Suntech Shakes Up Top Brass

Its COO Johnson Chiang’s stint was cut short on Tuesday, July 8. Chiang had been with the company since November 2005. Chiang’s duties have been taken over by Suntech’s Chairman and CEO Zhengrong Shi and Guangchun Zhang, VP of manufacturing technology and quality.

While Zhang will oversee Suntech's crystalline silicon PV manufacturing operations in China, Shi will temporarily be at the helm of the Shanghai thin film plant, KSL Kuttler and BIPV manufacturing operations at Suntech Japan.

Suntech designs, develops, manufactures and markets an array of PV cells and modules. It also provides PV system integration services.

The company’s operational shake-up is an effort to boost lukewarm fortunes of the world's largest crystalline silicon solar module manufacturer. In the first quarter of fiscal 2009, revenues fell 27% and 24%, from the year-ago and sequential quarters, respectively.

The future of the geographically diversified company looks shaky in the near term. The prediction is based on industry-wide lower ASPs and shipments, over-priced inventory around the block, dearth of lenders and tepid German market.

The light at the end of the tunnel may come from the China’s ambitious plan to increase its installed solar power capacity from a mere 140MW at the end of fiscal 2008 to 2GW by end of fiscal 2011, apart from subsidizing solar power by RMB1.09 per kWh. The Chinese Government is said to be eying 20GW of installed capacity by fiscal 2020.

We will keep a watchful eye on the company, advising a market-neutral HOLD recommendation.

Other players who may benefit from the Chinese dole are Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (YGE - Snapshot Report), JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (JASO - Analyst Report), and LDK Solar Co. (LDK - Snapshot Report) at the bottom of the solar chain.