Solar cell manufacturer Taiwan Solar Energy Corp (元晶太陽能) yesterday said it plans to slash 20 percent of its workforce to streamline production as it is struggling to ride through an industry slump.
Based on the company’s headcount of 1,375 as of April, about 275 employees would be laid off.
An overcapacity-driven downturn worsened in June after China significantly reduced solar subsidies, curtailing solar panel installations by 30 percent, the company said earlier this year.
“In response to short-term volatility in the global solar market, the company is adjusting its product strategy to concentrate on manufacturing higher-margin PERC [passivated emitter rear contact] solar cells and solar modules,” Taiwan Solar Energy said in a statement to the Taiwan Stock Exchange yesterday.
However, the company is stemming losses from its low-and-mid-end solar cells, it said.
To accelerate its turnaround efforts, Taiwan Solar Energy is adjusting its workforce and would help affected employees relocate to the company’s solar module factory in Pingtung County or help foreign workers return home.
The company would also help affected employees secure jobs with its local peers, the statement said.
The layoff plan would help the company narrow its losses and enhance its competitiveness, aiding its ongoing transformation into a solar power plant builder, Taiwan Solar Energy said.
The adjustment is to be completed this quarter, Taiwan Solar Energy said.
Losses in the first half of the year widened to NT$517.89 million (US$16.75 million) from NT$441.67 million in the same period last year, while revenue plunged 40 percent year-on-year to NT$2.96 billion in the first nine months from NT$4.94 billion a year earlier, the company said.
Taiwan Solar Energy is the latest in a slew of local solar firms seeking to survive the industry downturn by cutting jobs.
Last month, solar cell maker Motech Industries Inc (茂迪) terminated more than 300 foreign labor contracts and 60 local jobs. Later that month, solar wafer supplier Green Energy Co (綠能科技) also announced a 19 percent headcount reduction.
Meanwhile the Ministry of Labor yesterday announced that 3,490 workers were on furlough as of Monday, the most since December 2015.
The figure grew by 3,006 from the ministry’s previous semimonthly update on Sept. 30, when 484 workers were on unpaid leave, the data showed.
The surge was the result of a company in the electrical and mechanical industry putting more than 2,000 of its workers on furlough pending a production adjustment, the ministry said, without naming the company.
Additional reporting by CNA
UNCERTAINTY: Innolux activated a stringent supply chain management mechanism, as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic, to ensure optimal inventory levels for customers Flat-panel display makers AUO Corp (友達) and Innolux Corp (群創) yesterday said that about 12 to 20 percent of their display business is at risk of potential US tariffs and that they would relocate production or shipment destinations to mitigate the levies’ effects. US tariffs would have a direct impact of US$200 million on AUO’s revenue, company chairman Paul Peng (彭雙浪) told reporters on the sidelines of the Touch Taiwan trade show in Taipei yesterday. That would make up about 12 percent of the company’s overall revenue. To cope with the tariff uncertainty, AUO plans to allocate its production to manufacturing facilities in
TAKING STOCK: A Taiwanese cookware firm in Vietnam urged customers to assess inventory or place orders early so shipments can reach the US while tariffs are paused Taiwanese businesses in Vietnam are exploring alternatives after the White House imposed a 46 percent import duty on Vietnamese goods, following US President Donald Trump’s announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on the US’ trading partners. Lo Shih-liang (羅世良), chairman of Brico Industry Co (裕茂工業), a Taiwanese company that manufactures cast iron cookware and stove components in Vietnam, said that more than 40 percent of his business was tied to the US market, describing the constant US policy shifts as an emotional roller coaster. “I work during the day and stay up all night watching the news. I’ve been following US news until 3am
COLLABORATION: Given Taiwan’s key position in global supply chains, the US firm is discussing strategies with local partners and clients to deal with global uncertainties Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) yesterday said it is meeting with local ecosystem partners, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), to discuss strategies, including long-term manufacturing, to navigate uncertainties such as US tariffs, as Taiwan occupies an important position in global supply chains. AMD chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) told reporters that Taiwan is an important part of the chip designer’s ecosystem and she is discussing with partners and customers in Taiwan to forge strong collaborations on different areas during this critical period. AMD has just become the first artificial-intelligence (AI) server chip customer of TSMC to utilize its advanced
Six years ago, LVMH’s billionaire CEO Bernard Arnault and US President Donald Trump cut the blue ribbon on a factory in rural Texas that would make designer handbags for Louis Vuitton, one of the world’s best-known luxury brands. However, since the high-profile opening, the factory has faced a host of problems limiting production, 11 former Louis Vuitton employees said. The site has consistently ranked among the worst-performing for Louis Vuitton globally, “significantly” underperforming other facilities, said three former Louis Vuitton workers and a senior industry source, who cited internal rankings shared with staff. The plant’s problems — which have not
RSS