Spire (SPIR) to provide Dongyang with 12MW crystalline cell module manufacturing line

Spire to Engineer One of South Korea’s Most Advanced Turnkey Solar Manufacturing Lines

Receives Order for 12MW Crystalline Cell Module Line from Dongyang Creditech

BEDFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Spire Corporation (Nasdaq: SPIR), a global solar company providing turnkey solar factories and capital equipment to manufacture photovoltaic modules, cells, and wafers worldwide, today announced that it has received a contract from Dongyang Creditech Co. Ltd. located in South Korea to provide a photovoltaic module assembly line.

Spire will provide Dongyang with a semi-automated crystalline cell module manufacturing line capable of producing up to 12 megawatts (MW) of solar modules per year. Spire will supply the process technology and training to operate the factory. The line is designed to be easily doubled at a later date and will integrate Spire’s key assembly, lamination, and testing machines along with intermediate tooling stations.

According to a recent report from the South Korean Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy, South Korea is poised to enter the global solar market with domestically produced modules. Exports of solar-power related equipment have recently begun and have already risen from $45 million in 2006 to more than $180 million in 2007. This is projected to increase to $1.5 billion by 2020 and to more than $6.3 billion by 2030. Government projections also indicate that South Korea will generate some 4 gigawatts (GW) of electricity through solar power by 2020.

“The South Korean solar market is in the early stages of a capacity boom, and we are pleased to partner with Dongyang Creditech to be a part of this dramatic growth,” said Roger G. Little, Chairman and CEO of Spire Corporation. “Domestic solar manufacturing will be critical in meeting this demand. In markets throughout the world, Spire continues to be the preferred supplier to new module manufacturers as they enter the solar business.”

Mr. Dongkyu Choi, Chairman and CEO of Dongyang Creditech said, “We are pleased to have awarded this contract to Spire Corporation. We were attracted to their superior equipment and line design, as well as their engineering and support services. We are confident that we will have a factory that will meet our solar manufacturing needs from start up, through future expansions.”

About Dongyang Creditech Co. Ltd.

Dongyang Creditech was founded in 1973 in South Korea and has been listed under the South Korea stock market, KOSDAQ (Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) since 2002. Dongyang Creditech provides components for liquid crystal display (LCD) and cathode-ray tube (CRT) displays in Asia and Europe and conducts research and development in organic light-emitting diode (OLED) technology. With the support of Spire Corporation since 2007, Dongyang Creditech has entered the solar energy manufacturing business worldwide.

About Spire Corporation

Spire Corporation is a global solar company providing turnkey production lines and capital equipment to manufacture photovoltaic modules worldwide. Spire Semiconductor develops and manufactures custom gallium arsenide solar cells and other related products for the commercial, biomedical and defense markets. The company’s Spire Biomedical subsidiary is a leader in hemodialysis catheters and implantable device processing service.

Evergreen Solar and REC prep EverQ for Initial Public Offering

Solar Manufacturer EverQ Expands and Prepares for IPO

from: SustainableBusiness.com News

Q-Cells AG (QCE; ISIN DE0005558662) and its partners in the Joint Venture EverQ GmbH--Evergreen Solar, Inc. and REC Renewable Energy Corporation ASA--have approved significant expansion plans for EverQ and agreed to start preparations for an IPO of EverQ immediately.

EverQ will build a third integrated wafer, cell and module production facility at its company site in Bitterfeld-Wolfen (Germany), according to a release. The new EverQ facility will increase EverQ's production capacity from 100 MWp to 180 MWp the company says.. The partners will invest nearly EUR 150 million in the new EverQ III facility, which is expected to start production in the first quarter of 2009.

The final timing of the IPO is still to be decided. As part of the preparations for the IPO, the management and organization of EverQ will be significantly strengthened to enable the transformation of EverQ into an independent company with its own branding, according to a release. The sales and marketing organization will be expanded as modules will be distributed under the new brand in the future.

