Press Releases

YVERDON-LES-BAINS, Switzerland; DALLAS; ANDERSON, Ind., May 6, 2019: In addition to the proposal made in the press release issued on April 16, 2019 proposing the election of Mr. Bénédict Fontanet, who was introduced to the Board of Directors by Golden Partner representing the interests of FEFAM[1], Leclanché’s majority shareholder, in its willingness to preserve its independence, the Board of Directors of Leclanché SA (SIX: LECN), one of the world’s leading energy storage solutions companies, proposes that Dr. Lluís M. Fargas Mas is elected as a new independent member of the Board of Directors at the ordinary Annual General Meeting which will be held on May 9, 2019.

Dr. Fargas (born in 1966) is a Swiss and Spanish national. In 2010, Dr. Fargas earned his Ph.D. in Finance and Tax Law from Universitat Rovira I Virgili (Spain) graduating summa cum laude. His thesis was based on the “Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base (CCCTB) and the Impact/Effect on European Member States’ Tax Revenues.” He holds a master’s degree in law from the Instituto de Empresa (Madrid) and a law degree from the University of Barcelona. 

Dr. Fargas joined Alcoa Inc. in 1994, after five years spent as senior manager at Coopers & Lybrand, in Barcelona (Spain). Since November 2016, after the spin-off of Alcoa Inc. upstream and downstream businesses into two companies (Alcoa Corp. and Arconic Inc.), Dr. Fargas has been serving in the role of vice president, Tax, Controller and Corporate Development Europe at Arconic, which retained the rolling, plating, precision casting and fastening operations of Alcoa Inc. Dr. Fargas manages the European Tax and Country Controllership function, assuming also the responsibilities for running the corporate development strategy of Arconic in Europe – a $4 billion business with 40 manufacturing sites and over 10,000 employees - with the ultimate goal to leverage business opportunities and accelerate actions to strengthen all Arconic businesses' strategic position within the region.

In addition to his function at Arconic, Dr. Fargas is a visiting professor at the University of Lausanne – UNIL (Switzerland). He also frequently provides lectures at international seminars and workshops.

Mr. Stefan A. Müller, chairman of the Board of Directors said: “Dr. Fargas would bring to the Leclanché Board of Directors proven financial and corporate development skills as well as many years of professional experience in a multinational operating in a highly demanding environment. His in-depth knowledge of efficient financial and legal structures, as well as his strong global network in the aerospace, automotive and banking industry, will give Leclanché access to invaluable insights which can serve the company’s further development. We believe that Dr. Fargas’ vast financial experience as well as his independent position makes him perfectly suited to contribute to the Company’s current and future priorities in the most efficient and responsible way. The election of Dr. Fargas will ensure that Board control remains with Independent Directors.”

In addition, the Board of Directors wishes to inform the Company’s shareholders that for the same Independent Director position, Mr. Antoine Spillmann, as representative of Bruellan Corporate Governance Action Fund (a major shareholder of the Company), informed the Board of Directors about his intention to propose at the ordinary Annual General Meeting which will be held on May 9, 2019, the election of Mr. Jacques Boppe, 38 years old, to the Board of Directors.

Mr. Boppe is a Swiss national currently working as an independent advisor on microgrid projects. Mr. Boppe has more than ten years of experience in the renewable energy sector. He worked two years at Leclanché as VP Business Development, Marketing/Investor Relations and two years as managing director of Swiss Green Electricity Management, a provider of equity financing to build-own-operate energy storage assets globally. He was CEO and co-founder of an EPFL start-up developing wind turbines for repowering and projects on complex terrain in China and Switzerland.

Prior to this, Mr. Boppe worked on several grid-tied and microgrid energy storage projects in the U.S., Canada, Portugal, Chile and Namibia. Mr. Boppe began his career as an investment banker working for six years with Credit Suisse and Huaxing in Hong Kong and China. Mr. Boppe graduated from EPFL with a master’s in science in microengineering, Cambridge University (UK) and completed an MBA at INSEAD.

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