Specialist PV equipment supplier, GT Advanced Technologies (GTAT) said it would exit the Directional Solidification System (DSS) market altogether due to market conditions that are not expected to recover sufficiently to justify continued involvement in the sector.
Overcapacity, weak demand and uncompetitive production have forced around 90% of polysilicon producers in China to suspend production, according to news reports in China.
UK-based solar wafer producer, PV Crystalox Solar will implement a significant reduction in its workforce, while discontinuing its polysilicon operations in Germany and heavily cut ingot production in the UK and wafer production in Germany.
Having recently introduced its latest ENLIGHT polyolefin PV module encapsulant films, Dow Chemical has said it will be further developing the films and adding manufacturing capacity at its integrated site in Schkopau, Germany, in 2013.
Although shipments increased 5.8% in Q3 2012, compared with the previous quarter, China-based PV manufacturer, ReneSola had declining ASP’s that resulted in revenue down 6.4% q-on-q.
Solar material producer 3M’s tender offer to buy all issued and outstanding shares of ceramics firm Ceradyne common stock was completed on 27 November with a price of US$35 per share.
Shipments of both polysilicon and solar wafers at GCL-Poly, China’s largest producer, fell significantly in the third quarter of 201 underlining the overall weakness in demand from major tier 1 module manufacturing customers based in China.
Specialty metal and chemical products producer 5N Plus has opened a new recycling facility within the Kulim High Technology Park in Malaysia, completed under budget.
Silicon crystallisation equipment supplier PVA TePla generated revenue of €83.7 million in the first nine months of 2012, slightly higher than the same period a year ago when revenue reached €77.3 million.