To support the further growth ambitions of EverQ, REC says it has offered an additional supply agreement for polysilicon which should enable EverQ to increase its production capacity to 600 MWp by the year 2012. The supply agreement totals approximately 4,000 MT delivered at market terms. Annual shipments under the new agreement will peak at slightly more than 700 MT and will run from 2010 until 2015, according to the announcement.

To secure the independent development, EverQ has a proprietary right to the current technology base of Evergreen and will have a right to license all new material technology development by Evergreen on the String Ribbon(TM) platform over the 5 years following the IPO, the companies said. EverQ says it will build a R&D team to complement this access to new technology with own improvements.

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Renewable Energy Technology proposed as driver for Texas USA economic engine

article from: http://chimera-gaia.blogspot.com

Don't let a recession waste valuable labor

by Chimera

Recession can also create opportunities for positive change.

Much of the technology used by aerospace industries can translate well to the production of equipment for generating renewable energy. Machines used to produce thrust can, with modifications, turn around and receive thrust [from wind or tides] to generate power. Lockheed Martin Corporation will reduce its Fort Worth, Texas workforce by 650 jobs this year. The Austin American-Statesman and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that most of the job losses will involve engineers working on a new fighter jet. Wouldn’t it make sense to put those smart people to work making our economy more resilient? Until our capitalist economic system properly values labor, we will continue wasting time, money, energy, and lives. Our national security hangs in the balance.

If Congress wants to stimulate the economy, create jobs, reduce carbon emissions, reduce fossil fuel consumption, and reduce the trade deficit, they might consider finding ways to reassign those engineers and a few thousand assembly line workers to the tasks of building wind turbines, tidal turbines, solar power plants, and power storage systems.

Wind turbines, popping up in Texas faster than practically anywhere else, as far as I know, mostly come from factories in Europe, Japan, and China. A backlog of orders for wind turbines slows the renewable energy transformation that the Legislature says it wants. I have seen Danish wind turbines (Vestas Wind Systems) on double-long flatbed trailers behind trucks traveling west from Houston on Interstate 10. Spain produces a fair number as well (Gamesa). General Electric produces wind turbines, but not enough for the demand and apparently not in Texas.

Austin Energy and friends tried some years ago to attract a wind turbine factory to Texas. The proposal failed because Austin, as a municipal government, could not guarantee in advance that it would buy the output. Restrictions on bidding and not knowing the eventual cost of the product killed the deal.

Texas does not lack the engineering or manufacturing expertise to build renewable power systems – like wind and tidal turbines. Texas companies build all manner of technologically sophisticated equipment. Bell Helicopter, a Textron Company, and Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation produce helicopters. Thrustmaster of Texas manufactures commercial marine propulsion equipment. Lightning Aircraft designs, develops and manufactures engines and parts for the UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) industry. Sino Swearingen Aircraft Corporation manufactures jets. American Legend Aircraft and Mooney build airplanes. Superior Air Parts, a subsidiary of Thielert AG, manufactures aircraft engine replacement parts. Vought Aircraft Industries designs and manufactures major airframe structures. Fairchild Dornier engineers and manufactures jet aircraft. Fiberspar Corporation's spoolable fiber-reinforced pipe business designs and manufactures high-performance fiber-reinforced composite tubing used for windsurfing masts as well as oil and gas production equipment. Fletch Air, Inc. manufactures and distributes parts for several aircraft manufacturers. Our existing aerospace industries provide us a formidable base for future industries.

The knowledge, skills, and abilities exist in Texas to build renewable power systems. We can reduce our consumption of fossil fuels and our carbon emissions. Who will pull together these mind-boggling resources and make it happen? Ask around.


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NewEnergyFinance.com defines Renewable Power and Clean Energy Sectors

What is New Energy?


At New Energy Finance we define the following 16 sectors as making up the clean energy industry:


Renewable Energy & Bioenergy Sectors

* 1. Biofuels


Liquid transportation fuels including biodiesel and bioethanol. These can be derived from a range of biomass sources, including sugar cane, rape seed (canola), soybean oil or cellulose. Our database excludes producers of base biomass, but includes suppliers of everything from the processing technologies and equipment, through the logistics of distribution, to manufacturers of energy systems which are specially adapted for the use of biofuels and products, and the services on which they depend.


