Solar cell and module supplier TSEC Corp (元晶) yesterday gave a robust outlook for this quarter, with an order backlog that would take at least two quarters to digest.
The company, based in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店), said it has started taking orders for delivery in the third quarter of next year, as its production lines are fully booked.
This should help TSEC swing back to the black this quarter and help offset losses of NT$198.69 million (US$7.16 million) in the first three quarters, company spokesman Henry Chiang (江郅豪) told a media briefing in Taipei.
Photo: CNA
“Both shipments and prices are on the rise in the fourth quarter. We have a chance to eke out a profit for the full year,” Chiang said. “Revenue this month should remain at the same high level as that of November.”
TSEC expects the improvement in profitability to extend into next year, thanks to falling raw material costs and a surge in solar module demand in the domestic market.
The company expects solar panel installations in the nation to climb to more than 11 gigawatts (GW) next year, suggesting an increase of more than 3GW.
Photo: Lisa Wang, Taipei Times
“There is a lot of catch-up to do next year, as installations this year have been slow due to the COVID-19 outbreak and raw material shortages,” Chiang said.
By the end of this year, Taiwan’s solar energy installation is estimated to reach 7GW, less than half of the government’s 20GW target by 2025.
To satisfy customer demand next year, TSEC is investing NT$1 billion to build a new solar cell line and solar module line next year to make larger solar modules, Chiang said.
Photo: Lisa Wang, Taipei Times
That would increase its solar cell and module capacity to 1.5GW next year from 1GW this year, after new M6 (166mm2) and M10 (182mm2) solar cells enter production next year, he said.
Solar cell and module maker Motech Industries Inc (茂迪) shared TSEC’s optimistic view.
“There will be explosive growth in the first and second quarters next year. The momentum would to carry into the second half,” Motech president Fred Yeh (葉正賢) told reporters on the sidelines of the annual Energy Taiwan trade show in Taipei.
“Customers have to wait for six months to receive their products,” Yeh said.
The company plans to roll out new-generation tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) cells that can produce more solar power in the third quarter next year, after current-generation TOPCon gains traction.
Motech, based in Tainan, plans to expand its TOPCon solar cell capacity to 200 megawatts (MW) next year, up from 15MW this year.
The domestic unit of the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker Nexperia BV will soon be able to produce semiconductors locally within China, according to two company sources. Nexperia is at the center of a global tug-of-war over critical semiconductor technology, with a Dutch court in February ordering a probe into alleged mismanagement at the company. The geopolitical tussle has disrupted supply chains, with some carmakers reportedly forced to cut production due to chip shortages. Local production would allow Nexperia’s domestic arm, Nexperia Semiconductors (China) Ltd (安世半導體中國), to bypass restrictions in place since October on the supply of silicon wafers — etched with tiny components to
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday received government approval to deploy its advanced 3-nanometer (3nm) process at its second fab currently under construction in Japan, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said in a news release. The ministry green-lit the plan for the facility in Kumamoto, which is scheduled to start installing equipment and come online in 2028 with a monthly production capacity of 15,000 12-inch wafers, the ministry said. The Department of Investment Review in June 2024 authorized a US$5.26 billion investment for the facility, slated to manufacture 6- to 12nm chips, significantly less advanced than 3nm process. At a meeting with
Taiwan is open to joining a global liquefied natural gas (LNG) program if one is created, but on the condition that countries provide delivery even in a scenario where there is a conflict with China, an energy department official said yesterday. While Taiwan’s priority is to have enough LNG at home, the nation is open to exploring potential strategic reserves in other countries such as Japan or South Korea, Energy Administration Deputy Director-General Chen Chung-hsien (陳崇憲) said. While the LNG market does not have a global reserve for emergencies like that of oil, the concept has been raised a few times —
RSS