The Solar Industry Has Been Facing Restructuring

The solar industry has been facing restructuring and the firms with the strongest financial capital will survive while the small- and medium-size firms will face being marginalized. Foxconn announced recently plans to enter the solar market in the second half of 2011, meaning the industry will become a battlefield for big and powerful firms while other firms suffer decreasing orders and lack of capital. The severe competition in the solar industry has been causing firms to accumulate all possible resources. Industry leading solar cell maker, Q-Cells, indicated there is a possibility of putting the company up for sale in 2011. World leading firms have been planning to enter the solar market through various types of cooperation. As solar firms in China increase in size, Taiwan-based counterparts might require similar company sizes to compete. Foxconn plans to enter the solar market in second half of 2011 and the industry has been wondering the possible methods that Foxconn will take to do so. If Foxconn plans to acquire non-Taiwan-based solar firms, then with limited resources and financial capital, Taiwan-based firms need to consider how to survive and compete with large-scale solar firms in China. As gross margins dwindle and the price of solar products falls, eliminations will become more intense. Source: www.digitimes.com