Power-One, Inc. (PWER)

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Power One CEO sees Italian solar investments return

New YORK | Tue May 17, 2011 5:51pm EDT
May 17 (Reuters) - Funding for new Italian solar projects should begin to flow in the coming weeks as investors digest new subsidy rules there, the head of solar power equipment maker Power One (PWER.O) said on Tuesday.

After months of negotiating, the Italian government agreed to caps on lucrative subsidies that had made the country the world's No. 2 solar market. [ID:nNLDE7440Z]

"What we're waiting on now, after the announcement, is the financing spigot to be turned on again and to start funding our customers. We think that's still a matter of weeks," Power One Chief Executive and President Richard Thompson told Reuters in an interview.

Power One, based in Camarillo, California, is the second largest supplier of inverters to the solar power industry behind Germany's SMA Solar (S92G.DE).

Even with the reductions to the Italian solar subsidies, returns on investment there for solar power developers remain between about 8 to 10 percent, he said.

About 96 percent of Power One's renewable energy business is generated in Europe, although it is moving to increase sales in Asia and North America.

Shares in Power One slipped 0.1 percent to $8.79 on Nasdaq, bringing its year-to-date loss to nearly 14 percent.

(Reporting by Matt Daily; Editing by Richard Chang)

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/17/powerone-idUSN1720769220110517?feedType=RSS&feedName=rbssEnergyNews&rpc=43