Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Unusually Crappy German Weather Hurts Firms Like First Solar (FSLR)

From ClusterStock:
See, now, this is the problem with government-led green energy initiatives. Germany has been one of the biggest boosters of solar energy, so much so that on conference calls, companies like First Solar (FSLR) spend a lot of time talking about where things stand with German subsidies. But German weather sucks. It's Western Europe. Grey, cloudy, rainy, etc.

And now it's worse than usual. FBR Analyst Mehdi Hosseini passes on some intelligence

Mother Nature not cooperating with the solar PV industry. As harsh weather (snow, rain) continues throughout Germany, our recent checks have unveiled that many (rooftop) solar installations have come to a standstill and are put on hold. We have heard from several large developers and installers in Germany that many projects may not be completed on time in 4Q (before the current FIT scheme expires) since installations are physically impossible under the current climate....MORE