* 2. Biomass, solid waste and biogas


Production and consumption of solid and gaseous fuels derived from biomass. Solid biomass for the energy sector can include a number of specially-grown crops, such as elephant grass or coppiced willow, but it can also consist of crop residues such as straw. We include in this sector processors of other waste matter for energy generation, such as sewage waste, chemical by-products and biogas produced from municipal waste, as their exploitation often involves the same technologies as grown-for-purpose biomass. Increasingly we are seeing developers, generators and utilities enter this sector.


* 3. Geothermal


Geothermal power has long played a part in the energy mix of countries with obvious geothermal resources, such as Iceland and Japan. Recent advances in two areas, however, mean that geothermal energy can play an increasing role worldwide: new drilling techniques allow users to tap into resources that had been too deep to access; and new ways of extracting useful power from lower temperature geothermal fields allow productive use of resources that could not have been used economically in the past.


* 4. Mini-Hydro (<50MW)


There may seem little new about hydroelectric power. Indeed at New Energy Finance we don't cover large-scale hydroelectric power projects. However, there are interesting developments in small-scale and low-head hydro power, and even very small scale hydro solutions. Hydro power is undergoing a renaissance and has a lot to contribute to the deployment of renewable energy globally.


* 5. Marine

The marine sector covers all technologies relating to extraction of energy from the sea. Possibilities include waves and tide, either via tidal barrages or tidal flow generators. Note that exploitation of marine biomass would be categorised in biomass, rather than in this sector.


* 6. Solar

The Solar sector covers all technologies that capture energy directly from the sun, either using a photo-voltaic (PV) material, or via a passive technology such as a concentrator or stirling engine. The solar energy sector is already substantial - cost reductions through new technologies or through increased manufacturing scale should see it breaking into new areas of energy demand over the coming decades.


* 7. Wind


Wind is the renewable technology that has had the biggest impact on our energy usage patterns over the past decade. The next decade will see continued activity, particularly in developing countries and offshore. The Wind Energy Sector includes components and sub-assemblies for wind turbines as well as manufacturers of turbines themselves. A big part of this sector, however, consists of the various developers, generators, utilities and engineering firms that have sprung up to exploit opportunities to build wind farms around the world.


Power Architecture Sectors

* 8. Generation Efficiency


This sector covers technologies that result in a step-change improvement in the generating efficiency or reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of existing power generation equipment. Important technologies in this sector include breakthroughs in motor or generator design, as well as software, sensor and control technologies which result in step-change improvement. This sector includes breakthrough CHP technologies (i.e. that are more than just relocating traditional generating equipment closer to heat users).


* 9. Smart Distribution


As sources of power supply become more variable (many renewable sources are intermittent), and the importance of reducing grid losses becomes higher with higher power costs, so the significance of improving power distribution will grow. This sector includes a number of technologies that target such improvement, from the forecasting of renewable resource availability, through software to balance supply and demand or find grid faults, to technology that allows peak shifting or intelligent meter reading.


* 10. Power storage


Many renewable energy and emerging energy technologies are either intermittent, or have response curves that are unable to follow the dynamic demands that will be put on them when deployed. Batteries and other energy storage technologies therefore become key enablers for any shift to these technologies. We call the sector power storage in order to underline the fact that hydrogen storage is in the Hydrogen sector, even though we include here mechanical technologies like flywheels that are straight potential replacements for batteries.


* 11. Energy Efficiency and Demand Reduction


Power efficiency and demand reduction approaches may not strictly be part of the renewable energy and energy technology industry, but they are highly relevant to investors in the space. Shifts in our sources of energy over the coming 20 years must be accompanied by wholesale improvement in our energy efficiency. This sector covers a range of technologies that reduce the use of energy in retail and commercial buildings, including advanced insulation, building components and intelligent systems for managing power consumption. It also includes technologies focused on reducing the use of energy in a wide variety of industrial processes.


