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Technology Stocks : Semi Equipment Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Return to Sender who wrote (53962)	9/29/2011 9:33:56 AM
From: Sam	1 Recommendation Respond to of 95536

Possible large price drop of polysilicon may cause significant impact Nuying Huang, Taipei; Jackie Chang, DIGITIMES [Tuesday 27 September 2011] digitimes.com The solar market has been expecting the price of polysilicon to decrease in the fourth quarter. Industry sources pointed out that if the price of polysilicon falls to US$35/kg, many small- and medium-size firms may go out of business. Industry sources noted that there are currently around 60 polysilicon providers in China, but once the price hits US$35/kg, it is likely that only 5-6 firms will survive. Industry observers stated that most polysilicon firms in China have operating costs around US$40-45/kg, and the price of US$35/kg will suffice. There are currently around 60 polysilicon suppliers in China. However, until 2011, a large percentage of demand in China has been fulfilled by imports from international firms. The small- and medium-size polysilicon firms in China have been thriving at the spot market because in the past, the lowest price of polysilicon was around US$50/kg and supply was still insufficient to meet the demand. Before the rise of the solar market in 2004, the biggest customer for polysilicon suppliers were semiconductor firms. The shortage of supply began to appear when the solar market began to expand in 2004. The spot price of polysilicon in 2004 was still around US$30-40/kg, but in 2008, the spot price hiked to a historical high of US$500/kg. After the financial crisis in 2009, the price dropped back to US$50-60/kg. The polysilicon segment has been seen as the most profitable in the supply chain because costs are estimated at around US$20-30/kg, causing many China-based firms to enter the market.