SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG: Preliminary Figures Confirm Latest Forecast


SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG / Preliminary Results
Release of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EquityStory AG.
The issuer / publisher is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

- Sales Revenue of approx. €14.5 million slightly up (1 percent) over     previous year

- Success in all three core markets: leisure, industry, defense: 4,795     EFOY systems sold

- Manufacturing costs again significantly reduced
Brunnthal, January 26, 2009 – SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG, technology and market leader for mobile and off-grid power solutions based on fuel cell technologies, today has published preliminary unaudited figures for fiscal year 2008. As recently announced, the Company slightly increased its total revenues to €14.5 million (2007: €14.35 million), in spite of very difficult market conditions in its main market (leisure).
SFC further deepened penetration of the leisure and industry markets, with a total of 4,795 EFOY systems sold in 2008. Currently, 37 European motor home manufacturers include the EFOY fuel cell as standard or optional equipment in their product lines. In the industry market SFC achieved revenue growth of approximately 44% in 2008 in the areas of environmental monitoring, security and traffic technologies. However, as already announced, follow-up orders for Power Manager that failed to materialize and postponed orders for portable fuel cells and JDAs led to a slight decrease in revenues in the defense area (9% down from 2007). By winning the Wearable Power Prize of the U.S. Department of Defense (1st and 3rd place), SFC impressively demonstrated that it provides the world’s leading technology for alternative portable power generation in the defense area. Given this fact, the company sees itself in an excellent position for medium- and long-term growth in this market.

Preliminary EBIT for 2008 is between minus €4.5 million and minus €5.0 million (2007: minus €4.7 million), while preliminary after-tax income for 2008 is between minus €2.4 million and minus €2.9 million (2007: minus €2.5 million). Through careful spending and professional working capital management, SFC exceeded cash flow and working capital goals, so that cash on hand at December 31, 2008 amounted to approximately €45.6 million.
Growth in the industry and defense markets remains SFC’s goal for the fiscal year 2009. For the leisure market, the limited visibility and current environment do not allow a forecast at this point.
The audited financial statements will be published on March 24, 2009.
About SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG

SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG (www.sfc.com) is market leader in fuel cell technologies for mobile and off-grid power applications serving the leisure, industrial and defense markets. As one of Germany’s technology pioneers, SFC has won numerous innovation awards. SFC has alliances with leading companies in a wide range of industries. Unlike most other fuel cell manufacturers, who are in the research and development phase or run subsidized demonstration projects, SFC has shipped more than 11,000 fully commercial products to industrial and private end users for more than four years, and has created a convenient fuel cartridge supply infrastructure. SFC is DIN ISO 9001:2000 certified. SFC is based in Brunnthal, Germany, and has a U.S. sales and technical service office in Atlanta.


SFC Investor Relations: Barbara v. Frankenberg, Investor Relations, SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG, Eugen-Sänger-Ring 4, D-85649 Brunnthal, Tel. +49 89 673 592 378, Fax. +49 89 673 592 369, Email: barbara.frankenberg@sfc.com, Web: www.sfc.com


26.01.2009  Financial News transmitted by DGAP

 
Language:     English
Issuer:       SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG
              Eugen-Saenger-Ring 4
              85649 Brunnthal
              Deutschland
Phone:        +49 (89) 673 592 - 100
Fax:          +49 (89) 673 592 - 169
E-mail:       info@sfc.com
Internet:     www.sfc.com
ISIN:         DE0007568578
WKN:          756857
Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, München, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart  
End of News DGAP News-Service