SRT Sartorius AG

The German-based technology group Sartorius (FWB:SRT) signed a new supply agreement with the U.S. company Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. This agreement governs the non-exclusive reciprocal supply of products for biopharmaceutical process applications between Sartorius and an affiliate of Thermo Fischer Scientific, TC Tech Corp. Specifically, the agreement stipulates that TC Tech will supply Sartorius with disposable process containers up to the end of 2007 and with disposable process containers assembled with Sartorius filter capsules up to 2012. In turn, Sartorius will supply TC Tech with filter units for a further five years. For several years, Sartorius and TC Tech have already been business partners in the area of disposables for biopharmaceutical applications. On the part of both companies, however, merger and acquisition activities have yielded changes in the ownership structure and/or in the product array, respectively, which required a new contractual arrangement: While TC Tech was acquired last year by Fisher Scientific, Sartorius is currently taking over the controlling stake in Stedim Biosystems S.A., the market leader in the field of disposable containers. �The main target of this agreement is to optimally satisfy customer needs and to enable a continued product supply for their validated process applications,� said Reinhard Vogt, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing of the Biotechnology Division at Sartorius, in commenting on this agreement. This press release contains statements about the future development of the Sartorius Group. We cannot guarantee that the content of these statements will actually apply because these statements are based upon assumptions and estimates that harbor certain risks and uncertainties. This announcement is made for information purposes, only. It does not constitute an offer to purchase nor an invitation to make an offer to sell shares in Stedim Biosystems S.A. The tender offer to acquire the shares in Stedim described in this announcement has not started yet. An offer to buy or an invitation to make an offer to sell will exclusively be based on a draft tender offer and the related documentation to be filed with the Autorit� des March�s Financiers (AMF). A profile of Sartorius The Sartorius Group is an internationally leading laboratory and process technology provider covering the segments of biotechnology and mechatronics. In 2006 the technology group earned sales revenue of 521.1 million euros. The Goettingen-based company founded in 1870 currently employs approximately 3,900 persons. Its biotechnology segment focuses on filtration and separation products as well as fermenters and bioreactors. For the mechatronics segment in particular, the company manufactures equipment and systems featuring weighing, measurement and automation technology for laboratory and industrial applications, as well as hydrodynamic bearings. Key Sartorius customers are from the pharmaceutical, chemical and food and beverage industries and from numerous research and educational institutes of the public sector. Sartorius has its own production facilities in Europe, Asia and America as well as sales subsidiaries and local commercial agencies in more than 110 countries.