News on Wacker

News on suppliers, market trends and technology innovations in polysilicon and wafer production is selected, assessed and written for you by Bernreuter Research.

2020 tariffs on polysilicon imports from the USA and South Korea into China

New Chinese polysilicon duties are slap in the face to trade deal

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The Chinese Ministry of Commerce (Mofcom) announced on January 19 that the duties on polysilicon imports from the United States and South Korea will remain unchanged for another five years until 2025.

China’s Vice Premier Liu He (left) and U.S. President Donald Trump present the Phase 1 trade agreement

U.S.-China trade agreement: polysilicon is only on the wish list

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The Phase 1 trade agreement signed by the U.S. and China on January 15 includes solar-grade polysilicon, but the high Chinese import duties on U.S.-made polysilicon remain untouched.

Depreciation rates of Daqo New Energy and Wacker Polysilicon from Q3 2018 through Q3 2019 and estimate for full 2019

Price pressure: Wacker impairs polysilicon assets by €750 million

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Leading German polysilicon manufacturer Wacker has announced it will take a massive impairment of €750 million (US$832 million) on the carrying value of its polysilicon plants in its 2019 financial statements.

China’s market shares in global production capacity along the PV value chain (solar-grade polysilicon, solar ingot, solar wafer, solar cell, solar module)

Wacker to reduce the workforce of its U.S. polysilicon plant by 3%

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Expecting a decrease in demand in view of the shrinking market outside China, Wacker is planning to cut the 650-strong workforce of its U.S. polysilicon plant by 20 employees or around 3%.

Polysilicon EBITDA margins of OCI, REC Silicon and Wacker from Q3 2018 through Q3 2019

Non-Chinese polysilicon manufacturers return to negative EBITDA

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Polysilicon makers OCI, REC Silicon and Wacker all landed in red territory in the third quarter. Operating EBITDA margins ranged from -3.4% (OCI) to -9.3% (REC Silicon) to -13.3% (Wacker).

Wacker’s U.S. polysilicon plant in Charleston, Tennessee

Wacker Polysilicon’s operating EBITDA margin slips to -13.3%

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Record-low polysilicon prices and inventory valuation adjustments pushed the operating EBITDA margin of Wacker’s polysilicon division to minus 13.3% in the third quarter.

Fire at Wacker’s U.S. polysilicon plant in Charleston, Tennessee

Next incident at Wacker’s U.S. polysilicon plant: fire extinguished

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20 months after a severe hydrogen explosion at Wacker’s U.S. polysilicon plant near Charleston, Tennessee, a fire in the waste water treatment building was extinguished.

OCI’s polysilicon plant in Gunsan, South Korea

OCI considers shifting polysilicon capacity from Korea to Malaysia

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The prospect of rising electricity prices has prompted polysilicon manufacturer OCI to consider shifting production capacity from its South Korean plant in Gunsan to its subsidiary in Malaysia.

Wacker’s integrated chemical factory in Burghausen, Bavaria

Credit Suisse: Wacker to be squeezed out by Chinese competition

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Analysts at Credit Suisse predict that “Wacker will remain a marginal producer of solar grade polysilicon near term and will be squeezed out by low cost Chinese production longer term.”

Polysilicon EBITDA margins of Daqo, OCI, Wacker and REC Silicon from Q4 2017 through Q4 2018

The EBITDA difference of making polysilicon in or outside China

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While China-based polysilicon manufacturer Daqo reported another record low in production costs, the polysilicon division of market leader Wacker slid into the red with its EBITDA in the fourth quarter.