Trina Solar has announced it expects to boost its solar panel production capacity 20% in 2015.
Trina Solar Limited (NYSE: TSL) yesterday published its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2014, plus outlook for this year.
During 2014, the company’s total solar module shipments reached approximately 3.66 GW, an increase of 41.9% from 2.58 GW in 2013.
Revenue also increased significantly, hitting USD $2.29 billion, an increase of 28.8% from 2013. The company’s gross margin was 16.9%, up from 12.3%.
Net income for 2014 was $61.3 million, compared with a net loss of $72.2 million for 2013.
“Overall, 2014 was a successful year for Trina Solar. Both our manufacturing and downstream businesses delivered strong results, and we emerged as the world’s largest supplier of solar modules,” said Mr. Jifan Gao, Chairman and CEO of Trina Solar.
“We took advantage of the rapidly growing demand in China, the world’s largest market for solar products, as well as the expansion of sales across various Asia-Pacific and Americas markets.”
One of those markets is Australia, where Trina Solar panels have become the nation’s most popular brand.
Looking ahead, the company expects ingot production capacity of approximately 2.8 GW this year (up ~21%), wafer capacity of approximately 2.3 GW (up ~26%), PV cell capacity of 3.5 GW (up ~14%) and module capacity of approximately 4.8 GW; an increase of around 20% on 2014’s annualised results.
The additional cell and module manufacturing capacity will come from new overseas facilities the company is planning to build or jointly build with local partners. Additional wafer and ingot capacity increases will be primarily through equipment updates and technology advancements.
Trina says it expects total solar panel shipments between 4.4 GW and 4.6 GW this year, of which 700 MW to 800 MW will be shipped to the Company’s downstream projects. The total shipment volume represents an increase of 20% to 26 % from 2014.
Last month, the company announced it had signed a framework investment agreement to jointly develop 500MW-1,000MW of solar power plants in China over the next three years.
Among Trina’s many accolades is recognition for approach to environmental stewardship. The company was ranked number one on SVTC’s Solar Scorecard last year for its environmental and social performance.
Founded in 1997 as a solar power system integrator, Trina has evolved into a “Tier 1” solar manufacturer and has shipped more than 7.4GW of modules to date.
