PV Crystalox chops divi

PV Crystalox Solar, which makes the silicon wafers used in solar power systems, saw adjusted earnings more than halve in 2009 as the company was hit by a price squeeze.Total wafer shipment volumes in 2009 were 4% higher than in 2008 at 239 megawatts (mw) but with prices slumping in the second half of the year 2009 revenues were down 13.4% from the year before at €237.3m.Earnings before interest and tax, excluding €8.2m of currency losses, was €50m, down 53% from €106.5m in 2008. In 2008 the company benefited from €36.3m of currency gains.The final dividend has been halved to €0.02 from €0.04 last year but the board has pledged to reinstate its progressive dividend policy when market conditions permit. The full-year dividend pay-out is 4 cents, down from 6 cents in 2008.The group remains cautious about the outlook for 2010 but drew encouragement from the revival in demand in the second half of 2009, which was largely driven by strong demand in Germany. The reintroduction of investment grants in Japan has also stimulated photovoltaic (PV) installations in that country after a period of stagnation.‘Overall global PV installations reached a record high of 6.43GW [gigawatts] in 2009 according to a report from Solarbuzz, the US based PV consultancy. This represents 6% growth over the previous year and is in sharp contrast to the 110% market growth experienced in that year,’ the group said.