SEOUL, KOREA - OCI, one of the world's largest polysilicon makers, has finally got out of the loss in three quarters. That's because the polysilicon prices have rebounded after a long slump. Stock analysts said solar power stocks would rise on the back of expectations of higher performance. OCI said on April 23 that it turned to the black in the first quarter by posting an operating profit of 27.8 billion won on a consolidated basis.

 

 

 

Its quarterly sales revenue was 797.9 billion won, up 2.25 percent from the same quarter a year ago. It was largely thanks to the rebound of the average polysilicon price to the early US$20s per kilogram from $18 in the latter half of last year.

 

As late as 2011, OCI was a highly profitable company with 1,117.9 billion won in operating profit. As the polysilicon price declined due to a supply glut, however, the company began incurring losses in 2012. For five quarters from the fourth quarter 2012 to the fourth quarter 2013, its cumulative operating loss was 179.6 billion won. Since the first quarter of 2012, the only time it turned to the black was the second quarter of 2012 when it made 17.7 billion won in operating profit.

 

The news of the rising fortune led to a higher stock price. On the 23rd, the share price of OCI closed at 182,500 won, up 4.58 percent from the previous day. In the previous day, remarks by an official of Yingli Solar, the world's largest polysilicon manufacturer, that there may be a supply shortage in polysilicons have helped OCI share price rise.