Neo Solar to shut Hsinchu line; boost Vietnam capacity

Solar cell maker Neo Solar Power Corp  yesterday said it plans to close down a small-scale solar cell module assembly line in Hsinchu later this month to improve cost efficiency.Manufacturing costs at the Hsinchu assembly line are higher as the plant has a small capacity of 60 megawatts per year, Neo Solar said in a statement filed with the Taiwan Stock Exchange.The line “cannot achieve economies of scale,” Neo Solar said.Neo Solar plans to shut down the production line when the rental contract ends, the statement said.

“To enhance the company’s cost competitiveness, the company plans to allocate solar cell module capacities to Vietnam,” Neo Solar said in the statement.The company is installing equipment in that nation and it expects the new production line to to begin operations at the end of this year, the statement said.In the initial stage, the new solar cell module production line in Vietnam would have an annual capacity of 500 megawatts to 600 megawatts, the company said.The capacity allocation is one of the major factors that boosted the company’s operating expense ratio to 10.07 percent last quarter from 6.56 percent in the previous quarter.

Neo Solar posted a net profit for last quarter of NT$109 million (US$3.33 million), thanks to higher average selling prices and higher solar cell module shipments.Neo Solar shares yesterday rose for the fourth consecutive trading session in Taipei, soaring 2.3 percent to close at NT$17.8.

Source:taipeitimes.