Demonstrating its leadership in 300 mm process equipment, the SEZ Group (SWX: SEZN) announced that it has received multiple orders from three customers for its 300 mm Spin-Processing equipment. The orders, received in January of this year, are valued at nearly CHF 22 million. The tools are scheduled for delivery in the second and third quarters of this year to semiconductor wafer manufacturers located in Europe and Taiwan.

SEZ's 300 mm Spin-Processors perform a variety of wafer surface preparation applications on both the frontside and backside of wafers. Applications include backside film removal prior to advanced lithography operations and silicon stress relief for die strength enhancement in thinning operations.

Confirmation of expectations for the business year 2000
For the period ending November 30, 2000 SEZ posted a book to bill ratio of 1.43. The company's order backlog stood at CHF 126 million, up from CHF 69 million for the first eleven months of 1999. SEZ's order intake remained strong at CHF 249 million versus CHF 127 million for the same period of time the previous year. Net sales from January to November of 2000 totaled CHF 174 million in comparison to CHF 57 million in the same period of 1999.

SEZ remains confident that it will meet its expectations for business year 2000 of CHF 190 million, as updated in October 2000. The expected EBIT-margin is around 23 percent and the net profit margin is around 16 percent. Additionally, the company expects to meet its 2001 forecast of CHF 260 million.

SEZ indicated that it will release its key figures from 2000 on March 14, 2001. The presentation of financial results will take place on April 18, 2001 and the annual shareholders meeting will be held on May 10, 2001.

The SEZ Group has succeeded in establishing its unrivalled spin process technology as a world industry standard. Pioneered by the Group, this wet-etching process is used for wafer surface preparation in the production of microchips. For further information please visit the SEZ website www.sez.com.

Villach/Zurich, 24 January 2001