History

On June 1, 2000, a handful of employees of ANRAD Corporation, formerly Noranda Advanced Materials, a division of Noranda Inc., decided to start their own company through a management buy-out of certain assets. The buyout team included Jacques L’Écuyer, our President and Chief Executive Officer, and Marc Suys, our Director of Environment, Health and Safety.

5N Plus draws its name from the purity of its products - 99,999 % pure ( 5 nines, or 5N) and more. The company specializes in the production and purification of tellurium, cadmium, selenium, bismuth and antimony as well as related compounds such as cadmium telluride. These products are chiefly used in the manufacture of solar cells, radiation detectors, thermoelectric coolants, infrared lenses, optical memory devices and electronic storage devices.

Starting with 14 employees and using the high purity processing equipment at ANRAD’s site, the company today employs nearly 150 people at its two state-of-the-art production facilities, including one in Germany. In 2003, 5N Plus developed a new 33,000 square-foot primary refining plant in Montréal, which houses its hydrometallurgical operations. In 2005, 5N Plus invested nearly $5 million in a 25,000 square-foot facility expansion, as well as in new refining equipment that enables us to strengthen our leading position in the markets we serve.

Seizing a prime opportunity for growth, during the fiscal year ending on May 31, 2007, 5N Plus began construction of a 43,000 square-foot manufacturing facility in Eisenhüttenstadt, Germany. In operation since July 29, 2008, the new plant is owned and operated by our subsidiary 5N PV GmbH, and is located in an industrial estate ideally suited for the production and recycling of products for the solar cell industry. 5N Plus has also acquired 36,000 square feet of land adjacent to the site, which offers space for future expansion.

On December 20, 2007, 5N Plus became a publicly traded company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, and followed this up on April 29, 2008 with a second public offering.

On December 1, 2009, 5N Plus announced that it has completed the acquisition of Firebird Technologies Inc. a Canadian-controlled private company located in Trail, British Columbia. Founded in 1991, Firebird is a leading manufacturer of compound semiconductor products and pure metals. Firebird’s main products, which include indium antimonide wafers as well as antimony, indium and tin pure metals, are sold worldwide and used in a number of electronic and optical applications.