A Closer Look at Trina Solar’s 2Q16 Shipments

Trina Solar (TSL) had given shipment guidance of 1,500–1,600 MW (megawatts) for 2Q16. However, the company reported 1,658.3 MW of solar (TAN) module shipments for 2Q16, compared to 1,423.3 MW for 1Q16 and 1,231.6 MW for 2Q15.

According to the company’s filings, out of 1,658.3 MW, Trina Solar’s external shipments to its third-party customers included 1,619 MW in 2Q16, compared to 1,370.4 MW in 1Q16 and 1,000.7 MW in 2Q15. The company shipped 39.3 MW to its downstream solar power projects in 2Q16, compared to 52.9 MW in 1Q16 and 230.9 MW in 2Q15.

According to the company’s filings, China contributed 50.2% of TSL’s total external shipments in 2Q16 and was followed by the United States, which contributed 25.8% of total external shipments. Europe and Japan contributed 9.0% and 3.1% of total external shipments, respectively. TSL’s external shipments to the ROW (Rest of World ) and ROA (Rest of Asia) segments came in at 1.0% and 10.9% of total external shipments, respectively, in 2Q16.

The increase in shipments was mainly due to strong demand for Trina Solar’s solar modules from China ahead of an expected subsidy policy adjustment. According to the company’s filings, TSL’s shipments to China increased by 150.1% sequentially and by 118.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Moving ahead, the company aims to further expand its presence in emerging markets. As of June 8, 2016, Trina Solar achieved an important shipping milestone (cumulative) of over 1 GW (gigawatt) of solar modules to India alone.

However, the supply glut of solar modules in global markets, uncertainty surrounding the enactment of the US Clean Power Plan, and low natural gas prices remain major concerns for solar module manufacturers such as Trina Solar, SunEdison (SUNEQ), First Solar (FSLR), SunPower (SPWR), and Canadian Solar (CSIQ).

In the next part of this series, we’ll look at Trina Solar’s 2Q16 revenues.