January 29, 2009 ndash; Analyst Comments ndash; Cowenrsquo;s Rob Stone weighed in on Hoku Scientific (Nasdaq:HOKU) this morning, stating that its polysilicon plant is progressing but with uncertain financing he expects the stock will track the market. Hokursquo;s poly plant is being largely paid for by a series of pre-payments for long-term take-or-pay contracts from customers, an attractive strategy which can limit dilution and debt ndash; if the customers maintain their schedule on pre-payments. The problem is that poly prices have declined substantially from pre-negotiating pricing while mid-stream customers in the solar sector are facing project delays of their own, as well as tighter credit markets and this increases the risk to Hokursquo;s plan and ability to rely on pre-payments. Stone noted that Hokursquo;s second-largest customer (Solargiga) has defaulted on a pre-payment. Too much of this will cause delays in its progress to getting the poly plant completed and online. ...

December 15, 2008 ndash; We recently had the opportunity to ask Darryl Nakamoto, CFO of Hoku Scientific some questions about what he is seeing in the solar sector: Aspire: What surprised you about the solar markets in 2008? Were there any significant developments (political, technological, consumer-driven and/or industry-driven) that occurred which you werenrsquo;t anticipating? Nakamoto: We were pleasantly surprised by the extension of the Federal Renewable Energy ITC. We did not foresee its inclusion in the legislation aimed at stabilizing the credit markets. In our local market, we were also very pleased by the progress represented by the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, which lays out a specific plan of action for the broad and rapid deployment of renewable technology throughout the state.nbsp; Aspire: Solar/PV energy costs between 21 and 38 cents per kWh to produce. We are still a ways off from reaching grid parity. When do you think that happens? And ...

December 10, 2008 ndash; Analyst Comments ndash; Cowen amp; Companyrsquo;s Robert Stone weighed in this morning on several solar companies including Hoku Scientific (Nasdaq:HOKU), Evergreen Solar (Nasdaq:ESLR) and Ascent Solar Technologies (Nasdaq:ASTI), downgrading each of the stocks to NEUTRAL. Here are his takeaways: Hoku (reduced from OUTPERFORM to NEUTRAL) middot;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Prepayment delays and potential difficulty obtaining additional financing in 2009 may slow startup of poly plant; middot;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Cut FY09, FY10 and FY11 revenue and earnings estimates based on slower ramp, lower ASPs and reduced GMs; Evergreen Solar (reduced from OUTPERFORM to NEUTRAL) middot;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Uncertainty in the PV market increases Evergreenrsquo;s execution risk in its capacity ramps; middot;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Concerns about increased expenses in the current environment which Evergreen will need to launch its string-ribbon technology; middot;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Further capitalization in 2009 is going to be tough; middot;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Cut FY09 modeling lower ASPs and reduced GMs; Ascent Solar (reduced from OUTPERFORM to NEUTRAL) middot;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Weaker Euro ...

September 24, 2008 –The Senate passed a much anticipated tax package yesterday, which, amongst other things, renews the Investment Tax Credits (ITC) for alternative energy. This is a huge win for the renewable and clean tech industry, and frankly, we are surprised it didn’t hit heavier headwinds in the Senate vote – only 2 voted against the broader tax package. Perhaps its passage was a benefactor of a Senate that is focusing itself on the crisis in the financial markets and the proposed $700 billion bailout plan. Regardless, the passage of the extended tax credits will buoy the sector, drive growth and bode well for solar, wind, geothermal, clean tech, and other renewable energy companies. Under the bill, wind will get a single year of tax credit extensions, solar gets eight, tidal gets two. Buyers of PHEVs will get anywhere from $2,500 to $7,500 back.  The eight-year extension of the investment ...