* 12. Carbon Capture and Sequestration


Given the very substantial energy appetites of China, India and the US, and the substantial amounts of coal and natural gas available in those countries, it is highly unlikely that they will move rapidly enough to clean and renewable energy sources. One type of technology may allow us to continue using these fuels without adding to the emissions of CO2. Carbon capture and sequestration technologies involve the separation of CO2 from the exhaust stream from the burning of fossil fuels, and its long-term storage, either in depleted oil and gas fields, under the ocean or elsewhere.


Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Sectors

* 13. Hydrogen


The hydrogen sector covers everything from the production and storage of hydrogen, through its distribution and the various technologies and applications in which it can be used. Hydrogen is not, of course, a renewable fuel source - it is only a carrier of energy, in the same way electricity is not a source but a carrier of power. But if produced renewably hydrogen looks like a promising candidate to replace fossil fuels in transport as these are depleted, and governments and corporations are investing accordingly.


* 14. Fuel Cells


Many observers believe that fuel cells will lie at the heart of any post-fossil energy architecture. Although they have been around for 150 years and their performance is not in doubt, their high manufacturing costs and low reliability mean that they have yet to capture any mass markets. A large number of companies and research initiatives are hoping to change that over the coming decade. We draw a distinction between the hydrogen industry and the fuel cell sector: fuel cells can burn a variety of hydrocarbon fuels, and hydrogen can be used by other systems, such as internal combustion engines. There is, however, substantial crossover between the two sectors


Other Sectors

* 15. Carbon Markets


The ratification of the Kyoto Protocol gave a boost to the European Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS). Elsewhere in the world other carbon markets are emerging, whether as a result of regulation or for voluntary trading. The carbon market is not part of the clean energy industry, but will significantly influence its development. The main companies participating in the energy-relevant aspects of the carbon market are logged in this sector.


* 16. Services & Support

The rapid growth of the clean energy industry will require the development of a complete sector of service companies dedicated to serving the needs of technology and equipment suppliers, owners of renewable energy and biofuels assets, and so on. In this sector we put providers of information and research (such as ourselves), specialised clean energy financial services companies, consultants and the like.


In addition to these 16 sectors, which make up the clean energy industry itself, the New Energy Finance Desktop includes details of other active and important organisations of two types: the general financial services industry, and the Governments, NGOs and policy-makers.

There is, of course, a futher sector which could contribute very significantly to reductions in greenhouse gas emissions: nuclear power. We don't take an absolutist anti-nuclear position - in fact we believe that nuclear power deserves a place in the energy mix of most developed countries - but we don't consider nuclear power to fall within our remit. Whatever a country's position on nuclear power, the need to implement renewable energy and new technologies throughout the remainder of its energy architecture remains as urgent. And unlike increasing the use of renewable energy sources, reliance on nuclear power will not improve the world's energy security.


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Southwestern Energy Consortium incl. XEL, UNS, PNW has RFP for 250 megawatt solar energy project in USA

A multi-state consortium of southwestern energy service providers is issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a utility-scale concentrating solar power plant. The plant would be owned by a third-party with consortium members each signing long-term purchase power agreements.

The size, design and location of the new solar project will be determined by the RFP submissions. It is expected to produce 250 megawatts and be located in either Arizona or Nevada. When completed, it would be the largest solar power plant in either state. A concentrating solar plant uses the sun to heat a liquid that can directly or indirectly drive a turbine.

The Southwest Energy Service Provider's Consortium for Solar Development (aka Joint Development Group) was formed with the goals of reducing solar energy costs and increasing efficiency through economies of scale. Members of the group include Arizona Electric Power Cooperative, Arizona Public Service, Salt River Project, Southern California Public Power Authority, Tucson Electric Power and Xcel Energy.

A copy of the RFP, which will be due March 19, 2008, is available at www.aps.com/rfp. A bidders' teleconference will take place at 10 a.m. on January 17, 2008. The call-in number will be posted with the RFP at the Web site.

More info at: Southwest Energy Consortium issues RFP for solar energy project


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Canadian Solar (CSIQ) may be the best-positioned Solar Stock

by Jack Yetiv, SeekingAlpha.com

In a recent article, I compared Canadian Solar (CSIQ) to First Solar (FSLR), Sunpower (SPWR) and Suntech Power (STP). I concluded that among these solars, CSIQ offers a far better risk-reward ratio than the other three stocks. In response to the article, a couple of posters asked if I would expand my comparison to other solar stocks, and I said I would. Here is the outcome of that analysis.

