Type | Public (NYSE: STP) |
---|---|
Industry | Photovoltaics |
Founded | September 2001 |
Founder(s) | Shi Zhengrong |
Headquarters | Wuxi, Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China |
Number of locations | United States, Germany, Switzerland, Japan, Australia, Italy, Spain |
Revenue | US$1.92 Billion (FY 2008)[1] |
Operating income | US$215 Million (FY 2008)[1] |
Net income | US$87.9 Million (FY 2008)[1] |
Total assets | US$3.22 Billion (FY 2008) [2] |
Total equity | US$1.07 Billion (FY 2008)[2] |
Website | www.suntech-power.com/ |
Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (Chinese: 尚德; pinyin: Shàngdé) (NYSE: STP) is the world's largest producer of solar panels, with 1,800MW of annual production capacity by the end of 2010. With offices or production facilities in every major market, Suntech has delivered more than 13,000,000 solar panels to thousands of companies in more than 80 countries around the world.[3] As the center for the company's global operations, Suntech headquarters, in Wuxi, China, features the world's largest building integrated solar facade.[4]
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Suntech Power has supplied or installed solar modules for numerous solar power plants and systems around the world. Notable installations include:
The company's Suntech Energy Solutions division completed Google's 1.6 MW solar installation in June 2007.[5]
Suntech Power joined with Israeli company Solarit Doral to build a 50 kW rooftop project in Katzrin in the Golan Heights, which was connected to the electricity grid in December 2008.[6][7]
Suntech panels were used on the Ketura Sun field, the first commercial solar field in Israel. The field was developed by the Arava Power Company.
In 2010, Suntech topped the solar panel shipment with 1.49GW shipment volume, according to PVinsights. Suntech targets to ship over 2GW in 2011; however, free price fall for solar components in 2Q11 made it more difficult to achieve. In price down turn, Chinese companies showed their competing ability in cost management. Suntech, th largest solar module company in 2010, is undoutedly one of the cost-competitive company among the top 10 solar module companies. On the very first day of the third quarter in 2011, they annouced that they terminate their long-term wafer contract with MEMC by paying US$ 120 million on account of cost saving.[8] IF we look back the market share of the top five Chinese solar companies ranked in 2Q11, which are Suntech, Yingli, Trina, Canadian and Jinko, a huge advancement form 17.2% market share in 1Q09 to 30% market share in 2Q11. The five Chinese solar module companies almost doubled their totaling market share in 2.5 years and they took nearly one-third of the worldwide market.
Suntech Power has representative offices in China, Australia, the United States, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, Germany, Japan, and Dubai, as well as production facilities in Wuxi, Luoyang, Qinghai, Shanghai, Germany, Japan, and Goodyear, Arizona.
Suntech America is based in San Francisco, California, and the company has plans to start a production facility in Phoenix, Arizona in 2010.[9] Suntech also has executives of their US operations in top posts in American solar panel industry groups.[10]
Suntech Power was recognized as the 2008 Frost & Sullivan Solar Energy Development Company of the Year. Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Mary John commented on the recognition, "The company's pioneering success in developing energy-efficient, cost-effective and customizable building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) systems and crystalline PV cells, and modules for solar energy conversion into electricity are highly commendable. It has gone beyond just meeting global energy needs to anticipating them as well and highly satisfied customers testify that the BIPV systems and other energy-efficient products are customized precisely to their needs."[11]
The Andalay AC Solar PV Panel was awarded one on MSN’s most brilliant products of 2009 because of innovations that advanced their ease of installation and use.[12] Suntech Power is one of the main manufacturers of components for the Andalay Solar Panel sold by Akeena Solar (AKNS).[13]
Dr Shi Zhengrong (施正荣, born c. 1963[14]) is the founder,[15] chairman and chief executive officer of Suntech Power.
He is a graduate of the University of NSW's School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering.[16][17] At UNSW, Dr. Shi studied under Professor Martin Green and met Stuart Wenham, now Suntech's Chief Technology Officer.
Dr. Zhengrong Shi was honored in January 2010 as a finalist for the Zayed Future Energy Prize. In 2007, Dr. Shi was named one of Time Magazine's Heros of the Environment.He is often referred to as the world's first 'green billionaire'.[18]
Dr. Zhengrong Shi has been appointed Visiting Professor at the University of NSW.
Before going public on the NYSE in 2005, Suntech was funded by a consortium of private equity firms, including Actis Capital and Goldman Sachs. The consolidated private equity investment into Suntech is generally considered to be one of China's most profitable private equity investments ever, as each firm is thought to have made gains well over 10x on their original investments.
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