[Top News] from [REUTERS]
[Green Business]
Suntech, Trina Solar see demand rising; shares up
Thu Nov 19, 2009 2:36pm EST
By Matt Daily and Laura Isensee
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Chinese solar companies Suntech Power Holdings Co and Trina Solar Ltd posted higher-than-expected earnings on Thursday and said demand for the clean energy systems was rebounding after a dismal year.
Prices for the photovoltaic cells and modules that turn sunlight into electricity have plummeted by as much as 50 percent over the past 12 months because of a glut of production and difficulty in obtaining financing for new projects.
That price drop has helped spark demand, Suntech Chief Executive Officer Zhengrong Shi told a conference call, particularly in countries where solar developers were rushing to start projects before potential cuts to renewable energy incentives at the beginning of 2010.
Suntech raised its full-year forecast for shipments and said it expected them to rise by at least 10 percent in the fourth quarter from the third quarter. For 2010, shipments would rise at least 75 percent over 2009 levels, it said.
"This is the quarter where we really felt like Suntech has really emerged out of this consolidation, that was triggered by the financial crisis, relatively strong compared to many of its peer companies," Suntech's Chief Strategy Officer Steven Chan said in an interview.
Chan said the company is quite optimistic that it can reach its forecast for shipments to grow next year.
"That's really backed by the visibility that we've gotten from our customers for shipments next year. It's looking quite quite healthy in terms of the industry's recovery," Chan said.
The company, one of the world's largest solar manufacturers, saw third-quarter earnings slump by 30 percent to $29.8 million from a year earlier as revenue fell 20 percent to $473.1 million.
Still, the profit of 16 cents per American Depository Share topped the 8 cents that analysts had forecast, and Suntech shares were up 4.8 percent in noon trading.
Suntech expects prices for its panels to fall 10 percent in the fourth quarter but forecast them to stabilize or rise slightly in the first quarter of 2010.
Chan attributed that to the fact that the industry has stabilized from a price point of view but also because customers are starting to prefer Suntech over other brands.
TRINA SHIPMENTS HIT RECORD
Trina said its shipments had nearly doubled to a record 123 megawatts in the third quarter, although the steep declines in prices had cut its revenues by 14 percent.
The company, which raised $142.5 million in a public stock offering in August, raised the low end of its full-year sales forecast to 380 MW from 350 MW while keeping the upper end at 400 MW.
Increasing global demand also prompted the company to increase its production capacity of cells and modules from 600 MW by end-2009 to between 850 MW and 950 MW by the end of 2010.
Trina's earnings rose to $40.1 million, or $1.29 per ADS, easily topping the 76 cents per share that analysts had forecast, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Gross margin was 28.5 percent in the third quarter, up from 27.4 percent in the second quarter and 22.4 percent a year earlier.
Shares of Suntech were up 4.8 percent to $15.81 in noon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, while Trina climbed 2.9 percent to $43.99.
(Reporting by Matt Daily and Laura Isensee in Los Angeles; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Tim Dobbyn)
[Green Business]
Big Oil to Congress: Expand offshore drilling
Thu Nov 19, 2009 2:42pm EST
By Tom Doggett
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Executives from two major oil companies told Congress on Thursday that the U.S. government should open more offshore areas to oil and natural gas drilling so America can rely less on foreign suppliers.
"There is some hypocrisy in locking these resources away while relying on resources produced in other countries," said Marvin Odum, the President of Shell Oil Co., the U.S. unit of Royal Dutch Shell Plc.
"Instead, we should embrace policies that provide access to our own oil and gas resources," Odum told the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee at hearing on offshore energy production.
The U.S. Interior Department is considering a five-year plan that might open new offshore areas to drilling.
But many environmental groups oppose expanded offshore drilling, fearing oil spills could result, especially when energy companies move into the deeper waters of the Gulf of Mexico where platforms are susceptible to hurricanes.
"The potentially irreversible effects of oil pollution on marine ecosystems and their dependent economies do not justify the potential short-term economic gains that might accrue from offshore oil and gas development," said Jeffrey Short with the international marine conservation group Oceana.
The industry says improved drilling technology allows oil companies to search for supplies in an environmentally friendly way.
"These advances enable more production while reducing environmental impacts and allowing for efficient use of existing facilities and infrastructure," David Rainey, Vice President for Gulf of Mexico Exploration at BP America, the U.S. unit of BP Plc.
"Finding oil and gas for the future requires exploring in areas that are ever deeper and more complex," Rainey said.