Before presenting the comparison, I want to discuss my assumptions, biases and methodology:

1) My biggest “bias” is that all things being equal, a lower PE (or, more accurately, PEG) among comparable companies wins this contest. Obviously, since things are not “all equal,” some adjustments must be made, but nevertheless, PEG is the primary driver of this comparison. If that is not a belief that you hold, this article won’t have much meaning to you.

2) This comparison is based more on facts that on projections, with one exception. I have calculated PEs against projected 2008 earnings obtained from either company guidance or the midpoint of analyst estimates. This was essential because in the solar space, a fast-growing-company’s trailing PE is not a meaningful number. I further thought it was reasonable to use forward (2008) PE because we are already into 2008, and therefore, visibility should be reasonable, at least for most of this year. Next, somewhat lowering the inherent error in using projections is the fact that I took the midpoint of analysts’ estimates, which should increase the reliability of the estimate. Next, even if analysts’ estimates turn out to be overoptimistic, that error is likely to impact all these companies fairly similarly, thus not altering the conclusion reached here. Finally, even a 20% change in the earnings estimate does not really alter the conclusion here, further reinforcing this analysis.

3) In my analysis, I put very little—if any—value in projections for 2009, or, perish the thought, 2010 or beyond. To me, given the range of possibilities on both macroeconomic (What will we have? Deep recession? Mild one? Soft landing? Business as usual?) and microeconomic (Will there be an oversupply of solar panels in 2009? Will global incentives increase, stay level or decrease?) fronts, NOBODY can reliably predict what the earnings will be for these companies in the 2009 calendar year (which basically ends two years from now).

It is enough of a stretch to guess where earnings will be in the fourth quarter of this year. Indeed, to highlight the unreliability of 2009 “estimates” (read “speculative guesses,”) one only needs look at the range of estimates for 2008 for some of these companies. For example, one analyst thinks Trina Solar (TSL) will earn $1.65 in 2008, while another believes TSL will earn $3.49 — more than double the lower value. Other companies also have a large spread, although I don’t think any company’s range of analyst estimates is as wide as TSL’s.

4) I have not included any information regarding analyst upgrades, downgrades, target prices, or recommendations, for several reasons. First, this is meant to be an objective analysis—and as can be seen from the spread in analyst estimates, the amount of subjectivity in analyst opinions is quite large. Second, I have for months disagreed with most analyst upgrades of several of the sexy names in the solar space, pushing their valuations—before 2007 was even over—to 50X 2009 EPS (I am, of course, thinking of FSLR, but a few other companies have been similarly hyped, without just cause, in my opinion—see my other article comparing CSIQ to these companies). To me, using 50X multipliers against EPS two years down the line is witchcraft, not financial analysis. Third, analysts’ opinions tend to be even worse at inflection points in the economy—and regardless of whether one believes we’re in a bear market or not, I think everyone agrees we are at an inflection point. Therefore, I provide these numbers as a springboard for further discussion and analysis by visitors to this site.

5) This is not meant to be a commentary on the solar space in general because that would take an article all by itself. Briefly, though, I believe that solar will do very well going forward, and that selected companies in this space will do even better. I believe that demand for PV panels will exceed supply over the next several years because I believe grid parity will be reached in stages and that the initial stages will come sooner than most people think and generate demand that is probably not yet appreciated. (I do believe ASPs will come down, but margin compression will not be severe because feedstock costs will drop and because the fabs will become more efficient.) In addition, I personally believe that the true cost of conventional power (“dirty electricity,” I like to call it) will start being recognized more and more, which will give renewable technologies (and especially solar) a continuing financial boost. Finally, I also believe that in the next year or two, total incentives around the world will increase collectively, and that incentives in the US will be renewed, if not expanded. Finally, I believe that within 5 years, incentives will largely be unnecessary because many locales will have already reached grid parity by then, which will, of course, constitute its own incentive.However, this article concludes that some of the companies in the solar space are such compelling values that even if they were not in a fast-growing space (that I believe solar will be), they would still constitute a bargain.

