HELIOS awarded two hospital privatization projects in Germany

HELIOS Kliniken Group, a business segment of Fresenius SE, has strengthened its presence in the German hospital market. The company has agreed to acquire three hospitals in the Mansfeld-Südharz county of Saxony-Anhalt and two in the Northeim county of Lower Saxony. Combined sales of the five hospitals were approx. € 136 million in 2007.

The three acute care hospitals in Saxony-Anhalt are part of Krankenhaus-Holding GmbH Mansfeld-Südharz. They have a total capacity of 834 beds, of which 327 belong to Krankenhaus am Rosarium hospital in Sangerhausen and 507 to Klinikum Mansfelder Land & Pflege hospital, which has two locations in Lutherstadt Eisleben and Hettstedt. The three hospitals have about 1,600 employees and treated more than 30,000 patients in 2007. Sales were approx. € 86 million in the same period. HELIOS will own a 94.9 % stake in the hospitals, and the county will hold a 5.1 % share. With this acquisition HELIOS is now present in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. In the neighboring state of Thuringia, HELIOS already owns four clinics - a maximum care hospital in Erfurt and clinics in Bleicherode, Gotha and Blankenhain.

The two hospitals in Lower Saxony were previously owned by Rhume-Leine-Gande-Klinikum GmbH. They have a total capacity of 371 beds, of which 273 belong to Albert-Schweitzer-Krankenhaus in Northeim and 98 to the Evangelische Krankenhaus in Bad Gandersheim. The two hospitals employ about 1,000 people and treated more than 16,300 patients in 2007. Sales were approx. € 50 million in the same period. HELIOS will own a 94.9 % stake in Albert-Schweitzer-Krankenhaus and a 94.8 % stake in Evangelische Krankenhaus. The Northeim county and the Evangelisches Krankenhaus Foundation will own 5.1 % and 5.2 % respectively. At the location in Northeim, HELIOS plans to build a new clinic to expand and improve medical services. HELIOS currently owns six clinics in the north of Germany - a maximum care hospital in Schwerin and clinics in Bad Schwartau, Cuxhaven, Geesthacht, Leezen and Hamburg.

"We are pleased with the decision of these two counties to award their privatization projects to HELIOS. Our concept focuses on medical quality and transparency," said Ulf Mark Schneider, Chairman of the Management Board of Fresenius SE. "With this acquisition, we continue our successful expansion in the German hospital market. The five clinics are well-positioned in their regions and offer considerable potential for enhanced medical care."

The parties agreed not to disclose the purchase prices. The acquisitions are still subject to the approval of county and anti-trust authorities. Additionally, the acquisition in Mansfeld-Südharz is subject to the approval of the Fresenius SE Supervisory Board. HELIOS expects to close these transactions in the first half of 2009.

HELIOS Kliniken Group has 57 clinics, of which 38 are acute hospitals and 19 are postacute care clinics. With five maximum care hospitals in Berlin-Buch, Erfurt, Krefeld, Schwerin and Wuppertal, HELIOS maintains a leading market position in the privatization of hospitals of this size in Germany. HELIOS is one of the biggest providers of in-patient and out-patient care in Germany and treats about 1.5 million patients annually, of whom about 550,000 are in-patients. HELIOS has more than 17,300 beds and 30,000 employees. Sales in 2007 were more than € 1.8 billion.