EXHIBIT 99
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SPIRE CORPORATION                                          FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                                                                    NEWS RELEASE

Contact:    Spire Corporation
            David R. Lipinski, CFO
            781-275-6000, dlipinski@spirecorp.com

     SPIRE CORPORATION REQUESTS NASDAQ LISTING QUALIFICATIONS PANEL HEARING

Bedford, MA -- August 27, 2003 -- Spire Corporation (Nasdaq: SPIR), which
provides products and services based upon a common technology platform to the
solar energy and biomedical industries worldwide, announced today that on August
22, 2003 it filed an amendment to its Quarterly Report on Form 10-QSB for the
period ended June 30, 2003 disclosing that the financial statements included in
the Form 10-QSB had not been reviewed by its independent auditor. The Company
also announced that it has been notified by Nasdaq that, as a result of the
absence of the review, the Company is in violation of Marketplace Rule
4310(c)(14) and that Nasdaq is commencing a process that may result in the
delisting of the Company's securities from the Nasdaq National Market.

The Company is requesting an oral hearing before a Nasdaq Listing Qualifications
Panel at which the Company will argue that its shares should not be delisted.
Beginning on August 27, 2003, the Company's shares will trade under the ticker
symbol "SPIRE" until the matter is resolved.

"The report in question was filed by the Company in the interest of timely
disclosure of results," commented David Lipinski, Chief Financial Officer. "A
review by our audit firm, in accordance with Statement of Auditing Standards
100, of our financial results for the second quarter and first six months of
2003 is currently in progress. While we believe that we will prevail in the
hearing before the Nasdaq Listing Qualifications Panel, there can be no
assurance that the Panel will grant the Company's request for continued listing
on the National Market."

About Spire Corporation
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Spire Corporation provides products and services based upon a common technology
platform to the solar energy and biomedical industries worldwide. Spire
Biomedical, Inc. provides processing services to improve the performance of
implantable medical devices and markets specialty catheters. Spire Biophotonics
Lifesciences develops biomedical instrumentation and includes Bandwidth
Semiconductor, LLC, a compound semiconductor foundry. Spire Solar, Inc. provides
solar electric module manufacturing equipment and produces and sells solar
energy systems. For more information, please visit www.spirecorp.com.

Certain matters described in this news release may be forward-looking statements
subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Such risks
and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risk of dependence on
market growth, competition and dependence on government agencies and other third
parties for funding contract research and services, as well as other factors
described in the Company's Form 10-KSB filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.