SunPower to restructure Philippines operations, cut 900 jobs

Comtex News Network

Oct 23, 2012 (Datamonitor via COMTEX) --SunPower Corp., which designs, manufactures and delivers solar panels and systems, has announced a reorganization plan to restructure its Philippines manufacturing operations and reduce its workforce.

As part of this initiative, the company will temporarily idle six of the 12 lines in its Fab 2 cell manufacturing plant and 20% of panel manufacturing in the Philippines to significantly reduce inventory, lower operational costs and improve efficiency.

As a result, the overall blended utilization for the fourth quarter will be approximately 60%. Additionally, the company will reduce its workforce by approximately 900 employees with the reductions occurring primarily in the Philippines.

"Industry conditions continue to be challenging and while it is never an easy decision to reduce positions, we must make prudent decisions to effectively compete in an industry with significant overcapacity. Additionally, we'll further our efforts to reduce costs and improve operational efficiencies," said Tom Werner, SunPower CEO and president.

SunPower expects to record restructuring charges totaling $10 million to $17 million, composed of severance benefits, lease and related termination costs and other associated costs, the majority of which will likely be in the fourth quarter 2012. The company expects that greater than 90 percent of these charges will be cash.

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