Having reviewed my assumptions, I want to present the spreadsheet I created to compare 11 solar companies. Due to space limitations, I only show a few columns of information.

The first column shows market cap, ranging from $200 million for AKNS to $16.5 billion for WFR. The second column has two pieces of information—the first number shows 2007 sales followed by earnings in 2007 (or, more accurately, estimated sales and earnings since the 4th quarter hasn’t yet been reported by most companies). The third and fourth columns show 2008 estimated sales and earnings, respectively. The fifth column shows closing price on 1-25-08, and the 6th and 7th columns calculate forward P/E and forward P/S (1-25 price against 2008 numbers). Although I initially input these companies in random order, I then sorted them in order of PE.

Although I present AKNS on this spreadsheet because people have asked me to analyze it, this company does not belong in a comparison of companies based on PE because it is not expected to have any earnings in 2008. This is not meant to be a negative comment against AKNS—since I have not carefully evaluated the company nor its prospects, I cannot really comment on it. I would say, however, that because it isn’t expected to have earnings this year, and because even its sales are quite small (about $35 million in 2007), it is a much more speculative play than the top-rated companies on this spreadsheet.

As is obvious from this spreadsheet, Canadian Solar (CSIQ) stands alone, in several respects.

See Spreadsheet and full article at: Financial Analysis of Solar Energy Stocks


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Energy Conversion Devices (ENER) soars on Q2 2008 results

Energy Conversion Devices; ENER Announces Second Quarter 2008 Financial Results


Consolidated Revenues Increase 20 Percent on Strong UNI-SOLAR(R) Sales- Solar Production Increases Nearly 50 Percent- Company Reaffirms Sustainable Profitability in Fiscal Q4

February 07, 2008

ROCHESTER HILLS, Mich., Feb. 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Energy Conversion Devices, Inc. (ECD) , the leading global manufacturer of solar thin-film laminate products, today reported financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2008, ended December 31, 2007.

Revenues in the second quarter of fiscal 2008 were $56.4 million, up 20 percent from first quarter revenues of $47.0 million and up 146 percent from $22.9 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2007. Revenues from the company's solar business were $51.7 million, or 92 percent of total revenues. Second quarter solar revenues represented a 23 percent sequential increase and a 169 percent increase over the prior-year quarter. Gross margins in the solar business were 19.2 percent.

ECD reported a net loss for the quarter of $5.4 million, or $0.14 per share, compared to a net loss of $7.6 million, or $0.19 per share, in the first quarter of fiscal 2008, and a net loss of $2.9 million, or $0.07 per share, in the year-ago period. Second quarter results included $2.5 million, or $0.06 per share, of restructuring charges principally for severance and other costs associated with corporate staff reductions and management transition. Results in the quarter were also impacted by approximately $2.3 million, or $0.06 per share, of preproduction costs.

For the first six months of fiscal 2008, total revenues were $103.5 million compared with $50.1 million for the first six months of fiscal 2007, an increase of 106 percent. Revenues from the solar business totaled $93.6 million in the first six months of fiscal 2008, a 118 percent increase compared with $43.0 million last year.

For the six-month period, the company reported a net loss of $13.0 million, or $0.33 per share, compared with the previous year's net loss of $5.2 million, or $0.13 per share. Restructuring costs for the first six months of fiscal 2008 amounted to $5.1 million, or $0.13 per share. Preproduction costs for the period were $4.8 million, or $0.12 per share.

Mark Morelli, ECD's president and CEO, commented, "We are excited with the progress we are making in growing revenues and reinventing the company around operational excellence. During the quarter, our production of thin-film solar laminates expanded by 50 percent over the first quarter, and tripled over last year's second quarter. At the same time, our sales pipeline continues to run ahead of production capacity as new and repeat customers in key markets around the world have come to recognize the significant advantages and attractive return on investment of our UNI-SOLAR laminates. As a result, we remain confident that we will reach sustainable profitability by the fiscal fourth quarter."

