LDK Solar Co., Ltd,
a leading manufacturer of solar wafers, awarded a US$220 million contract to
Applied Materials, Inc. to provide precision wafering systems to support its
next phase of production expansion. The systems are scheduled to begin shipping
to LDK Solar's facility in Xinyu, PRC, in early 2009, and will support LDK Solar's
previously announced plans to expand to 3.2GW annualized wafer capacity in 2010.
"We believe that Applied's state-of-the-art wafering systems, including
its HCT wire saws and squarers, are the best choice to help us scale up
capacity to meet the expanding global demand for wafers," stated Mr.
Xiaofeng Peng, Chairman and CEO of LDK Solar. "We have used HCT wire saws
since the beginning of our manufacturing operations in 2006, and they have
continued to demonstrate the performance necessary to deliver high-quality,
cost-effective wafers to our customers."
"We are very pleased to be selected by LDK Solar for this milestone
agreement -- the largest contract ever awarded for wafering systems," said
Stefan Schneeberger, vice president and general manager of Applied's
Precision Wafer Systems division. "LDK Solar is known for its advanced
wafer production capability and Applied Materials is committed to providing
LDK Solar with the leading-edge technology to meet its most critical
performance requirements."