DGAP-News: EnviTec Biogas AG / Key word(s): AGM/EGM EnviTec Biogas AG: Annual General Meeting approves special dividend of EUR 1.00 27.06.2013 / 17:05 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Corporate News EnviTec Biogas AG: Annual General Meeting approves special dividend of EUR 1.00 Lohne, 27 June 2013 - At today's Annual General Meeting, a majority of 99.99 per cent of the shareholders of EnviTec Biogas AG approved the profit appropriation proposal, which means that a special dividend of EUR 1.00 per eligible share will be paid to the shareholders. Approximately 85 per cent of the share capital was represented at this year's Annual General Meeting. All proposals made by the management for the items on the agenda were approved by a large majority of the shareholders. The 2013 AGM was clearly influenced by the political uncertainty surrounding the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG), which represents a major challenge for the biogas sector as a whole. Particularly in this environment, the early internationalisation of the company and the progress made in expanding the Own Plant Operation segment help to stabilise EnviTec's earnings. 'Over the past years, we have gained a leading position in the biogas market. Our strategic objective therefore is to consolidate and to expand our good market position as an integrated supplier and operator of biogas plants,' said CEO Olaf von Lehmden in his speech to summarise the company's strategy. Thanks to this positioning, EnviTec has been able to partly offset the negative trend in the demand for biogas plants in Germany. In 2012, the Group's sales revenues amounted to EUR 190.5 million, compared to EUR 243.9 million in the previous year. EnviTec's international sales increased by 40.6 per cent to EUR 88.7 million in 2012. It was the first time that the company's revenues in a foreign market (Italy) were higher than in Germany. EnviTec believes that the political framework for biogas plants has also improved in the still young French and British markets. Germany: Politicians causing uncertainty in the biogas sector The legal framework is of great importance for the manufacturers and operators of biogas plants. The German biogas sector is currently being adversely affected by the unsteady political decisions taken in the context of the German Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG). Due to the resulting uncertainty - both among biogas companies and their customers - demand for biogas plants has dropped sharply. As a result, EnviTec was forced to implement significant structural and personnel adjustments in the Plant Construction segment at the beginning of the year. The internal restructuring process will continue in the coming months. Growth potential for services, own plant operation and biomethane marketing By contrast, the Service segment offers huge growth potential. The Own Plant Operation segment also benefits from strong growth opportunities and has been an integral element of the company's strategy for many years thanks to its steady revenues and attractive margins. Further potential is also projected for the youngest business segment, EnviTec Energy, which markets biomethane that is produced in the company's own plants or in customers' plants and is used in combined-heat-and-power plants for the efficient generation of electricity and green heat. The EnviTec share: Change to the Entry Standard With a view to cutting costs, the Executive Board and the Supervisory Board decided, at the end of last year, to initiate the share's change from the Prime Standard to the Entry Standard of the Open Market. 'The personnel, organisational and financial effort associated with the listing in the Prime Standard is no longer acceptable. The Entry Standard is also a quality segment characterised by high transparency. Moreover, the Designated Sponsor will continue to regularly quote buying and selling prices in order to support liquidity, which means that the share will remain fully tradable,' said CFO Jörg Fischer. The change to the Entry Standard is expected to take place on 28 August 2013, so that the EnviTec share will first be traded in the Entry Standard on 29 August. Outlook: Forecast confirmed At the end of its report, the Executive Board confirmed the forecast for the full year 2013. While a difficult year is projected for the Plant Construction segment due to the persisting political uncertainty in Germany and the new legal framework in Italy, the anticipated decline in sales is expected to be offset partly by a positive trend in the other segments. Total Group sales are expected to come in between EUR 140 and 160 million in the current fiscal year. In spite of the charges resulting from the restructuring and the sharp drop in sales revenues in the Plant Construction segment, the Executive Board projects a positive operating result. CEO Olaf von Lehmden remains upbeat about the future: 'The challenging market environment will not deter us from pushing ahead the expansion of our international activities and of our three growth segments - Energy, Own Plant Operation and Service. Thanks to our forward-looking restructuring measures we are fit for the future and can respond flexibly to new market requirements.' About EnviTec Biogas AG EnviTec Biogas AG covers the entire value chain for the production of biogas: including the planning and turnkey construction of biogas plants as well as their commissioning. The company takes charge of biological and technical services on demand and also offers full plant and operational management. In addition, EnviTec also operates its own biogas plants. In 2011 EnviTec Biogas established EnviTec Energy GmbH & Co. KG and its 100% subsidiary EnviTec Stromkontor GmbH & Co. KG, expanding its business operations into the direct marketing of upgraded biomethane as well as the marketing of green electricity and balancing energy. Today, EnviTec Biogas AG is represented in 20 countries throughout Europe, as well as in India and the USA. In 2012 EnviTec generated revenues of EUR 190.5 million and an EBIT of EUR 1.3 million. The EnviTec Group currently has 362 employees. EnviTec has been listed on the Prime Standard segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since July 2007. Contact: Katrin Selzer EnviTec Biogas AG Tel: +49 25 74 88 88 - 810 E-Mail: [email protected] End of Corporate News --------------------------------------------------------------------- 27.06.2013 Dissemination of a Corporate News, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EQS Group AG. The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. DGAP's Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases. Media archive at www.dgap-medientreff.de and www.dgap.de --------------------------------------------------------------------- Language: English Company: EnviTec Biogas AG Industriering 10a 49393 Lohne Germany Phone: +49 (0) 44 42 - 80 65 0 Fax: +49 (0) 44 42 - 80 65 103 E-mail: [email protected] Internet: www.envitec-biogas.de ISIN: DE000A0MVLS8 WKN: A0MVLS Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard); Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Hannover, München, Stuttgart End of News DGAP News-Service --------------------------------------------------------------------- 218565 27.06.2013