Photovoltaic news and pv jobs

Silicio Solar stops production

Due to the current weak market conditions, Spanish company Silicio Solar is about to halt its solar ingot und wafer production for at least three months. The future for the 800 employees is uncertain.

Around 800 employees could be affected.

Silico Solar

"The production will be stopped by the end of November," Carolina Muñoz, assistant to Silicio Solar’s executive board, told pv magazine. The discontinuation will last at least until February 2012. "We don’t know anything about what might happen after then," she continued.

As such, there are big concerns among the employees that they might all lose their jobs. The reasons for the production break are the unfavourable market conditions, Muñoz said.

According to Spanish newspapers, the Silicio Solar board estimates that the decline of wafer prices within the last 12 months is between 50 and 60 percent.

Silicio Solar started the production of crystalline wafer and ingots in Puertollano in 2005. Its capacity is reported to be in the range of 300 megawatts, however, concrete production numbers are not disclosed.

Puertollano is one of the solar industrial clusters of Spain. It is located near Ciudad Real in the Autonomous Region of Castilla-La Mancha. According to Miss Muñoz, 100 percent owner of the company is Ukrainian industry group, Pillar. There was no one available for further statements at the Pillar headquarters in Amsterdam, however.