SolarWorld believes it can double U.S. sales
By Erik Siemers, Business Journal staff writer
Business Journal staff writer
SolarWorld AG said international shipments increased in the first half, thanks to continued growth from the company's Hillsboro-based U.S. operations.
SolarWorld AG on Thursday said it believes it can more than double its U.S. sales in 2011.
The German maker of crystalline solar power technology, which keeps its U.S. headquarters in Hillsboro, grew global revenue last year by nearly 29 percent to $1.8 billion.
Though it didn’t break out U.S. sales figures, the percentage of sales that came from outside its core German market grew 14 points to 59 percent.
Over the next two years, it hopes international markets will account for 75 percent of all sales, with a large chunk of that coming from the U.S.
That would be a welcome development in Hillsboro, where SolarWorld last year expanded its plant to 500 megawatts of production capacity and added module assembly alongside its photovoltaic wafer-making capabilities.
A doubling of U.S. sales isn't likely to mean any more expansions at the Hillsboro plant.
SolarWorld doesn’t disclose details on production rates, but spokesman Ben Santarris said the Hillsboro plant isn’t operating at capacity.
In addition to ramping up production rates, SolarWorld hopes to increase the number of panels it makes that are destined for the U.S. market.
As recently as a year ago, as little as one-third of SolarWorld products made domestically stayed in the U.S., with most heading to more mature European markets.
“When we committed to doing 500 mw of capacity back in 2007, there wasn’t demand to accommodate that kind of production,” Santarris said. “Now (U.S.) demand is quickly coming closer to our production rates.”
SolarWorld CEO Frank Asbeck is bullish on the solar’s prospects as the energy of the future.
“Japan is experiencing a disaster of biblical proportions. This shows that we have to leave behind the aberration of nuclear power and move step by step toward full energy supply from renewable resources,” Asbeck said in a news release. “SolarWorld will show technologically pioneering ways of using solar energy and will continue to grow as a global company.”
@ErikSiemers | esiemers@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3418
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