Aviza Technology Receives £1.2M (GBP) Grant From Welsh Assembly Government

October 19, 2006 08:00 AM US Eastern Timezone

Regional selective assistance (RSA) grant will support company’s multi-year effort to enhance research and development.

SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aviza Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq:AVZA), a supplier of advanced semiconductor equipment and process technologies for the global semiconductor, compound semiconductor, nanotechnology and other related markets, today announced that the company was awarded a multi-year grant of approximately £1.2 million (GBP), or $2.2 million (USD), from the Welsh Assembly Government’s Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) program.

Aviza plans to invest £6.4 million (GBP) over a multi-year period to enhance research, development and engineering capabilities at its Newport facility, where the company designs, develops and manufactures single-wafer equipment and process technologies used to produce advanced integrated circuit (IC) devices. The £1.2 million (GBP) RSA grant will help create more than 30 highly technical positions as well as support expanded responsibilities for an additional 50 positions.

Minister for Enterprise, Innovation and Networks Andrew Davies said, “We are pleased to offer this grant to Aviza Technology, Inc. This grant from the Assembly Government will enable Aviza’s Newport operations to further develop and strengthen its presence here in Wales, in addition to complementing the company’s R&D efforts at its Scotts Valley, California global headquarters. Aviza is already one of the flagships of the advanced technology sector of the Welsh economy — and this latest investment underlines the company’s continued commitment to Newport’s economy.”

The RSA grant is a discretionary grant established by the Welsh Assembly Government to aid businesses with capital investment projects in the Assisted Areas of Wales. To-date, a total value of £650 million (GBP) were made to businesses undertaking capital investment projects in Wales worth a total of about £2.83 billion (GBP), which have created approximately 50,000 new jobs and preserved some 20,000 existing jobs.

“We are extremely proud to have received this grant from the Welsh Assembly Government in recognition of our commitment to our business operations in Newport,” said Jerry Cutini, President and CEO of Aviza Technology, Inc. “This grant is an important component to our ongoing commitment to support business in Wales. Aviza will continue to work closely with the Welsh government to highlight the technical accomplishments achieved by the company and to identify cooperative programs for future collaborations.”

On Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2006, a commemorative signing for this grant was held at Aviza’s Newport facility with representatives from the Welsh Assembly Government and Aviza’s executive management team.

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This press release contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our management's current expectations and beliefs and involve numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations. You should not rely upon these forward-looking statements as predictions of future events because we cannot assure you that the events or circumstances reflected in these statements will be achieved or will occur. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the statements made by Jerry Cutini and all statements containing the words "believes," "expects," "may," "will," "should," "seeks," "intends," "plans," "estimates" or "anticipates" or the negative of these words and phrases or other variations of these words and phrases or comparable terminology. Many factors could cause our actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements. Some of these factors and other important factors are detailed in our various Securities and Exchange Commission filings, particularly in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, copies of which are available from us without charge. Please review these filings and do not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. We assume no obligation to update forward-looking statements.

About Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) Grant

Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) helps support capital investment projects in the Assisted Areas that create new jobs or safeguard existing ones. It is the main form of financial incentive to industry to encourage investment and growth in Wales. The grant is available to manufacturing companies and those service sectors who serve more than a local market.

For further information on the scheme, either contact 08454 10 10 10 or visit our website at www.wales.gov.uk/investmentfunding.

About Aviza Technology, Inc.

Aviza Technology, Inc. is a supplier of advanced semiconductor equipment and process technologies for the global semiconductor, compound semiconductor, nanotechnology and other related markets. Aviza offers both front-end-of-line (FEOL) and back-end-of-line (BEOL) process applications including products for atomic layer deposition (ALD), diffusion and low pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD) furnaces, atmospheric pressure CVD (APCVD), CVD, etch and physical vapor deposition (PVD). The company is publicly traded on the NASDAQ Global Market (NASDAQ GM: AVZA). Aviza is headquartered in Scotts Valley, Calif., with manufacturing, R&D, sales and customer support facilities located in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Taiwan, China, Japan, Korea, Singapore and Malaysia. Additional information about the company can be found at http://www.avizatechnology.com.