The Bonn-based company will stop output of its modules, solar cells mounted together, near Camarillo in California and shift US production to a bigger, more advanced plant in Hillsboro, Oregon, it said in a statement today.
As a result of this merger at a fully integrated location, SolarWorld AG will tap synergy potentials and cut production costs, the company said. .
The sales and distribution unit at Camarillo will be retained and further strengthened. .
Closing older lines and cutting temporary workers at its 1 GW plant in Saxony, Germany, will also allow Solarworld to keep wages below 10 percent of overall costs, Chief Executive Officer Frank Asbeck said in the statement. .
With this transformation, SolarWorld will achieve a substantial cost reduction as well as an increase of productivity at its facility in Freiberg/Saxony. .
"It means that we offer quality from Germany and quality made in the U.S. that is competitive with" products from Asia,” Asbeck said. .
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