TAIPEI: Solar cell manufacturer Neo Solar Power Corp yesterday said it plans to invest US$15 million for a 30 percent share in European solar energy system developer Phanes Group, making great strides in expanding its presence in the global solar power plant market.
Neo Solar has been moving into the solar power plant business in pursuit of a stable source of profit amid volatile solar cell business.
The investment will be made via its 70 percent-owned subsidiary General Energy Solutions Inc, Neo Solar said in a statement.
“The investment will greatly boost General Energy’s market share in 2016, as the deal will help it expand its solar power plant business to western Europe, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and Southeast Asia,” Neo Solar said.
“The solar power system business will become a growth driver for the company given its high returns,” it said.
This year, General Energy is expected to post a net profit of between NT$200 million and NT$300 million (US$6.04 million and US$9.06 million), Neo Solar chief financial officer Thomas Hsu said by telephone.
General Energy plans to have 100 megawatts of the solar systems under its operation connected to the grid this year, after expanding its business to the Middle East and the Netherlands from Taiwan, the US, Japan and the UK, Hsu said.
Neo Solar posted a loss of NT$1.34 billion for the first six months of the year, as prices plunged because of overcapacity.
Barclays Capital Securities Taiwan Ltd said in a research note yesterday that Neo Solar’s turnaround might not be sustainable after it ramps up new capacity overseas in the fourth quarter, despite the company’s projections that it would be operating at full capacity throughout the quarter.
However, the brokerage is positive about the solar sector as a whole.
“Solar cell prices have rebounded by 6 percent since June due to demand recovery, and are showing signs of stabilization as cell makers remain cautious on overall supply by limiting the supply of higher-efficiency products,” Barclays said in the note.
Prices are expected to stabilize at current levels for the remainder of the year, it added.
Neo Solar said the investment would add new solar power station construction projects with installed capacity of 800 megawatts and bring the General Energy’s total projects’ installed capacity to 1.3 gigawatts. Half of the new projects are to commence within the next 10 to 12 months, it said.
The global photovoltaic market is expected to grow 9.43 percent to 58 gigawatts next year from this year’s 53 gigawatts, driven by strong demand from China, the US and Japan, TrendForce Corp forecast last week.
More than 33 gigawatts of solar system installations are expected to come from Asia, including China, India, South Korea, Thailand and the Philippines, the Taipei-based research house said.
