Transatlantic Ticker - German American Company News

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• Fraunhofer USA plans new Sustainable Energy Center
  (Press Release)
  
  Fraunhofer USA plans the start-up and operations of a new research center, the Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems. The new facility will be located in the New England area and will perform applied research dedicated to accelerate the commercialization of sustainable energy technologies.

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• German company is moving its headquarters to Florida
  (Jacksonville Business Journal)
  
  BodyTel Scientific Inc., a German-American company that specializes in monitoring systems for chronic diseases, is moving its headquarters to Jacksonville from Bad Wildungen, Germany. BodyTel will bring 13 full-time jobs to the city paying an average of more than $72,000, more than double the statewide average.

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• RWE acquires stake in U.S. LNG business
  (Energy Current)
  
  Germany-based RWE Group will acquire a 50 percent stake in the Texas-based liquefied natural gas (LNG) business Excelerate Energy for approximately US$ 500 million. The move will strengthen the cooperation between the Essen-based utility and Excelerate and will help RWE to develop its LNG business. The two companies have been cooperating on a number of joint projects since 2006.

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• Bayer AG to acquire Possis Medical
  (Star Tribune)
  
  Possis Medical Inc. said it has agreed to be acquired by German health care giant Bayer AG for $361 million in cash. Possis Chief Executive Robert Dutcher said the businesses of Possis and Medrad Inc., the Bayer subsidiary that  Possis will join, are highly complementary. "The proposed deal will capitalize on both companies' strengths," he said.

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• German software maker Facton moves to Auburn Hills
  (Oakland Business Review)
  
  Facton, based in Potsdam, Germany, recently opened nearly 4,000 square feet of office space near in Auburn Hills, MI. The company designs software that helps businesses reduce product development costs. Facton chose Michigan because of its existing supply base, said Martin Nehls, CEO for the North American headquarters. The $1 million venture is expected to create a total of 93 jobs, according to state officials.

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• WestLB to cut 25 percent of its staff
  (Herald Tribune)
  
  WestLB said it will cut about 25 percent of its work force as its owners agreed to provide $7.2 billion to bail out the German bank, which is reeling from trading and subprime-related losses. The owners, including the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and two regional savings bank associations, agreed to cover WestLB's potential losses, related to risky assets, the lender said in a statement. The bank will shift securities into a new off-balance-sheet unit and cut as many as 1,500 of its 5,900 staff to save about €300 million a year by 2010.

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• Viega increased annual sales to US$ 250 mln
  (The Wichita Eagle)
  
  Viega, a family-owned German company, has grown from about $6 million in annual sales to more than $250 million since Dan Schmierer joined the company as the first president of Viega North America -- which has now become Viega LLC -- only a few years ago. The manufacturer of plumbing and heating technology products has been in America since 1999 and established its headquarter in Wichita in 2006.

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• SAP says holds 95% of Business Objects
  (Reuters)
  
  SAP AG said it had acquired 95.35 percent of Franco-American software maker Business Objects by the end of a second offer period. The world's largest maker of business software plans to proceed with a squeeze-out of remaining minority shareholders and delist Business Objects, it said in a statement.

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• Deutsche Bank purchases U.S. hedge fund administrator
  (Bloomberg)
  
  Deutsche Bank AG purchased U.S. hedge-fund administrator HedgeWorks LLC, adding clients with $10 billion in assets. HedgeWorks provides administrative services to more than 100 hedge funds, Frankfurt-based Deutsche Bank said in an e-mailed statement. HedgeWorks, based in Carlsbad, California, has about 30 employees.