The company's manufacturing ramp continues on schedule, and United Solar Ovonic produced 15.4 MW in the quarter and 25.8 MW for the first half of the fiscal year. No polysilicon is required for the manufacturing of UNI-SOLAR laminates; therefore, production is not affected by polysilicon supply. Nameplate capacity currently stands at 118 MW.

Sanjeev Kumar, ECD's CFO, said, "United Solar's gross margin of 19.2 percent for the quarter exceeded our forecast of 15 to 16 percent due to improved production ramp and operational efficiencies. We continue to see excellent top-line momentum going forward, which will begin to appear below the line in the coming quarters as we complete our restructuring and management transition."

"As a result of our significant cost reductions in R&D, Ovonic Materials has reached breakeven, and we expect it to remain so going forward. Second quarter, consolidated SG&A costs increased about $6 million from the second quarter last year as a result of investments we are making in the right staff and expertise to grow our solar business. The key takeaway is that these costs are increasing at a much slower rate than our overall sales and productivity. These line items now constitute about 23% of revenues and will continue to decline as a percentage of revenues over time as we successfully scale our operations," Kumar added.

Key Developments

-- A multiple-year supply agreement to sell up to 21.15 MW of UNI-SOLAR
laminates to Enfinity Management, one of Europe's largest investors in
solar PV installations. Enfinity will use the UNI-SOLAR products for
rooftop installations in Europe.
-- An agreement with SunEdison, North America's largest solar energy
service provider, to provide up to 17 MW of UNI-SOLAR laminates for use
on large-scale rooftop installations on industrial and commercial
buildings, principally in the US.
-- The hiring of key senior management, including Marcelino Susas, Vice
President, Strategic Marketing; Corby Whitaker, Vice President, Global
Sales; Joseph Conroy, Vice President, Operations; and Tom Schultz, Vice
President, Human Resources - United Solar Ovonic Operations.
-- The signing of several sales agreements in South Korea, one of the
world's fastest growing solar markets, including a take-or-pay
commitment from AirTec for 25 MW in calendar 2008 and 2009.
-- The completion of a $55 million credit facility. In addition, the
company had approximately $155 million in cash and cash equivalents at
the end of the quarter.

Narrowing Full-Year Revenue Guidance; Reiterating Sustainable Profitability in Fiscal Q4

The company narrowed its prior revenue guidance provided at the end of the fiscal first quarter. Fiscal year 2008 consolidated revenues are now expected to be $235 to $245 million versus prior guidance of $220 to $245 million. Fiscal year United Solar product sales are expected to be $215 to $225 million versus prior guidance of $205 to $225 million. Anticipated full-year preproduction costs are in the range of $8 to $9 million. Restructuring costs for fiscal year 2008 are expected to be $7.0 to $8.0 million versus prior guidance of $3 to $5 million due to additional staff reductions and other cost-saving initiatives. The company is reiterating its expectation that it will reach sustainable profitability in the fiscal fourth quarter.

For the fiscal third quarter ending March 31, 2008, total consolidated revenues are expected to be between $65 to $70 million, of which solar product sales are expected to be $60 to $65 million. Gross margins on solar product sales for the fiscal third quarter are expected to be approximately 21 to 23 percent, reflecting further improvement in operational performance and the ramp up of the company's first Greenville manufacturing facility. Restructuring costs for the third quarter are expected to be in the range of $2.0 to $3.0 million. The company anticipates preproduction costs of approximately $1.5 to $2.5 million in the quarter.

Additionally, the company is increasing its guidance on United Solar gross margins for the fiscal fourth quarter to approximately 23 to 25 percent.

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January Roundup, Alternative Energy Investing; Solar, Windpower, Geothermal

January 2008 was a wild ride for solar power stocks and other alternative energy investments, with many reaching alltime highs early in the month, only to fall 25% to 50% or more to hit 52 week lows and crash through support levels and trendlines. A lot of the air has been taken out of the sector these past few weeks, making it an excellent time to begin a dollar cost averaging program into a blend of managed and index alternative energy investment funs.



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