Michigan Solar Manufacturer to Cut Jobs

Photo credit: Treehugger.com

A lot of money from the economic stimulus package is dedicated to the solar industry. The only problem is that it just can’t get here fast enough for many solar companies, and the market remains volatile for the time being. As yet another example of that volatility, Energy Conversion Devices, a Michigan-based thin film solar cell producer, is paring down its production volume.

The company owns two plants in Auburn Hills and plans to combine production at just one of the plants, a move that will result in the loss of 70 jobs. They will still finish construction on a new plant in Battle Creek, Michigan but will not hire any new employees just yet.

Like many other solar manufacturers, Energy Conversion Devices is waiting for demand to catch back up to supply before any further expansion takes place. The economic stimulus plan contains measures for solar manufacturers but is taking too long to kick in, and when it does, as industry analyst Adam Krop put it to the Detroit News, Energy Conversion Devices will be stronger later for the cuts it is making now.

Again, this move mirrors the bigger up-and-down picture which Wall Street and the economy are presenting at the moment. One day it is rosy-cheeked excitement for solar, and the next it is caution and timidity in the face of low demand. Still, none seem to think this temporary downturn is any more than that for the solar industry (just look at DuPont’s bold move). Even Energy Conversion Devices predicts a rebound by the end of the year, when all that money from the stimulus package finally trickles down.

Posted on April 3rd in Solar Funding by Dan.