The global recession and tight credit conditions have cast a chill on the solar-power industry after years of breakneck growth, and could usher in long-term changes in the industry.
全球经济衰退和信贷市场的冻结令多年来高速增长的太阳能行 业也感受到了阵阵寒意，这可能弓I发该行业的长期转变。
Banks have curtailed financing for major solar projects, and Spainthe world’s second-largest solar-power market after Germany~has slashed subsidies for the industry, leading to sharply lower demand for solar cells. Sales of the tiny chips that convert the sun’s rays into electricity are expected to drop by at least 20% this year.
银行减少了对大型太阳能项目的贷款，如仅次于德国的全球第 二大太阳能市场西班牙就减少了对该行业的补贴，导致太阳能电池 的需求明显下降。预计今年将太阳能转化为电能的微芯片的销售量 将下降至少20%。
As a result，solar-cell manufacturers are delaying construction of new factories and sharply cutting prices. Several big solar companies, including Renewable Energy Corp. of Norway and Q-Cells SE of Germany, have scaled back ambitious profit and revenue goals, and are predicting a tough year ahead. Analysts expects solar cells to fetch an average of just $ 2 per watt this year, down sharply from $ 3.95 per watt in 2008.
因此，太阳能电池制造商正在放缓新厂的建设步伐,并在大幅降 价。包括挪威Renewable Energy Corp.和德国Q-Cells SE在内的 几家大型太阳能企业都降低了之前要求过高的利润和收入目标，并 预计将迎来艰难的一年。分析师预计今年太阳能电池的平均价格将 仅为每瓦2美元,远远低于2008年的3.95美元。
“Last year we couldn’t make enough solar cells to keep up with our customers’ demands，，，said Anton Milner, chief executive of Q-Cells, the world’s biggest solar-cell manufacturer by volume. “Now it’s a buyer’s market~customers are coming back to ask if they can buy lower volumes and have lower prices than planned.”
全球产量最大的太阳能电池制造商Q-Cells的首席执行长米 尔纳(Anton Milner)说去年我们的太阳能电池产量供不应求。但 现在是买方市场，客户都来询问能否减少购买量，能否获得比原计 划更低的价格。”
In environmental terms, there may be a silver lining in the industry’s woes. The drop in prices for solar-power gear could make solar energy more competitive with burning fossil fuels to generate electricity, even if oil prices stay at around $ 50 a barrel. Today, less than 1% of the world’s electricity comes from solar power.
从环境角度来说，该行业可能让人们看到了 一丝希望。太阳能 电池价格的下跌能提髙太阳能相对于化石燃料的发电竞争力，即使 石油价格仍在每桶50美元左右。目前，全球只有不到1%的电力来自 于太阳能。
“The dramatic cost reductions now happening in solar will be good for the industry and the environment in the long term，，’ said Sven M. Hansen, chief investment officer of Good Energies LLC, which invests in renewable energy. “But in the short term, the outlook for solar companies has never looked more difficult.”
可再生能源投资企业Good Energies LLC的首席投资长汉森 (Sven M. Hansen)说就长期而言，目前太阳能成本的大幅下降 对这个行业以及环境都是有利的。但短期而言，太阳能公司的前景 从未像今天这么艰难。”
Some industry watchers think the current downturn is more than a bump in the road. Dan Reis, analyst at investment-research firm Collins Stewart, says falling solar-cell prices could herald an era of lower profits and thinner margins. Sales of solar panels will boom in volume terms, Mr. Reis said, but since prices will be much lower, companies with low costs, such as Chinese manufacturers Trini Solar Ltd. and Yingli Green Energy, will have an advantage.
部分业内观察人士认为，目前的低迷并不只是前进道路上的 暂时困难。投资研究机构Collins Stewart的分析师雷伊斯(DanReis)说，太阳能电池的降价可能预示着利润和利润率下降的时代即将到来■■雷伊斯说，太阳能 板在销售量上将会一派大好，但由于价格将明显下降，成本较低的公司，如中国制造商天合光能 (Trina Solar Ltd.)和英利绿色能源(Yingli Green Energy)将会有很大优势。
Even so, solar-cell makers may get some relief as countries including the US, Japan and China provide more support for renewable energy either as part of their economic-stimulus plans or to combat global warming. But those subsidies are unlikely to translate into an uptick in solar-cell orders until next year at the earliest.
即使如此,让太阳能电池制造商感到欣慰的是，作为刺激经济计划的一部分，或是为了遏制全 球气候变暖，美国、日本和中国等国家出台了更多支持可再生能源的政策。但是,这些补贴最早要 到明年才有可能促进太阳能电池订单的增加。
In the meantime, government subsidies and private-sector financing are likely to be scarcer than in recent years. The Spanish government will subsidize just 500 megawatts worth of solar projects this year, down sharply from 2,400 megawatts last year.
与此同时,政府补贴和私营部门的融资可能要少于前些年。西班牙政府今年仅会补贴500兆瓦 的太阳能项目，远远低于去年的2400兆瓦。
Utilities and other developers are also finding it harder to get loans or raise investment capital for big solar projects. In the first quarter, global financing for renewable-energy projects fell to 11.5 billion Euros from 20.5 billion Euros in the fourth quarter, says London consulting firm New Energy Finance.
公用事业公司和其他开发企业也发现为大型太阳能项目申请贷款或是追加投资越来越困难。 伦敦咨询公司New Energy Finance说,今年第一季度，全球可再生能源项目的融资从去年第4季 度的205亿欧元下降到了 115亿欧元。
To adapt, Q-Cells，Mr. Milner has slashed capital-spending more than 40% from last year, and has postponed the construction of a new factory by six months. This year, the company, which hired 800 workers in 2008 as its revenue rose 30%, has let the contracts of its temporary workers expire and has laid off about 80 people.
为了适应这种变化，Q-Cells的米尔纳已将公司的资本开支较去年削减了 40%以上，并将 新厂的建设推迟了6个月。2008年，这家公司共招聘了800名员工，当年的收人增长了30%,今年， Q - Cells在临时工的合同到期后不再续签,并裁减了约80人。
“I’ve gone from managing for rapid growth to managing for cost reductions，" said Mr. Milner.
米尔纳说我的工作已经从实现高速增长转变为削减成本了。”