Green Energy Technology Inc (綠能科技), the nation’s biggest solar wafer maker, said yesterday revenues plunged 43 percent last month from the previous month as it cut prices to cope with dwindling demand amid excessive inventory.
Factory utilization fell to 80 percent last month, from full usage in the first four months of this year, the Taoyuan-based company said in an e-mailed statement.
Revenues fell to NT$1.35 billion (US$47 million) last month, compared with NT$2.37 billion in April. On an annual basis, however, revenues last month rose 11 percent.
“To support customers who have piled up excessive inventory, Green Energy has lowered the price of wafers,” the company said in the statement, adding that it would try “to remain profitable.”
To reduce costs, the solar wafer said it was in intensive talks with its polysilicon suppliers to adjust their prices and weather the industry downturn together.
“Green Energy is inevitably impacted by the solar industry downturn. Yet we believe that the industry should bounce back as the inventories get used up in the coming months,” the company said.
Local research house TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) expects solar firms to take one or two months to clear their inventories.
Green Energy fell 2.3 percent to NT$93.60 on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, while its rival, Sino-American Silicon Products Inc (中美晶), slid 2 percent to NT$86.60.
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