The nation’s major solar module and cell manufacturer on Wednesday gave an upbeat outlook for next year, aided by China’s stringent curbs on excess solar capacity and growing demand from the US after multiple solar exporters, China primarily, are barred from entering the US market.
Based on the rules of Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC), Chinese firms and Southeast Asian solar suppliers based in Malaysia, Vietnam and Cambodia are restricted from exporting products to the US due to national security concerns. That offers a boon for Taiwanese solar module makers to explore overseas as domestic demand slumps, they said on Wednesday.
“Numerous US customers have approached us to supply solar products lately. Our products have entered customers’ certification, aiming to ship those products to the US in January,” TSEC Corp (元晶) executive vice president William Liao (廖偉然) said.
Photo: Chang Hui-wen, Taipei Times
Overseas markets including US, Japan and Europe should rise to account for half of the total shipments from the end of this year, Liao said.
Overseas markets are to contribute a larger share of its shipments next year, he said.
The US is expected to install more than 30 gigawatts of solar panels this year, while the country is heavily dependent on imports of solar batteries to support the installation, Liao said.
“We believe next year will be a better year for TSEC. It’s our goal to return to the black,” Liao said. “The second half of this year should be the worst period.”
TSEC said its confidence is based on the increases in revenue contribution from new foreign markets, mostly in the US and Japan, and stabilizing solar prices.
China’s curbs on solar capacity would help the global solar industry to level off a supply glut, TSEC said.
TSEC reported NT$356 million (US$11.6 million) in losses for the first two quarters of this year, or losses per share of NT$0.69.
Solar module maker United Renewable Energy Co (聯合再生) chief executive officer Richard Chang (張為策) said it is scouting merger-and-acquisition targets in the US.
Echoing TSEC’s positive outlook for next year, Chang said the company’s business would improve next year, mainly driven by growing demand from the US.
Global solar prices are stabilizing as China’s policy to slow down capacity increases helped digest excessive inventory, Chang said.
Motech Industries Inc (茂迪) believes the solar industry has hit the bottom and is moving toward a positive direction.
The company expects its growth would mainly come from Japanese market, rather than the US, company president Fred Yeh (葉正賢) said.
With new orders from Japanese customers, Motech expects its overseas shipments to make up 65 percent to 70 percent of its total shipments, compared with 50 percent originally.
“We are positive about the fourth quarter and next year,” Yeh said, justifying his confidence with improving demand and stable solar prices.
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