A German solar energy company reported expectations falling for the first quarter of 2009 due to lack of sufficient funding for large photovoltaic projects.

Berlin-based Solon SE said that its first quarter revenues declined by 76% compared with the first quarter of 2008. The company sales generated €38.3 million in the past quarter compared with €161.6 million for the same period last year.
Solon, the first solar energy company to be publicly listed in Germany, said it has lowered production at all sites since the beginning of the year in response to the decline in sales.

The company points at the lack of available funds for large solar projects particularly for power plants. It also blamed a harsh winter in southern Germany that it said negatively impacted the demand for solar energy systems.
“While demand for solar modules has been on the rise again in the second quarter, the power plants business is still suffering from the ongoing critical situation in project finance,” the company said. “We therefore assume that SOLON will also finish the second quarter with a loss,” it added.

Also today, Q-Cells, the world’s largest solar cell producer, reported a 17% first quarter revenue loss compared with 2008. It further scaled down its 2009 growth forecast to €1.3 to €1.6 billion from the previous €1.7 to €2.1 billion in annual revenues.

Solon said it will wait until later in the year to announce its own sales and earnings forecast for 2009.
“Based on the assumption that the economic climate will improve and the situation in the finance industry will return to normal in the second half of the year, we expect to see an increase in demand in both of our business segments,” Solon said.


-  Eric Dorente

---

Source:

¹ http://www.solon.com/cw/en/press/detail.html?ID=306