Solar panel manufacturer Trony Solar massively over-reported its sales and production data at the time of its listing, two former managers at the Shenzhen-based firm claimed. Trony claimed in its listing prospectus in September 2010 to be the world’s fourth-largest producer of thin-film solar panels by production volume in 2009, and told prospective investors that it had 145 megawatt (MW) of annual output capacity. It raised HKD1.73 billion from its initial public offering (IPO) to expand production capacity and repay a USD30 million loan due to Chairman Li Yi. But the firm’s actual production capacity was less than 20 MW in 2009, the two former senior managers told the South China Morning Post on condition of anonymity. Even after a new 20 MW production line was added but not put into operation, its capacity was far below the 205 MW Trony later reported that it had on June 30, 2011, they said. Based on actual shipment volumes, the company’s sales were less than 10% of the CNY610 million reported for the six months to December 31, 2011 and CNY1.35 billion reported for the 12 months to June 30, 2010. One of the former employees said an investigation under way into the matter was “going nowhere” since most records for proper auditing and control had been destroyed. Trony would not comment on the allegations. A person familiar with the situation said a whistle-blower had lodged a formal complaint about the allegations to Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEx) and the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). Both regulators said they would not comment on individual cases. Trading in Trony shares was suspended last June after the company told investors the board had identified “possible discrepancies” in its financial records. An independent investigation committee comprising its three independent directors was formed. In the past 13 months, however, company filings show the three Directors have resigned, along with a Chief Financial Officer, a Co-president, an Executive Director, a Non-executive Director, a Finance Director, a Sales Director, and a Vice President of Production. The former employees claimed that Li had been “hiding” in the United States since late 2011 and controlling affairs from abroad. The Trony Spokesman said the firm had cut its workforce by about a third to less than 700 amid difficult conditions in the solar equipment market. He also said Li was in the U.S. seeking business opportunities, but would not say how long he had been absent from China. Substantial shareholders ICBCI Fund Management, Hong Kong Sincere Investment, and China Huadian Capital, have sent Trony’s management a joint letter demanding disclosure of the latest developments in the investigation.

China regained the global top spot in clean energy investment in 2012, with a robust 20% increase, while investment in the United States and Europe dropped, according to a report by The Pew Charitable Trusts. China attracted USD65.1 billion in renewable energy investment, the third time the country has headed the investment rankings since 2009. Investment levels worldwide declined 11% during the year. The United States, world leader in 2011, ranked second with investment in the sector dropping 37% to USD35.6 billion in 2012. Germany ranked third with USD22.8 billion, down 27% compared with the previous year. “When we look around the world, we see policy really matters when it comes to where investment will be going,” said Phyllis Cuttino, Director of Pew’s Clean Energy Program. She added that renewable energy investment policies in the U.S. have been very uncertain, meaning investors have looked elsewhere, in areas where returns can be more guaranteed. The center of gravity for investment has shifted to emerging markets in the East. Investment in the Asia and Oceania region grew by 16% to USD101 billion in 2012, making it the leading regional destination for investment for the first time. Apart from rapid growth in China, clean energy investment in Japan soared 75% in 2012, thanks to national efforts to develop alternatives to nuclear energy after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011. South Africa, meanwhile, emerged as the fastest-growing destination for clean energy investment among the G20 nations after attracting USD5.5 billion, from less than USD100 million in previous years. China accounted for 30% of total clean energy investment in the G20 nations during the year, adding 23 GW of capacity. Investment in renewable and energy-efficiency technologies in the U.S. fell 54% to USD4.5 billion, while investment in China declined 15% to USD8.8 billion in the first quarter of 2013. “Each year the first quarter is generally down, although is not down this much. This was the worst first quarter since 2009. As the economy improves, I think the market is pretty resilient,” added Cuttino, as reported by the China Daily.

