After a rebound in polysilicon sales in the first quarter of 2012, Wacker’s polysilicon sales declined 22% in the second quarter due to customers delaying or reducing delivery quantities. Sales in the second quarter reached €286.8 million, down from €366.6 million in the prior quarter. However, the major reason for the sales decline was due to the substantial reduction in polysilicon prices, which will also result in lower sales being achieved this year than in 2011, according to the company.
Wacker’s polysilicon division reported a second quarter EBITDA of €120.3 million, which contained €19.4 million in advance payments due to the termination of polysilicon supply agreements. However, margins remained high at 41.9%. Polysilicon plants were running close to full capacity during the quarter.
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Polysilicon production update
Polysilicon expansions remained unaffected as its latest plant in Nünchritz, Germany came on stream at the end of April, 2012. Wacker noted that it had invested some €900 million in the facilities and created more than 500 jobs at the site.
In the second quarter the facilities were said to have reached their full nominal capacity of 15,000MT per year. In total the company said that it would ramp its polysilicon production capacity to around 52,000MT by the end of 2012.