Trina Solar beats projections with 2Q09 profit

Changzhou, China-based Trina Solar (NYSE:TSL) said today it recorded a net profit of $18.9 million for the quarter that ended June 30—up 11 percent over the second quarter of 2008.

Shares of the company were slightly up in after-hours trading. Trina Solar shares closed at $26.42 before announcing the news.

The net profit resulted in earnings per share of $0.71, higher than analysts' expectations of about $0.37, according to an estimate from Thomson Reuters.

Trina Solar CEO Jifan Gao said the company plans to expand its production capacity by the end of the year because of the recent pickup in the market. Trina—which manufactures ingots, wafers, cells, and photovoltaic modules—plans to reach production capacity of 400 MW of solar modules this year, up from 250 MW in mid-2008 (see Trina CEO expects 10x growth in China solar market).

"We see market confidence returning to the PV sector due the strong government commitment to support clean energy technologies and an improvement in financing conditions," Gao said in a news release (see New solar subsidies in China set to reduce installed cost by half).

Trina said it shipped 63.9 megawatts of solar modules in Q2, an increase of 30.9 percent over the previous quarter, and up 34.3 percent over the same period in 2008. Trina expects to ship between 90 and 110 MW of modules in the third quarter.

Second-quarter revenue fell 26.5 percent to $150 million, which Trina Solar officials attributed to the decline in module average selling price (see Borrego secures $30M from Taiwanese investor). More than half the company's total sales were to project system integrators.

Since the second quarter ended, Trina announced a module supply deal with Proyectos Integrales Solares (Proinso) that has Trina delivering up to 25 MW this year and 50 MW in 2010 for U.S. and European solar projects. Additionally, Fotowatio subsidiary Renewable Ventures selected Trina to supply modules for a 2 MW project in Colorado.

Also today, Trina said it raised $18.6 million through the sale of 675,000 American Depository Shares. The offering was an extension of the share sale earlier this month that has now netted the company $142 million, much of which is expected to help the company retire debt and expand production (see Trina Solar nets $124M for debt, expansion).