LPKF hit by thin film solar customers delaying orders

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
LPKF’s major problem has been delays and other interruptions with customer’s construction schedules, due to COVID-19 restrictions. Therefore, key orders were postponed. Image: LPKF.

Thin-film laser systems equipment supplier LPKF Laser & Electronics suffered from delays in receiving new expected orders from two long-stand customers last year.

Both its long-standing Cadmium telluride (CdTe) solar module manufacturing customer delayed orders and payments from its first Copper Indium Gallium Selenide (CIGS) manufacturing customer based in China were disrupted because of the impact of COVID-19.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

LPKF reported 2020 revenue in its solar business unit of €24.3 million, down 45% from €44.1 million in 2019. Solar accounted for 25.3% of total revenue in 2020.

The solar supplied laser systems for etching solar modules within the scope of a major order executed in 2020, making up the bulk of revenue for the year.

LPKF reported 2020 revenue in its Solar segment business of was €24.3 million, down 45% from €44.1 million in 2019.

The company noted that its solar business had typically benefited from having the longest visibility in orders of any of its business units, and the company had been expecting stronger orders and sales in 2020 than had materialised.

The problem had been delays and other interruptions with customers’ construction schedules due to COVID-19 restrictions. Key orders were postponed as a result.

But LPKF did note that it was not until late in 2020 that it received one of its largest solar orders from its CdTe customer and its first order for laser equipment from its first CIGS customer. This meant that down payments expected in Q4 for orders were not received until the beginning of 2021, according to the company.

Yet, its solar segment order backlog was slightly above the previous year’s level of €27.3 million.

7 October 2025
San Francisco Bay Area, USA
PV Tech has been running an annual PV CellTech Conference since 2016. PV CellTech USA, on 7-8 October 2025 is our third PV CellTech conference dedicated to the U.S. manufacturing sector. The events in 2023 and 2024 were a sell out success and 2025 will once again gather the key stakeholders from PV manufacturing, equipment/materials, policy-making and strategy, capital equipment investment and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out PV manufacturing in the U.S. out to 2030 and beyond.
21 October 2025
New York, USA
Returning for its 12th edition, Solar and Storage Finance USA Summit remains the annual event where decision-makers at the forefront of solar and storage projects across the United States and capital converge. Featuring the most active solar and storage transactors, join us for a packed two-days of deal-making, learning and networking.
2 December 2025
Málaga, Spain
Understanding PV module supply to the European market in 2026. PV ModuleTech Europe 2025 is a two-day conference that tackles these challenges directly, with an agenda that addresses all aspects of module supplier selection; product availability, technology offerings, traceability of supply-chain, factory auditing, module testing and reliability, and company bankability.
10 March 2026
Frankfurt, Germany
The conference will gather the key stakeholders from PV manufacturing, equipment/materials, policy-making and strategy, capital equipment investment and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out PV manufacturing out to 2030 and beyond.
16 June 2026
Napa, USA
PV Tech has been running PV ModuleTech Conferences since 2017. PV ModuleTech USA, on 16-17 June 2026, will be our fifth PV ModulelTech conference dedicated to the U.S. utility scale solar sector. The event will gather the key stakeholders from solar developers, solar asset owners and investors, PV manufacturing, policy-making and and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out the PV module supply channels to the U.S. out to 2027 and beyond.

Read Next

July 24, 2025
2025 will be the first time in over a decade that solar power additions decline in the EU, according to a mid-year report from SolarPower Europe.
July 24, 2025
Spanish independent power producer (IPP) Sonnedix has raised €2 billion (US$2.35 billion) through two refinancing transactions in Europe.
July 24, 2025
China has installed 14.36GW of solar PV in June 2025, down 85% from the previous month and also decreasing 38% from the same period in 2024.
July 23, 2025
US-based microinverter manufacturer Enphase Energy saw a decline of two percentage points in its gross margin for Q2 2025 due to Donald Trump's “reciprocal” tariffs regime.
July 23, 2025
A rise in global tariffs could impact solar PV and battery energy storage system (BESS) installations in the US and EU by up to 10% by 2035.
July 22, 2025
Statkraft has posted quarter-on-quarter declines in electricity generation and earnings in the second quarter of this year.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Media Partners, Solar Media Events
September 2, 2025
Mexico City, Mexico
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece
Solar Media Events
September 30, 2025
Seattle, USA
Solar Media Events
October 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
October 2, 2025
London,UK