Despite downturn, is German energy a model for Obama?

By Erik Kirschbaum
DRESDEN, Germany, Dec 11 (Reuters) – Crisis? What crisis?

While the the rest of the economy plunges into recession, Germany’s solar power industry is full of optimism, fat order books and factories humming at full capacity — in stark contrast to the surrounding economic gloom.

Throughout eastern Germany’s “Solar Valley,” manufacturers are racing to keep up with global demand for solar panels and the state-of-the-art machinery that makes them, even though share prices have fallen sharply this week.

“There’s no recession here,” said Frank Asbeck, the founder of SolarWorld AG (SWVG.DE), the world’s third-largest photovoltaic company, which makes everything from solar-grade silicon to solar cells and solar panels.

“We’re always recruiting staff and are happy to hire workers laid off elsewhere,” he said during a tour of a 480-million euro ($600 million) manufacturing plant in Freiberg south of Dresden.

SolarWorld’s share price took a beating along with others on Tuesday after Germany’s Q-Cells (QCEG.DE), the world’s leading solar cell maker, issued a profit warning, saying 2008 sales growth would slow to 43 percent and to 10 to 20 percent in the first half of 2009.

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