30-200-099-111 office@invest-in-germany.com
http://www.invest-in-germany.com
Media Contact Eva Henkel T: +49-30-200-099-123 F: +49-30-200-099-111 henkel@invest-in-germany.com
SOURCE: Invest in Germany
CONTACT: Invest in Germany Headquarters, +49-30-200-099-0,
Fax: +49-30-200-099-111, office@invest-in-germany.com,
or Media, Eva Henkel of Invest in Germany,
+49-30-200-099-123, +49-30-200-099-111,
henkel@invest-in-germany.com
Web Site: http://www.invest-in-germany.com

COPYRIGHT © 2008

Photon Expo 2008: Germany`s PV industry secPhoton Expo 2008: Germany`s PV industry securing its positionuring its position

Munich, (ANTARA News/PRNewswire-AsiaNet) - By 2010 revenues from production of PV products will have nearly doubled in Germany and investment volumes will have increased by 67 per cent.

These are the assessments, based on surveys with 345 companies, of the research institutes Ifo in Munich and EuPD in Bonn.

The Photovoltaic Technology Show 2008 (April 2-4, 2008) is one of the world's leading PV trade fairs and Invest in Germany will be there to present Germany's advantages as a location for PV investment.

Germany is the world's largest PV market and its projected growth will secure this distinction. The organization PHOTON Consulting expects that by 2010 Germany will have over 6.5 Gigawatts (GW) of installed PV capacity, double the amount of any European competitor and the largest worldwide. Germany's increasing potential combined with growing worldwide demand means there are numerous possibilities for new entrants into the German market.

The principal market driver in Germany is the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG in German) that establishes a "feed-in" tariff on power generated from renewable sources. This law is especially favorable to PV energy. Utility companies must purchase energy generated from PV facilities at a rate that is sometimes twice the standard rate paid by private households. This legislation is an incentive for property owners to purchase solar panels and creates domestic demand for PV products in Germany.

Furthermore, the EEG does not have a cap; there is no set limit to the amount of electricity that could be produced from PV sources and therefore benefit from the "feed-in" tariff. PV products also have growing export potential as interest in PV increases in other countries. The IFO and EuPD study predicts that sales coming from exports will increase from a current 37 per cent to 50 per cent by 2010.

Growing sales, quick and efficient approval processes, proximity to suppliers and R&D expertise, a qualified workforce, and government incentives are all reasons that PV companies, such as First Solar, Arise Technologies, Nanosolar, and many others are succeeding in Germany.

Invest in Germany is the inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. It provides investors with comprehensive support from site selection to the implementation of investment decisions. It can be found in hall C1 booth J21 at Photon Expo 2008.

Media Contact: Eva Henkel Invest in Germany Phone:
+49-30-200099-173 Fax: +49-30-200099-111 Email:
henkel@invest-in-germany.com
www.invest-in-germany.com

SOURCE: Invest in Germany
CONTACT: Eva Henkel of Invest in Germany, +49-30-200099-173,
+49-30-200099-111 (Fax), henkel@invest-in-germany.com
Website: http://www.invest-in-germany.com

COPYRIGHT © 2008