CHINA WATCH Time has a series of profiles on China’s hottest growth companies, including LDK Solar, which listed on the NYSE in June at $27 a share and has since surged to $45.
Chairman and CEO Peng Xiaofeng reckons his company can produce solar-energy wafers at 30% less than anyone else in the business, giving him the competitive edge.
The cost of silicon wafers is falling rapidly as the industry scales up, making solar power more competitive in its own right. Moreover, he notes that Japan, one of the world’s biggest markets for silicon wafers, has now eliminated subsidies completely, and demand is still growing. “Keeping costs down relative to competitors, not overall industry growth, is the main challenge,” says CFO Lai. “The growth is not going away.”