Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd. Issues Statement Regarding Axcelis Rejection of Compelling Proposal

Business Wire, Feb 25, 2008

TOKYO -- Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd. (TSE: 6302) ("SHI"), today issued the following statement in response to the announcement by Axcelis Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: ACLS) ("Axcelis") that the Axcelis Board of Directors has rejected SHI's proposal to acquire Axcelis for $5.20 per share in cash, a premium of 28.7% to Axcelis' closing price on February 8, 2008, the last day of trading before the proposal was made public:

"We are extremely disappointed that Axcelis continues to refuse to engage with SHI in meaningful discussions about a combination that we firmly believe would be in the best interest of Axcelis stockholders and deliver them significant immediate value. Since we publicly disclosed our letter on February 11, we have received feedback from many Axcelis stockholders who agree that our proposal would provide significant value and expressed strong support for the Axcelis Board engaging with SHI. Our all-cash offer represents a significant premium for Axcelis, which has exhibited deteriorating financial performance, is rapidly losing market share to competitors and is underperforming its peers. Axcelis' management has been saying for the past two years that Optima HD was poised for significant sales growth, but that simply has not materialized. We continue to believe a combination of Axcelis, SHI and our joint venture, SEN, would benefit customers and employees by harnessing our collective resources, shared technology and global presence to compete more effectively worldwide over the long-term.

"We urge the Axcelis Board to reconsider our proposal and sit down with us to negotiate a mutually agreeable transaction. We will continue to speak with the stockholders of Axcelis to communicate our position and hear their feedback. We look forward to maintaining this dialogue and we remain ready to commence discussions with Axcelis immediately regarding a mutually agreeable transaction."

On February 4, 2008, SHI, together with TPG, a minority partner and financing source for the transaction, made a proposal to acquire Axcelis for $5.20 per share in cash. The proposal, which is based on publicly available information, represents a total equity value of approximately $544 million. The proposal is not contingent on financing or any other conditions beyond confirmatory due diligence and execution of mutually acceptable definitive agreements, and SHI would expect to promptly secure regulatory approvals.

For more information about SHI and TPG's proposal to acquire Axcelis, please visit www.axcelisvalue.com.

About Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd.

Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd. (SHI) is an integrated manufacturer of industrial machines, ships, bridges & steel structure, equipment for environmental protection, including recycling, power transmission equipment, plastic molding machines, laser processing systems, particle accelerators, material handling systems, etc. As a multifaceted global firm, SHI is dedicated to meeting society's needs and to achieving our corporate mission goal which is to "become a preeminent integrated machine manufacturer and contribute to the progress of society through unique technology."

About TPG

TPG was founded in 1992 and currently has more than $35 billion of assets under management. Through its investment platforms, the firm has extensive experience with global public and private investments executed through leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, spinouts, joint ventures, growth investments and restructurings. The firm is headquartered in Fort Worth, and has offices in San Francisco, London, Hong Kong, New York, Minneapolis, Melbourne, Menlo Park, Moscow, Mumbai, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo.

Important Information

This press release is neither an offer to purchase nor a solicitation of an offer to sell securities of Axcelis Technologies, Inc. ("Axcelis"). Subject to future developments, additional documents regarding a transaction with Axcelis may be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "Commission") and, if and when available, would be accessible for free at the Commission's website at http://www.sec.gov. Investors and security holders are urged to read such disclosure documents, if and when they become available, because they will contain important information.

Neither Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd. ("SHI") nor TPG is currently engaged in a solicitation of proxies or consents from the stockholders of Axcelis. However, in connection with the proposal to acquire Axcelis, certain directors and officers of SHI or partners of TPG may participate in meetings or discussions with Axcelis stockholders. SHI and TPG do not believe that any of these persons is a "participant" as defined in Schedule 14A promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"), in the solicitation of proxies or consents, or that Schedule 14A requires the disclosure of certain information concerning any of them.

No assurance can be given that the proposed transaction will be consummated at any time or completed on the terms proposed or on any particular schedule, that the proposed transaction will not incur delays in obtaining required regulatory or stockholder approvals or meeting other conditions, or that, if the proposed transaction is consummated, SHI, TPG or any other person will realize the anticipated benefits of such transaction.