PVTIME – After Maxeon Solar’s 20% layoffs, two more US solar companies are facing operational issues.
Enphase Energy, a US microinverter supplier, announced that it will reduce its global workforce by approximately 10%, including around 350 contractors and employees, to cut operating costs and align its workforce and cost structure with current market conditions.
Enphase Energy will stop operations at its manufacturing sites in Timisoara, Romania, and Wisconsin, US. The company aims to right-size its other contracted sites and focus on manufacturing microinverters in the United States. It has two existing contracted manufacturing partners located in South Carolina and Texas. The restructuring plan is expected to be completed in the first half of 2024.
In a letter to the company’s employees, Enphase Energy’s CEO and president, Badri Kothandaraman, stated that the global solar market has been turbulent over the past year. In the United States, high interest rates have caused a significant drop in consumer demand, while the NEM 3.0 transition in California has created further uncertainty. Europe experienced tremendous growth until mid-2023, but demand slowed and interest rates led to high inventory levels.
SunPower, a US solar company, has announced that it breached a credit agreement, raising concerns about its management ability.
SunPower stated in a regulatory filing that companies that lent money to SunPower’s projects could demand immediate repayment of $65.3 million or other remedies due to the breach of the credit agreement. This happened after the company failed to file its third-quarter earnings report on time.
Due to this regulatory filing, the company cannot borrow from the remaining $53.7 million in revolving commitments. However, SunPower has been granted a temporary waiver until 19 January 2024.
SunPower is also seeking additional waivers and evaluating various financing alternatives. The company has noted that there is no guarantee that such financing will be available. If the company fails to secure new funding sources, SunPower’s ability to continue operations will be in doubt.
SunPower also lowered its earnings guidance for fiscal 2023 in November due to decreased consumer demand and revenue recognition delays caused by the extended cycle. The company reduced its net loss estimate for the year to $165-175 million. SunPower has lowered its household customer expectations for the year to a maximum of 80,000, down from a maximum of 90,000 previously.
The company reported a net loss of $32 million for the third quarter of 2023, compared to a net income of $138.4 million for the third quarter of 2022 and a net loss of $30.3 million for the second quarter of 2023.
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