Meyer Burger sells Solar Systems unit to former board member

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Meyer Burger Technology AG intends to close its production site in Thun, Switzerland in the course of this year. In this context, the technology group announced the sale of its Solar Systems division to Partick Hofer-Noser. The division, with 32 employees will be transferred to a newly founded company with the name 3S Solar Plus AG and this will then be sold to the former CTO of Meyer Burger, the company said. With the “Mega Slate” products for rooftop and façade systems, the division will especially cover the Swiss photovoltaic market.

Various strategic options were tested prior to the sale to Hofer-Noser, Meyer Burger said. The sale will result in a loss in the low single-digit million range for Meyer Burger, including a goodwill recycling of around 1 million CHF. As for the purchase price, no information was provided by either party. The contract is still under the “standard closing conditions”, although Meyer Burger hopes that the transaction will be finalized by the end of the first half of this year.

Patrick Hofer-Noser has been working in the solar industry for many years. In 2001, he was a founding member and later a member of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of 3S Industries AG. This  company merged with Meyer Burger in 2010, and Hofer-Noser was then named Chief Technology Officer and member of the management of the Swiss PV equipment manufacturer. From April 2012 to April 2017, he had the role of Head of Energy Systems and then served as Policy Liaison Officer for Meyer Burger, until his retirement from Meyer Burger in December 2017.

At the end of 2017, Meyer Burger announced the closure of its production site in Thun. It is part of a cost efficiency program launched by the Swiss photovoltaic equipment manufacturer. Meyer Burger assumes that around 160 jobs in production, logistics, purchasing and planning at the Swiss headquarters could be eliminated, with around 100 jobs definitively canceled, and 60 still depending on strategic alternatives, according to the plan revealed by the company in December.

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