August 4, 2004 Copenhagen -- NKT subsidiary Crystal Fibre A/S, has acquired the assets of UK-based BlazePhotonics for the sum of $3.3 million. The two companies have been active in the development and manufacture of microstructured optical fibers or crystal fibers.

The assets of BlazePhotonics will be transferred to Denmark this month. Crystal Fibre will receive access to technical competences and patents that, to a large extent, complement the complement the company's existing intellectual property.

Crystal fibers can be designed in a range of variants and are ideal for use in industrial, telecommunications, research, and defense applications. The products are gaining popularity for use as core components in high-power fiber lasers, for example, where they offer improved efficiency compared to existing lasers used for welding in the automotive industry, for cutting steel components, for marking, and for numerous other applications.

BlazePhotonics has principally focused on developing "hollow core" (air guiding) crystal fibers and has demonstrated transmission loss as low as 1.72 dB/km, which it claims is a world record.

NKT's earnings forecast for the current year is unchanged by the acquisition of BlazePhotonics' assets.