The executives also said oil and gas supplies will still be needed even while the United States and other countries develop plans to fight global warming and promote use of more renewable energy sources like wind and solar power.
"We must stop ignoring the fact that oil and gas will play a major part in meeting America's energy demands for several decades as we transition to a more sustainable energy future," said Shell's Odum.
(Reporting by Tom Doggett; Editing by David Gregorio)
[Green Business]
Australia's Rudd faces showdown on carbon vote
Fri Nov 20, 2009 2:46am EST
By James Grubel
CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's parliament votes next week on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's plan for a sweeping carbon trade scheme with hopes it will finally win approval after two years of divisive debate.
Rudd wants the scheme passed in the last four parliamentary sitting days of the year to help generate momentum for global climate talks next month in Copenhagen, which are now unlikely to set legally-binding global greenhouse targets.
The debate is being closely watched overseas, particularly in the United States, where lawmakers are debating their own proposals. Neighboring New Zealand is also trying to pass revised emissions trading laws.
"This time next week I could be sitting here ... and we could have for the first time legislation which starts to reduce Australia's contribution to climate change," Climate Change Minister Penny Wong told Australian radio on Friday.
The government and opposition are expected to announce agreed changes to the scheme early next week. That deal should guarantee the extra seven votes the government needs to push the package through a hostile Senate upper house.
Agreement on the carbon laws would strengthen Rudd's standing as he heads into an election year in 2010, and divide a dispirited opposition struggling for support in the polls. Elections are due late next year.
A defeat would give Rudd the consolation prize of destroying his rival's standing, after opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull put his leadership on the line over his wish to cut a deal with the government on carbon trading.
The scheme, due to start in July 2011 and cover 75 percent of emissions, was a key promise from Rudd's first election victory in November 2007. Laws to set it up were rejected by the Senate a first time in August.
If the laws are defeated a second time next week, Rudd will have a legal trigger to call a snap election, with opinion polls showing he would win with an increased majority. Rudd has regularly played down the possibility of an early election.
But Turnbull's party is deeply divided on the issue, and up to 30 of his 87 lawmakers are threatening to defy their leader and vote against any deal, prompting speculation he may soon face a leadership challenge.
(Editing by Michael Perry and Ron Popeski)
[Green Business]
Suntech, Trina Solar see demand rising; shares up
Thu Nov 19, 2009 2:36pm EST
By Matt Daily and Laura Isensee
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Chinese solar companies Suntech Power Holdings Co and Trina Solar Ltd posted higher-than-expected earnings on Thursday and said demand for the clean energy systems was rebounding after a dismal year.
Prices for the photovoltaic cells and modules that turn sunlight into electricity have plummeted by as much as 50 percent over the past 12 months because of a glut of production and difficulty in obtaining financing for new projects.
That price drop has helped spark demand, Suntech Chief Executive Officer Zhengrong Shi told a conference call, particularly in countries where solar developers were rushing to start projects before potential cuts to renewable energy incentives at the beginning of 2010.
Suntech raised its full-year forecast for shipments and said it expected them to rise by at least 10 percent in the fourth quarter from the third quarter. For 2010, shipments would rise at least 75 percent over 2009 levels, it said.
"This is the quarter where we really felt like Suntech has really emerged out of this consolidation, that was triggered by the financial crisis, relatively strong compared to many of its peer companies," Suntech's Chief Strategy Officer Steven Chan said in an interview.
Chan said the company is quite optimistic that it can reach its forecast for shipments to grow next year.
"That's really backed by the visibility that we've gotten from our customers for shipments next year. It's looking quite quite healthy in terms of the industry's recovery," Chan said.
The company, one of the world's largest solar manufacturers, saw third-quarter earnings slump by 30 percent to $29.8 million from a year earlier as revenue fell 20 percent to $473.1 million.
Still, the profit of 16 cents per American Depository Share topped the 8 cents that analysts had forecast, and Suntech shares were up 4.8 percent in noon trading.
Suntech expects prices for its panels to fall 10 percent in the fourth quarter but forecast them to stabilize or rise slightly in the first quarter of 2010.
Chan attributed that to the fact that the industry has stabilized from a price point of view but also because customers are starting to prefer Suntech over other brands.
TRINA SHIPMENTS HIT RECORD
Trina said its shipments had nearly doubled to a record 123 megawatts in the third quarter, although the steep declines in prices had cut its revenues by 14 percent.
