PE INTERNATIONAL AG Raises EUR 8M in VC Financing

STUTTGART, Germany, December 16, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- PE INTERNATIONAL AG, a leading provider of sustainability management software and expert consulting services, announced today that it has secured EUR 8 million (10.8 million USD) in venture capital from Siemens Venture Capital (SVC), and the Cleantech team of European investment company Gimv. Through SVC, PE INTERNATIONAL will join Siemens' global innovation network. The financing will be used to support the company's ambitious growth plans to further build out its strong market position and become the market leader in enterprise sustainability IT platforms.

"PE INTERNATIONAL is a uniquely complete vendor in the fast growing market for sustainable business software and services," said Ralf Schnell, CEO Siemens Venture Capital. "With its long-standing experience, large customer base, extensive international presence and integrated offering, we firmly believe that the company will meet the accelerated market demand and strengthen its leading position."

Both Siemens Venture Capital and Gimv will hold a seat in the board of directors. Hansjorg Sage, Partner at Gimv, comments on the transaction: "PE INTERNATIONAL's enterprise sustainability solutions are leading the space because they provide insights into the environmental impacts of business at the product and at the organizational level. PE clients benefit from increased efficiency in business processes and drive innovation and revenue growth."

PE INTERNATIONAL's leading enterprise sustainability solution platform - comprised of GaBi solutions for product sustainability and SoFi solutions for corporate sustainability - leverages its extensive environmental content and is complemented by its strategic consulting services. The company plans to further expand its solution portfolio to meet the growing market opportunity and help businesses improve their sustainability performance and succeed in the market place. "With these strong investment partners, our company solidifies its leading position as an enterprise sustainability solution vendor. This investment round accelerates the delivery of our cutting-edge sustainability IT platform and the extension of our global organization and partner network" said Michael Betz, CEO of PE INTERNATIONAL.

Over a 20-year history, PE INTERNATIONAL has built up unique expert capabilities in the field of sustainability management. Starting with the concept of Life Cycle Assessment the company developed the largest comprehensive environmental database for processes and products on the market today and the most widely used software solutions for enterprise sustainability management. Deep expertise in industry processes and wide experience with regional market requirements are the foundation for PE strategic consulting services. The analyst firm Gartner recently published the report "PE INTERNATIONAL emerges as a one-stop enterprise sustainability vendor (http://www.pe-international.com/international/topics/gartner-report/ )."

About PE INTERNATIONAL

PE INTERNATIONAL is a leader in software solutions, strategic consultancy and extensive services in the field of sustainability. PE INTERNATIONAL has 14 offices across the globe and serves more than 1,000 customers including many blue chip clients such as Allianz, Bayer, Daimler, Carnival, Deutsche Post DHL, Kraft Foods, Rockwool, Siemens, Toyota, ThyssenKrupp and Volkswagen.

http://www.pe-international.com

About Siemens Venture Capital

Siemens Venture Capital GmbH (SVC), the corporate venture capital organization of Siemens, invests in early-stage technology companies and established growth companies, focusing on the energy, industry and healthcare sectors. In this way, SVC identifies innovative solutions from which Siemens can profit and plays a key role in Siemens' global innovation network. To date, the company has invested more than EUR 800 mn in over 150 companies and 40 venture capital funds. In addition, SVC advises the German Siemens pension funds on their private equity allocation. It is in this context that SVC has launched the venture capital fund of funds Siemens Global Innovation Partners I.

About Gimv

Gimv is a European investment company with almost 30 years experience in private equity and venture capital. The company is listed on the NYSE Euronext Brussels and administers around 1.8 billion EUR (including third parties' funds). Gimv invests in buyouts and provides growth financing to established companies. For this Gimv has four local teams in Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Germany. Through the Gimv-XL fund growth capital is invested in larger companies in Flanders. In high-tech sectors Gimv invests venture capital through its specialised teams in Life Sciences, Technology and Cleantech.

    Press Contact
    Bernd Schmalzridt
    [email protected]
    Phone +49-711-341817-443
    Hauptstr. 111-113
    PE INTERNATIONAL AG
    70771 Leinfelden-Echterdingen
    Germany

SOURCE PE INTERNATIONAL GmbH