LDK Solar Co sold 25 million newly issued shares to Fulai Investments, a company owned by Cheng Kin Ming, a Chinese businessman based in Hong Kong, for USD25.8 million. Cheng already had closed a deal in late March to purchase 17 million of LDK’s shares. The latest deal brings his total shares to 42 million, representing 21.6% of LDK, according to calculations by the Wall Street Journal. In April, LDK defaulted on a USD23.8 million debt payment to investors because of a “temporary cash-flow shortage”. LDK said it reached a settlement with two bondholders to delay USD16.6 million in payments but that it remained in discussions about the rest. The company, based in Xinyu, Jiangxi province, was once the world’s largest manufacturer by capacity of solar wafers used to make solar panels. LDK shares have fallen 32% since the start of the year after recording losses for the past seven quarters. LDK also had USD2.1 billion in debt and USD98.3 million in cash at the end of last year. The company faced a possible delisting from the New York Stock Exchange in January, after it temporarily fell below USD1 a share. LDK’s debt swelled as it fueled an expansion of manufacturing capacity through heavy borrowing. LDK, however, has received assistance from creditors such as China Development Bank (CDB) and has now sold 34.6% of the company to other entities to stay afloat.

The traditional coal-producing city of Erdos, in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, is determined to become a base of clean-energy output by the end of 2017. “Supported by the clean-energy sector, industrial fixed-asset investment in 2013 is likely to increase to CNY160 billion, up 13.2% from last year, and industrial output may rise to CNY220 billion, 13% higher,” Mayor Lian Su said. Erdos produced 4.8 billion metric tons of raw coal and 84.94 billion cubic meters of natural gas from 2008 to 2012. About 60% of the city’s industrial output value comes from coal mining. The coal output in Erdos last year was 630 million tons, accounting for 17.2% of the nation’s total. Proven coal reserves in Erdos are almost 160 billion tons, 16.7% of China’s total. Erdos saw its annual per capita GDP last year reach USD29,500, nearly five times the national average, and good enough to make it the fifth-richest city in China. Mayor Lian expects to raise the proportion of industrial output of non-coal business to more than 50%, focusing on the development of automobile manufacturing, electronic information and cloud computing as well as cashmere textile industries, the China Daily reports.

The European Commission agreed to impose punitive import duties on solar panels from China in a move to guard against what it sees as Chinese dumping. The European Union Commission backed Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht’s proposal to levy the provisional duties by June 6 and make Chinese solar exports less attractive in Europe. The investigation into accusations of dumping is the biggest the Commission has ever launched. China’s Ambassador to the World Trade Organization (WTO), Yi Xiaozhun, called the decision a mistake although he declined to comment on any possible retaliation. “It will send the wrong message to the world that protectionism is coming,” Yi said in Geneva. As European countries are seeking to increase exports to China, De Gucht will try for a negotiated solution with new Chinese Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng before an EU deadline in December to cement the levies for up to five years. That could mean agreeing a minimum price at which all solar panels makers selling in Europe adhere to, diplomats said. The EU duties, which will come into effect once the Commission publishes the decision in its Official Journal, will be set at an average of 47%, ranging from 37.3% to 67.9%. “The proposed tariffs are much higher than the forecasts by Chinese industrial insiders,” said Gao Hongling, Deputy Secretary General of the China Photovoltaic Industry Alliance. Chinese companies said they hope that the government can help to solve the dispute through dialogue. “Many PV solar panel producers couldn’t pay back their loans to banks and went bankrupt because of the investigations from the U.S. and EU,” said a General Manager at a solar company in Shandong province, who declined to be named.

Chinese solar panel production quadrupled between 2009 and 2011 to more than the entire global demand. EU producers say Chinese companies have captured more than 80% of the European market from almost zero a few years ago, exporting €21 billion to the EU in 2011. As a result, Chinese-made solar panels are as much as 45% cheaper than those made in Europe, industry executives say. Europe accounted for half of the global market in 2012, which was worth USUSD77 billion, according to research firm IHS. The Alliance for Affordable Solar Energy has warned of severe job losses as a result of the tariffs, and industry insiders have suggested any penalty tariff higher than 30% will cause considerable damage to the European and Chinese solar industries. Jodie Roussell, Vice President of the European Solar Industry Association, warned officials in Brussels that the solar industry is very global and competitive, and that the EC’s decisions to increase tariffs may have a direct effect on European jobs. “The notion that China will do nothing and quietly accept the duties is unrealistic,” Xinhua said. “China will likely retaliate unless both sides can sit down and figure out a feasible way to avoid a trade war.” “I think we still have a chance’’ before a final decision on the levies is made in December, said Shi Dinghuan, Director of the China Renewable Energy Institute. “We are bringing some foreign companies to join our alliance to fight against trade barriers and we also call for more inter-government dialogues.’’