DEVENS, Mass., April 04, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AMSC (NASDAQ: AMSC), a global solutions provider serving wind and grid leaders, today announced plans to reduce operating costs and align the organization for anticipated Grid segment growth. AMSC intends to focus on optimizing the manufacturing capacity requirements of the company, as well as aligning our headcount to effectively support our targeted revenue growth.

AMSC is currently exploring options for moving its manufacturing and administrative operations at Devens, MA to a nearby, smaller-scale building. A smaller-scale facility and its associated reduction in operating costs is anticipated to boost manufacturing efficiency, optimize the business for near-term revenues, and help further align with our vision for growth.

"Our company was founded 30 years ago with the purpose of manufacturing superconductor wire.  Over the past several years, we've worked to diversify our product portfolio and transition the company to become the systems provider we are today," said AMSC President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel P. McGahn. "We've evolved from manufacturing 1G superconductor wire to delivering full systems with our 2G wire process. We are delivering sustainable systems for the U.S. Navy fleet, grid infrastructure and wind turbine generators. As a result, our 16-year-old manufacturing facility is no longer suitable or sized for our current or near-term business needs."

AMSC expects to reduce its annualized expenses by approximately $4 to $5 million once the savings are fully realized, which is expected to occur by the end of fiscal year 2017. AMSC anticipates that it will incur cash-related restructuring charges of approximately $1.5 to $2 million for severance-related costs in the fiscal quarter ending June 30, 2017.

In conjunction with this announcement, AMSC management will participate in a conference call with investors beginning at 10:00 am Eastern Time on April 5, 2017. Those who wish to listen to the live or archived conference call webcast should visit the "Investors" section of the company's website at http://www.amsc.com/investors. The live call can also be accessed by dialing 800-419-9895 and using conference ID 3155363. 

About AMSC (NASDAQ:AMSC)
AMSC generates the ideas, technologies and solutions that meet the world's demand for smarter, cleaner … better energy™. Through its Windtec™ Solutions, AMSC provides wind turbine electronic controls and systems, designs and engineering services that reduce the cost of wind energy. Through its Gridtec™ Solutions, AMSC provides the engineering planning services and advanced grid systems that optimize network reliability, efficiency and performance. The Company's solutions are now powering gigawatts of renewable energy globally and are enhancing the performance and reliability of power networks in more than a dozen countries. Founded in 1987, AMSC is headquartered near Boston, Massachusetts with operations in Asia, Australia, Europe and North America. For more information, please visit www.amsc.com.

AMSC, Windtec, Gridtec, and Smarter, Cleaner … Better Energy are trademarks or registered trademarks of American Superconductor Corporation. All other brand names, product names, trademarks, or service marks belong to their respective holders.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). Any statements in this release about our expectations regarding anticipated financial results; optimizing the manufacturing capacity requirements of the Company; aligning our headcount to effectively support our targeted revenue growth; moving the Company's and administrative operations to a smaller-scale facility, and associated benefits; anticipated reduction in annualized expenditures; anticipated cash-related restructuring charges; and other statements containing the words "believes," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "will" and similar expressions, constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements represent management's current expectations and are inherently uncertain. There are a number of important factors that could materially impact the value of our common stock or cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. These important factors include, but are not limited to: inability to locate or secure a lease for a suitable new facility in Massachusetts; A significant portion of our revenues are derived from a single customer, Inox, and shipments to Inox may not commence in the time frame we expect or at all; We have a history of operating losses and negative operating cash flows, which may continue in the future and require us additional financing in the future; Our operating results may fluctuate significantly from quarter to quarter and may fall below expectations in any particular fiscal quarter; Our financial condition may have an adverse effect on our customer and supplier relationships; Our success in addressing the wind energy market is dependent on the manufacturers that license our designs; Our success in addressing the wind energy market is dependent on the manufacturers that license our designs; Our success is dependent upon attracting and retaining qualified personnel and our inability to do so could significantly damage our business and prospects; We rely upon third-party suppliers for the components and sub-assemblies of many of our Wind and Grid products, making us vulnerable to supply shortages and price fluctuations; We may not realize all of the sales expected from our backlog of orders and contracts; Our success depends upon the commercial use of high temperature superconductor ("HTS") products, which is currently limited, and a widespread commercial market for our products may not develop; Growth of the wind energy market depends largely on the availability and size of government subsidies and economic incentives; We have operations in and depend on sales in emerging markets, including India and China, and global conditions could negatively affect our operating results or limit our ability to expand our operations outside of these countries; We face risks related to our intellectual property; We face risks related to our legal proceedings; and the important factors discussed under the caption "Risk Factors" in Part 1. Item 1A of our Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2016, and our other reports filed with the SEC. These important factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by forward-looking statements made herein and presented elsewhere by management from time to time. Any such forward-looking statements represent management's estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.

AMSC Contact:

Brion D. Tanous
CleanTech IR, Inc. 
Phone: 424-634-8592
Email: Brion.Tanous@amsc.com