Epcos has sold its Tantalum Capacitor Business Unit to the US capacitor manufacturer Kemet. The selling price is EUR 86.5 million. EUR 78.5 million will be paid at closing and the remaining EUR 8 million when the Manufacturing and Supply Agreement expires. The sale includes the Epcos plants in Évora, Portugal, and parts of the activities in Heidenheim, Germany, where conventional tantalum manganese oxide and tantalum polymer capacitors are manufactured.

While Kemet will take on the employees of the Évora plant, it does not plan to continue manufacturing tantalum capacitors in Heidenheim. Kemet also intends to take on Epcos employees in development, marketing and sales of tantalum capacitors. In order to provide a continued supply of product to customers during the transition, a Manufacturing and Supply Agreement was also agreed to where Epcos will continue to produce product in Heidenheim and sell to Kemet until later in 2006. At that time the equipment will be sold to Kemet.