GAEP Merges With SEI

General Atomics Energy Products, a Division of General Atomics Electronic Systems

PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Randy Hartsock 858-522-8403
December 14, 2000, San Diego, CA

GENERAL ATOMICS ENERGY PRODUCTS DIVISION TO MERGE WITH SORRENTO ELECTRONICS

In a move to consolidate its Energy Products activities with General Atomics' Sorrento Electronics affiliate, General Atomics (GA) is merging its Energy Products Division into Sorrento Electronics.

GA recently established the Energy Products Division with the acquisition of the Wound Capacitor and the High Voltage Power Supplies business lines from Maxwell Technologies, Inc. of San Diego. The Energy Products Division is a major supplier of high energy density, high voltage capacitors and related equipment to the Department of Energy's National Ignition Facility and other national laboratory projects, and is active in the supply of defibrillators used in the treatment of heart attacks. It also provides specialized power equipment for lasers and other pulsed power applications.

Sorrento Electronics is the leading supplier of Terminal Automation Products (TAP) to the Petroleum Industry and Radiation Monitoring Systems (RMS) to the Nuclear Power Industry.

Sorrento Electronics will merge with the Energy Products Division and move its TAP and RMS operations to the building occupied by the Energy Products Division at 4949 Greencraig Lane, San Diego, CA 92123. The move will allow sharing of manufacturing, engineering and administration, which will result in significantly lower overhead and operating costs.

Management of the company will be restructured and consolidated under Dr. John Rawls, who will serve as President and CEO of Sorrento Electronics. Senior members of management are William Steed -- Terminal Automation Products; Dirk Koopman -- Radiation Monitoring Systems; Joel Ennis -- High Voltage Capacitors; Robert McDowell -- High Voltage Power Supplies; Junaid Razvi - TRIGA Research Reactors; and Dennis Slater - Gulftronic Separator Systems. The merger will be completed on January 1, 2001.