Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG / Key word(s):
Miscellaneous
17.05.2011 / 11:18
Berlin, 17.05.2011. Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG (ISIN
DE0005659700), a specialist for isotope applications in medicine, science
and industry, has received important help from a US district court ruling
in Virginia in its attempt to further modernize the production facilities
in Braunschweig. The Court found Best Medical International and Best
Vascular (jointly, Best) to be in default of a Settlement Agreement which
required Best to decommission and remove an unused production line located
at the premises of Eckert & Ziegler Nuclitec GmbH. Nuclitec now plans to
permanently dispose of the defunct and through its use contaminated
production line itself in accordance with German regulations, and is
presently awaiting approval of its plan for such disposal from German
regulators.
Background: In 2005, Best entered into an Amended and Restated Purchase
Agreement (APA) with Novoste Corporation, an Atlanta, Georgia-based medical
device manufacturer that had used Nuclitec's facility in Braunschweig for
the production of radioactive components. Pursuant to the APA, Best agreed
to decommission and remove a production line used to manufacture Sr-90
sources, in return for a payment by Novoste of an undisclosed sum of money
to Best. Best failed to honor its contractual obligation to decommission
and remove the equipment, and Nuclitec, at this time named QSA GmbH, sued
Best in the US District Court in Virginia to enforce this obligation. The
QSA GmbH vs. Best litigation was resolved by a Settlement Agreement under
which Best again was required to decontaminate and decommission the
production line by April 2009.
However, Best failed to meet its obligations under the Settlement
Agreement, and Nuclitec notified Best that it would perform the
decommissioning activities as authorized by the Settlement Agreement. Best
sued Nuclitec to prevent it from removing the equipment from its facility,
claiming that Best had, in essence, unlimited time within which to remove
the production line. The Court ruled against Best on all of its claims, and
found that Best was in default under the Settlement Agreement by failing to
decommission and remove the production line within the time limits set
forth in the Settlement Agreement.
Eckert & Ziegler Nuclitec's Managing Director, Frank Yeager, commented, 'We
are very pleased with the Court's decision. We hope that this now useless
equipment can be removed from our facility, so that our modernization
efforts can continue, and the space can be used productively for the first
time in more than 6 years. The Court's decision obligates Best to pay
Nuclitec's costs once the clean-up is completed, and we hope that Best will
do so without engaging in yet another round of costly litigation.'
If you have any questions please contact:
Eckert & Ziegler AG, Karolin Riehle, Investor Relations
Robert-Rössle-Str. 10, 13125 Berlin
Tel.: +49 (0) 30 / 94 10 84-138, karolin.riehle@ezag.de, www.ezag.com
End of Corporate News
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Language: English
Company: Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG
Robert-Rössle-Str.10
13125 Berlin
Deutschland
Phone: 49 30 941084-138
Fax: 49 30 941084-112
E-mail: karolin.riehle@ezag.de
Internet: www.ezag.de
ISIN: DE0005659700
WKN: 565970
Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard), Stuttgart;
Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, München
End of News DGAP News-Service
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