With most of the low hanging fruit of polysilicon costs already gone,the industry has to focus on efficiency to cut down on costs.Selective emitters,microinverters,DC-DC optimization and other technologies are already finding takers.A Number of microinverter companies like Tigo,Enphase Energy etc are tying up with global heavyweights like Suntech and Sunpower to increase their penetration and cut costs.National Semiconductor has also tied up with Suntech to integrate its products with Suntech Modules to improve efficiency and reliability.The Balance of Systems costs for Solar Panels and their Performance are not usually paid a lot of attention.But with every cent now making a big difference,these technology could make or break a company in this commoditizing industry.While the value addition and costs of these new products are still subject to market acceptance,its a major change for the industry.This is the next phase in the evolution of the solar energy industry as it looks to additional ways to cut costs and bring solar energy to grid parity.Look for M&A in this space as well since the industry is fragmented with a host of VC backed startups.
Rosatom has strong competencies despite the Chernobyl disaster as a black mark in its history.The Company has already constructed reactors in China,India and Iran during the Soviet Union Days and is constructing 5 reactors in foreign markets.With strong technology expertise and with laxer safety standards at home,it is trying to outflank Areva in its home turf.Note Areva is already facing losses from the Finland Nuclear Project which has proved to be a huge disaster.It additionally faces competition from Toshiba-Westinghouse which is ramping up its efforts to compete with Areva.GE-Hitachi suffers from a technological handicap compared with Toshiba and Areva,however GE cannot be underestimated because of its Global Reach and Industrial Strengths.Rosatom is that last thing that Areva needs in its shrinking home turf of Europe.Germany is facing huge opposition just for extending the life of its nuclear reactors while France has pretty much saturated its Electricity Market with Nuclear Energy.
Saint Gobain like Semiconductor Giant TSMC is betting on Copper Indium Gallium Selenium (CIGs) Technology rather than the mainstream crystalline silicon technology.CIGs is getting the most significant investments these days compared to other thin film technology.Yesterday Ascent Solar (ASTI) got an IEC certification for its flexible modules which would enable it to target the mainstream rooftop market from niche applications earlier.Miasole has improved the efficiency and costs of it CIGs greatly while Nanosolar can’t be counted out because of its strong backers.Solyndra however remains mostly in the shadows despite around $1 billion in private investment.Stion is another strong contender partnering with TSMC and also thinking of opening a plant in Taiwan on its own as well.Saint Gobain is already a big player in the solar market as it suppliers glass to a lot of solar companies for their modules.Getting into panel manufacturing will further allow it to get a foothold of this new potentially giant industry.Du Pont,Dow Chemicals,Corning all have considerable presence in the solar equipment market as well.
Indian IPO Rules allows the Merchant Bankers of the Issue to give favored institutional clients a part of the IPO even before the issue starts.This has the advantage for both parties as funds get a guaranteed portion of the IPO and Bankers can tout the quality of the company.However you would have to question these “Anchor Investors’ on how they invest in such IPOs.Prestige Estates a Realty Company coming out with an IPO is another low quality company to come out with a high valuation.So finding 21 Anchor Investors is a surprise.Despite the Real Estate Market being avoided by Fund Mangers due to questionable practice,23 Funds have found it worthwhile to add Prestige Estates to their portfolio.Makes you wonder if Institutional Investors are Plain Incompetent ,Compromised or Both
The US Federal Reserve is hell bent on preventing deflation through whatever means possible.It has raised the prospect of 2008 when Commodities all over the world raced to new highs due to cuts in Interest Rates.2010 has already seen its first food riots in Africa and 2011 should more of the same.Every Commodity be it Gold,Silver,Coffee,Sugar,Rice,Wheat is jumping higher as the common denominator Dollar gets Debased by US Policies.While the stupidness of the Monetary Easing is a big exhaustive issue in itself,the prospect of higher commodity prices is a huge danger.It is already fueling dangerous equity bubbles in the emerging markets of Asia.Currency Wars are already starting to happen on a small scale as Crazy Monetary Policies take hold in the US.Food Prices are a very major problem in poor countries unlike developed countries where food forms only a small part of the daily expenditure.With Food forming 50-80% of the expenditure of poor citizens,a 50% increase in Prices immediately leads to hunger and starvation.However don’t think the US Fed concerns itself with such trivial issues.
Prestige Estates is an Indian Real Estate Company with its operations focused in the southern part of India mainly in the techie city of Bangalore.The company is one on the long list of Realty Companies which have been waiting impatiently to raise money from the Stock Markets trying to pay off their debts.It is raising around Rs 1200 crores or $250mm .Oberoi Realty was a decent Realty Stock as far as the Sector goes which managed good subscription numbers in the last week.With “animal spirits” returning fueled by Bernanke’s Helicopter Policy expect more such shoddy Realty issues to hit the market.Note the Sector is an investor minefield with even well connected Fund Managers not trusting the financial statements published by these companies.With the Indian Stock Market already featuring a wide variety in terms of quality and quantity of Realty Stocks,Prestige Estates brings no difference and on analysis seems easy to avoid.Here are some features to this company
Summary
Prestige Estates is another low quality shady highly indebted Realty Company which should be strictly be avoided.It defies any simple analysis because of its convoluted structure and cross holdings.The Company Sales have been stagnant and Margins Low and it has high concentration risk as well.The Management inspires no confidence at all and is a typical example of the badly managed Real Estate Sector in India.Should be avoided at all costs by investors.Note 5 of the last 9 IPOs in India in the last month are giving losses to investors.This promises to be no different given the fundamentals.