Kyocera to Shut down its US Manufacturing unit
Kyocera Solar is in talks to shut down its manufacturing unit in San Diego in USA. The company wants to shut down its US plant citing there was low demand in this unit. The company’s PV business is performing very well due to the recent rise in demand in Japan. The closure of the Kyocera unit in San Diego would involve laying off of more than 20 jobs. The company feels it needs to focus more on its Tijuana plant in Mexico.
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Kyocera is one of the oldest solar panel manufacturers and is second only to Sharp amongst the Japanese companies. It also manufactures industrial ceramics, telecommunications equipment, office document imaging equipment, electronic components, semiconductor packages, cutting tools, and components for medical and dental implant systems. Kyocera Solar Corp. in Japan was founded in 1996 and Kyocera Solar, Inc. in the U.S. was founded in 1999. The company has production bases in Japan, Mexico, Europe and China and is planning a factory in California as well. The company plans to reach 1000 MW of production by 2013.
According to local media reports, the subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Kyocera is struggling with large orders for its modules and has responded by slimming down its workforce.
In a statement to local newspaper U-T San Diego, Cecilia Aguillon, director of government relations for Kyocera Solar, said the reductions would affect 23 staff, while a further 85 temporary positions would be filled by an external agency.
