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MEMC announced its acquisition of Solaicx on May 24, 2010, describing the deal as worth at least $76 million. That headline combined $66 million in cash with approximately $10 million tied to recent investments by Solaicx securityholders. The agreement also allowed up to $27.6 million in additional earnout consideration if Solaicx met performance targets. MEMC completed the acquisition on July 1, 2010.
What did MEMC pay for Solaicx?
The often-quoted $76 million was the minimum announced value, not a statement that MEMC paid $76 million in cash at closing. MEMC’s May 24, 2010 announcement described $66 million in cash plus approximately $10 million associated with recent investments by existing Solaicx securityholders. The approximately $10 million was in addition to the $66 million initial cash payment, bringing the announced minimum to at least $76 million. MEMC’s announcement also provided for up to $27.6 million in further consideration based on performance targets for 2010 and 2011.
| Figure | What it represents |
|---|---|
| $66 million | Cash paid to Solaicx securityholders at closing, according to MEMC’s 2010 announcement and closing release. |
| Approximately $10 million | Additional consideration associated with recent investments by existing Solaicx securityholders, as described in MEMC’s 2010 announcement and closing release. |
| At least $76 million | The announced minimum headline value: $66 million plus approximately $10 million. |
| Up to $27.6 million | Potential earnout consideration tied to 2010–2011 performance targets; it was contingent, not part of the $66 million cash paid at closing. |
Why did a later filing report a $101.7 million purchase price?
MEMC’s subsequent GAAP accounting reported a $101.7 million purchase price, made up of $75.7 million in cash and $26.0 million in estimated contingent consideration. That accounting total reflects estimated contingent consideration and is not the same measure as the initial announcement’s minimum headline value or the $66 million cash payment at closing. The differing totals reflect different points in the transaction and different accounting measures, rather than a contradiction in the announced cash figure. MEMC’s 2010 annual report gives the later purchase-price accounting.
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Solaicx’s principal asset was proprietary continuous crystal growth technology. It was used to produce monocrystalline silicon wafers for photovoltaic solar-cell manufacturers, with the aim of making the wafers at lower cost while supporting high-efficiency cells. MEMC said the acquisition would add Solaicx’s process and equipment to MEMC’s scale and operations, helping lower costs, improve efficiency, expand the solar business, and advance the industry’s goal of grid parity—where solar electricity costs are competitive with electricity from the grid.
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At the time of the announcement, Solaicx had approximately 80 employees, a large-scale production facility in Portland, Oregon, and headquarters in Santa Clara, California. Its specialized wafer technology and manufacturing capability complemented MEMC’s existing polysilicon, crystal, sales, and customer-support operations; the acquisition was intended to extend MEMC further into solar materials and manufacturing.
When did MEMC complete the acquisition?
MEMC completed the purchase on July 1, 2010, and Solaicx became a wholly owned subsidiary. In its closing announcement the next day, MEMC said the deal brought it “talented people and cost-effective, proprietary process and equipment” that expanded its served market in the solar industry. The closing Form 8-K confirms the completion date and transaction details.
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- Wafer Pattern May Vary from the Product Images. Great to be used as gift, display object, exhibition, educating demonstration, testing, decoration or your collection
- Beautiful microchip pattern structure made by the advanced copper technology
- 90~130nm minimum microchip feature Copper Characterization with TEOS or Black Diamond Low-k ILD on the single crystal silicon wafer
- The original value of un-polished wafer is above $500
- No guarantee for research and other applications
What MEMC expected the deal to achieve
MEMC presented the purchase as a way to combine Solaicx’s process and equipment with MEMC’s scale, aiming to reduce manufacturing costs, improve efficiency, and broaden its solar market. Solaicx CEO David Ranhoff said the combination of its technology with MEMC’s footprint and scale would help customers reduce the cost of solar electricity. MEMC executive Ken Hannah also cited a forecast that the monocrystalline silicon market would grow at about 50 percent annually over the following three years. That was a contemporaneous management forecast in May 2010, not evidence that the market later grew at that rate.
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