EANS-News: Wacker Chemie AG / Wacker is Against Trade Duties on Chinese Solar Modules

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Company Information

Munich (euro adhoc) - May 29, 2012 - Wacker Chemie AG has taken a
firm stand against efforts to impose trade duties on Chinese-made
solar modules in the European Union. The Munich-based chemical
company's CEO, Rudolf Staudigl, issued a statement to that effect
today. "We are convinced that protectionist measures will not help
the domestic solar industry, but rather impair the photovoltaic
technology's future prospects", Staudigl said. The US Department of
Commerce decided to impose tariffs of up to 250 percent on
Chinese-made solar modules imported into the US. Some market
participants are in favor of a similar move in the European Union,
too.

Experience would show, however, that trade barriers were not a
suitable way of ensuring open and fair competition among the market's
participants, the CEO emphasized. Differences of opinion about
balanced competitive conditions could only be resolved through
political dialogue. Imposing sanctions, in contrast, would only
inhibit competition. They could provoke a trade war, which would end
up being a disadvantage for every company in the solar industry.

At the same time, Staudigl stressed that the lion's share of value
added is always created by local businesses when setting up solar
systems - regardless of where the solar modules are manufactured.
Moreover, additional cost burdens from tariffs for imported
photovoltaic modules would hold back the competiveness of solar power
within the energy mix, impairing the switchover to renewable energy
sources in Germany, Staudigl said.

Further inquiry note:
Christof Bachmair
Corporate Communications
Tel.: +49 (0)89 6279 1830
E-Mail: christof.bachmair@wacker.com

end of announcement euro adhoc
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company: Wacker Chemie AG
Hanns-Seidel-Platz 4
D-81737 München
phone: +49 (0) 89 6279 01
FAX: +49 (0) 89 6279 1770
mail: info@wacker.com
WWW: http://www.wacker.com
sector: Chemicals
ISIN: DE000WCH8881
indexes: MDAX, CDAX, Prime All Share
stockmarkets: free trade: Hannover, München, Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart,
regulated dealing: Berlin, regulated dealing/prime standard:
Frankfurt
language: English