Struggling solar manufacturers will likely be driven into mergers with rivals to survive a sector squeeze, a trend that could draw major Asian conglomerates deeper into the renewable energy sector.

Under a new agreement announced today, OSM Solarform Corp. will manufacture around 20 megawatts worth of LDK Solar's photovoltaic modules at its Welland-based production line in Ontario.

China's second- and third-largest contract chipmakers Shanghai Hua Hong NEC and Grace Semiconductor have agreed to merge in a sector in need of a consolidation and technology upgrades, sources said on Thursday.

Growing indignation on the part of leading Chinese PV manufacturers in relation to the ongoing trade dispute has spurred senior executives of 14 leading producers to gather and set out a coordinated plan of defence.

China's solar-panel supply glut is consolidating the industry and will likely slash the number of domestic manufacturers to 15 within half a decade, according to a research group at the nation's top economic planning agency.

The yuan halted a three-day losing streak on speculation European leaders will boost efforts to solve the region's sovereign-debt crisis.

China has launched a trade probe into US subsidies for renewable energy and is contemplating filing a case with the World Trade Organisation. The probe is the latest episode in the rapidly escalating trade dispute between the two countries that was sparked off by an anti-dumping petition from a group of US manufacturers last month.

For established manufacturers of solar panels, this has proved a difficult year, in the face of falling demand and a wave of cheap imports from China.

China's manufacturing activity dropped to a 32-month low in November, renewing fears the Asian powerhouse is losing steam amid global economic woes.

Several China-based solar power companies are reporting lackluster earnings today.

Chinese solar panel makers plan to shift some of their production to South Korea, Taiwan and the United States in hopes of defusing a trade case pending against them in Washington, according to industry executives.

China Sunergy Co. (CSUN) swung to a third-quarter loss despite a jump in sales as the Chinese solar-products maker saw its margins plunge into negative territory amid falling solar panel prices.

China-based module provider JinkoSolar has today revealed plans to install a 5MW solar plant in the UK with AEE Renewables.

Weak market demand and falling module prices have forced JinkoSolar to revise financial guidance for the third quarter and full-year 2011.

The cost of solar cells and microchips has nowhere to go but down because of a supply glut for the commodity they're made from, a brittle charcoal-colored semiconductor baked in ovens at 600 degrees centigrade.

OPEC on Wednesday held steady its forecast for oil demand growth next year, but warned that uncertainty has increased in the world's economic outlook as the eurozone nations grapple with their debt crisis.

The United States and China are gearing up for a trade war that could catch American users of solar energy in the crossfire.

While energy-efficient products are an expensive form of lighting for many customers in the Asia Pacific region, the higher costs are increasingly justified by the higher efficacy and performance compared to traditional lighting products.

The Commerce Department said on Wednesday it would investigate whether Chinese companies sell solar panels in the United States at unfair discounts and receive illegal government subsidies.

If oil prices fell from their 2008 peak as far as solar component prices have, a barrel of oil would cost about $10 - a 93 percent drop. Everyone could afford to fuel his own Formula One racecar.

ReneSola Ltd. reined in its guidance for third-quarter revenue and shipments, while noting it expects to post a loss for the period due to continued weak demand and industry oversupply.

Chinese solar-equipment makers said tariffs sought by US competitors would make it harder to expand the use of renewable energy.

Facebook is in no hurry to go public or to get into China, where it is officially blocked, according to Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of the social networking giant.

Taiwan businesses have called for a law on industrial espionage, especially by China, as growing ties have made it easier for mainland firms to steal secrets, officials and media said Thursday.

Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. and Renesola Ltd., two Chinese solar companies, reduced their forecasts for shipments and cut the estimated values of their inventories.

China has unveiled its three-step plan for phasing out energy-inefficient incandescent lamps. The announcement caused shares in US-based LED maker Cree (Nasdaq: CREE) to surge by almost 10% on November 4.

China Sunergy and REC Wafer have spent the last few years to-ing and fro-ing between courts in Norway and China in the hope of reaching a settlement over the termination of a supply contract by REC Wafer.

China's Trina Solar Ltd slashed its sales estimates for solar panels on Thursday because of weak European demand and said declines in panel prices would shrink its profit margins.

Infineon has announced another reshuffle of its structure and management that it hopes will make it less vulnerable to economic downturns and help it tap into growth in China.

A massive new Westford solar-power plant heavily subsidized by state and federal aid is using the same kind of cut-rate Chinese solar panels that drove publicly backed Evergreen Solar and Solyndra out of business, drawing the ire of Massachusetts labor and business groups.