Hanwha Q Cells posts $165m loss in Q3

Hanwha Q-Cells’ latest quarterly results illustrate just how difficult times are for module manufacturers.

The South Korean company saw revenue increase to $559.3 million in the third quarter – $40 million more than in the previous reporting period, and $17 million more than in the same period last year, according to the company’s latest financial statement.

However, losses widened significantly. In the third quarter, the company incurred an operating loss of $107 million, although bosses could at least take consolation from slight gains, year on year.

Net loss for the third quarter was $164.6 million – almost 4.5 times more than in the previous three months – with the company recording $42.4 million in losses from exchange rates alone. A year earlier, Hanwha Q-Cells made a light profit of $5 million. The currency hit was at least similar to that seen in the previous quarter, thanks in large part to the depreciation of the Turkish lira against the dollar.

Inventories were estimated by the manufacturer at nearly $500 million at the end of September, about $200 million more than at the turn of the year.

Hanwha Q-Cells reported production capacity stood at 4.5 GW for both cells and modules at the end of the third quarter, albeit with a further 3.9 GW of module capacity available through its Hanwha Q-Cells Korea Corporation subsidiary, which is building a factory in the USA. From the first quarter of 2019, the new facility should have a 1.7 GW capacity.

For the fourth quarter, Hanwha Q-Cells predicted sales of $590-$610 million, with no profit forecast made. For the full fiscal year, the manufacturer expects module sales of 5.5-5.7 GW and said $146 million will be spent on technological upgrades of manufacturing equipment and on research and development.