A nice 220 million contract for Applied Materials (AMAT) was announced this morning and under terms of the deal, AMAT will supply precision wafering systems to support LDK Solar’s expansion plans and begin shipping in early 09.

Applied Materials called the deal the largest contract ever awarded for wafering systems

“We believe that Applied’s state-of-the-art wafering systems, including its HCT wire saws and squarers, are the best choice to help us scale up capacity to meet the expanding global demand for wafers,” stated Mr. Xiaofeng Peng, Chairman and CEO of LDK Solar. “We have used HCT wire saws since the beginning of our manufacturing operations in 2006, and they have continued to demonstrate the performance necessary to deliver high-quality, cost-effective wafers to our customers.”