Solar Silicon to Bottom as China Halts Factory Expansion: Energy
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Polysilicon, the raw material used by the $38 billion a year solar industry, is forecast to bottom near a record low next year after the leading manufacturers in China and South Korea halted factory expansions.
The spot price will fall 6 percent to about $18.20 a kilogram by mid-2013 and then is likely to stabilize, according to the median estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The commodity crashed from $475 in 2008 and is down 27 percent this year to $19.36 on Oct. 1, the lowest in at least a decade.