The company, which raised $142.5 million in a public stock offering in August, raised the low end of its full-year sales forecast to 380 MW from 350 MW while keeping the upper end at 400 MW.
Increasing global demand also prompted the company to increase its production capacity of cells and modules from 600 MW by end-2009 to between 850 MW and 950 MW by the end of 2010.
Trina's earnings rose to $40.1 million, or $1.29 per ADS, easily topping the 76 cents per share that analysts had forecast, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Gross margin was 28.5 percent in the third quarter, up from 27.4 percent in the second quarter and 22.4 percent a year earlier.
Shares of Suntech were up 4.8 percent to $15.81 in noon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, while Trina climbed 2.9 percent to $43.99.
(Reporting by Matt Daily and Laura Isensee in Los Angeles; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Tim Dobbyn)
[Green Business]
Big Oil to Congress: Expand offshore drilling
Thu Nov 19, 2009 2:42pm EST
By Tom Doggett
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Executives from two major oil companies told Congress on Thursday that the U.S. government should open more offshore areas to oil and natural gas drilling so America can rely less on foreign suppliers.
"There is some hypocrisy in locking these resources away while relying on resources produced in other countries," said Marvin Odum, the President of Shell Oil Co., the U.S. unit of Royal Dutch Shell Plc.
"Instead, we should embrace policies that provide access to our own oil and gas resources," Odum told the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee at hearing on offshore energy production.
The U.S. Interior Department is considering a five-year plan that might open new offshore areas to drilling.
But many environmental groups oppose expanded offshore drilling, fearing oil spills could result, especially when energy companies move into the deeper waters of the Gulf of Mexico where platforms are susceptible to hurricanes.
"The potentially irreversible effects of oil pollution on marine ecosystems and their dependent economies do not justify the potential short-term economic gains that might accrue from offshore oil and gas development," said Jeffrey Short with the international marine conservation group Oceana.
The industry says improved drilling technology allows oil companies to search for supplies in an environmentally friendly way.
"These advances enable more production while reducing environmental impacts and allowing for efficient use of existing facilities and infrastructure," David Rainey, Vice President for Gulf of Mexico Exploration at BP America, the U.S. unit of BP Plc.
"Finding oil and gas for the future requires exploring in areas that are ever deeper and more complex," Rainey said.
The executives also said oil and gas supplies will still be needed even while the United States and other countries develop plans to fight global warming and promote use of more renewable energy sources like wind and solar power.
"We must stop ignoring the fact that oil and gas will play a major part in meeting America's energy demands for several decades as we transition to a more sustainable energy future," said Shell's Odum.
(Reporting by Tom Doggett; Editing by David Gregorio)
[Green Business]
Australia's Rudd faces showdown on carbon vote
Fri Nov 20, 2009 2:46am EST
By James Grubel
CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's parliament votes next week on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's plan for a sweeping carbon trade scheme with hopes it will finally win approval after two years of divisive debate.
Rudd wants the scheme passed in the last four parliamentary sitting days of the year to help generate momentum for global climate talks next month in Copenhagen, which are now unlikely to set legally-binding global greenhouse targets.
The debate is being closely watched overseas, particularly in the United States, where lawmakers are debating their own proposals. Neighboring New Zealand is also trying to pass revised emissions trading laws.
"This time next week I could be sitting here ... and we could have for the first time legislation which starts to reduce Australia's contribution to climate change," Climate Change Minister Penny Wong told Australian radio on Friday.
The government and opposition are expected to announce agreed changes to the scheme early next week. That deal should guarantee the extra seven votes the government needs to push the package through a hostile Senate upper house.
Agreement on the carbon laws would strengthen Rudd's standing as he heads into an election year in 2010, and divide a dispirited opposition struggling for support in the polls. Elections are due late next year.
A defeat would give Rudd the consolation prize of destroying his rival's standing, after opposition leader Malcolm Turnbull put his leadership on the line over his wish to cut a deal with the government on carbon trading.
The scheme, due to start in July 2011 and cover 75 percent of emissions, was a key promise from Rudd's first election victory in November 2007. Laws to set it up were rejected by the Senate a first time in August.
If the laws are defeated a second time next week, Rudd will have a legal trigger to call a snap election, with opinion polls showing he would win with an increased majority. Rudd has regularly played down the possibility of an early election.
But Turnbull's party is deeply divided on the issue, and up to 30 of his 87 lawmakers are threatening to defy their leader and vote against any deal, prompting speculation he may soon face a leadership challenge.
(Editing by Michael Perry and Ron Popeski)
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