(LEAD) Hanwha Solutions Q1 net up 30 pct on brisk solar demand

(LEAD) Hanwha Solutions-Q1 earnings

(LEAD) Hanwha Solutions Q1 net up 30 pct on brisk solar demand

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By Kim Seung-yeon

SEOUL, April 27 (Yonhap) -- Hanwha Solutions Corp., a key energy unit of Hanwha Group, said Thursday its first-quarter net income rose 29.4 percent from a year earlier, boosted by strong demand for solar panels.

Net income reached 133.4 billion won (US$99.4 million) in the January-March period, compared with 103.1 billion won the previous year, the company said in a filing.

Operating profit rose 85.1 percent on-year to 271.4 billion won. Revenue increased 8.8 percent to 3.1 trillion won.

The earnings beat market expectations. The average estimate of net profit by analysts stood at 114.5 billion won, according to a survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency.

Brisk global demand for solar power amid growing attention to energy security helped boost the bottom line, Hanwha Solutions said.

Its renewable energy sector, including the solar panel business, posted a 48.4 percent on-year jump to 1.36 trillion won in revenue, swinging to the black with an operating profit of 245 billion won.

Robust solar panel demand in the United States, where Hanwha Solutions holds a dominant market share, drove up the sales. The profitability in the segment improved on the back of the sale of its energy storage system projects in the U.S.

The chemical unit logged an 87 percent on-year decline to 33.7 billion won in operating income on sales of 1.34 trillion won, which marks a 13 percent drop from the same period last year.

Hanwha Solutions said the first-quarter operating profit includes the 22.9 billion won tax credit it expects to receive under the new Inflation Reduction Act that gives subsidies to companies investing in U.S. green energy.

Shares in Hanwha Solutions fell 3.58 percent to 51,200 won on the main Seoul bourse Thursday, underperforming the broader KOSPI's 0.44 percent gain. The earnings results were released before the market closed.

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