Solar cell maker Gintech Energy Corp (昱晶能源) revenue plunged 41 percent last month as sluggish demand — primarily from China — drove lower shipments and prices.
In a statement on Saturday, Gintech said it was evaluating production cuts in order to better manage inventory levels.
Gintech is pursuing “profitability as the priority to enhance shareholders’ value. Therefore, we believe it is the right move to reduce taking orders with unreasonable conditions,” the statement said.
Revenue plunged to NT$847 million (US$26.83 million) last month, compared with NT$1.43 billion in June, its lowest posting in about one-and-a-half years.
On an annual basis, revenue tumbled 42.7 percent from NT$1.48 billion.
Bracing for a slump, local solar cell makers last month slashed their factory utilization rate to an average of 70 percent, from about 90 percent in June, TrendForce analyst Corrin Lin (林嫣容) said in a telephone interview last month.
Weak demand has already seen solar cell prices reach a record low of about US$0.26 per watt this month, but lower equipment utilization will increase manufacturing costs and further squeeze gross margin, Lin said.
The gross margin of local firms fell into negative territory, Lin said, adding that companies will become profitable only when gross margin rises to at least 5 percent.
On Friday, Giga Solar Materials Corp (碩禾), a photovoltaic conductive paste maker, posted its weakest ever monthly revenue at NT$1.34 billion for last month, compared with NT$1.47 billion in June. The figure represented a monthly decline of 9.23 percent.
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