Conergy cancels long-term wafer contract; transfers PV plants to MEMC

Share

Initially due to run out in 2018, the two companies are said to have come to an agreement over the early termination of the 10 year US$600 million take or pay contract, meaning Germany-based Conergy can now purchase wafers at "fair market prices." Already in 2010, a reduction in the size of the supply contract was agreed upon.

As compensation, MEMC will retain a $21.2 million cash security provided by Conergy under the terms of the contract. MEMC has also said it will pay back a refundable capacity reservation deposit in an approximately equal amount. Meanwhile, Conergy must pay $5.5 million in outstanding receivables by next July 1. It adds that approximately $29.5 million worth of securities from Commerzbank AG are now available for its operational business.

In a statement released by MEMC, it was also said that Conergy will transfer operations and maintenance contracts for photovoltaic plants worth around 175 MW in Germany, Italy and Spain. "This part of the arrangement is subject to MEMC's due diligence of the contracts which the parties expect to occur over the next 60-90 days. There can be no assurance that the parties will conclude this transfer successfully," added the statement.

As a consequence of the compensation, Conergy now expects a negative 2012 EBITDA in the mid double-digit million euro range.

In a statement released, it said, "In light of the termination of the agreement and the current course of business, the Management Board is currently also assessing whether the development of earnings could lead to a loss amounting to the half of the stated share capital of the company according to Sec 92 Para 1 German Stock Companies Act (Aktiengesetz). If this should be the case, Conergy will immediately fulfill its obligation to call in an extraordinary AGM."

The company added that the move represents another key step in its strategic realignment, which has already seen Bosch talking over its voltwerk electronics GmbH photovoltaic inverter company, and production closures in Frankfurt (Oder).

This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.

Popular content

Switzerland authorizes removable PV plant on railway track

04 October 2024 Swiss startup Sun-ways is planning to build a 18 kW pilot PV system between the racks of a 100-m linear section of a railway line in the Swiss canton...

Share

Leave a Reply

Please be mindful of our community standards.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

By submitting this form you agree to pv magazine using your data for the purposes of publishing your comment.

Your personal data will only be disclosed or otherwise transmitted to third parties for the purposes of spam filtering or if this is necessary for technical maintenance of the website. Any other transfer to third parties will not take place unless this is justified on the basis of applicable data protection regulations or if pv magazine is legally obliged to do so.

You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Otherwise, your data will be deleted if pv magazine has processed your request or the purpose of data storage is fulfilled.

Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy.