ACE.L Share News (ACE)

Shares in Auhua Clean Energy lost around a third of their value on Friday morning after the environmental technology firm reported a reduction in full year revenue and unveiled the results of a placing.Revenue for the 12 months ended 31 December declined to £24.6m from £26.1m a year earlier, largely the result of a delayed shipment, while the profit margin fell from 43.6% to 38.6%, hit by price pressure from larger customers.The firm said it had performed strongly despite slower growth in the Chinese economy and the sluggish property sector, largely because the Chinese government has remained committed in the renewable energy sector and in particular, the promotion of solar technologies in building developments.Chairman David Sumner said 2014 had delivered a "sound set of financial results, which reflect steady revenues, solid profit before tax, a healthy cash balance and strong gross margins".He continued: "We're a company which has succeeded in one of the largest provinces in China and have an international market for our solar panel production. Due to our global business model, we are largely sheltered from the imbalance of supply and demand currently affecting other Chinese solar specialists."£1.72m raised from placing and subscriptionThe firm has raised around £1.72m from the placing and subscription of new shares at 4.5p a piece in order to meet its working capital requirements, which have increased year-on-year."The company has sought to raise monies from the market to fund its capital expansion and provide working capital for its overseas expansion," the firm explained."However, this has proved difficult and the discount of the placing and subscription to the recent trading price has been necessary to raise the required funds."Chief executive Chen Anxiang added: "The placing and subscription allows us to fund our expansion into Taiwan and the United Arab Emirates, while also increasing production capacity in China."The share price had declined 30.94% to 552p by 08:33.