SMA Solar Technology, Germany’s biggest solar maker, has reported a wider-than-expected loss as demand shifts from its home market in Europe toward Asia. SMA incurred a net loss of €67 million in 2013, the company said yesterday. The shares fell the most in a month. It is the top maker of inverters, which convert solar power for grid use.

“To remain the number one supplier, it is critical for SMA that it delivers on its promises of cost reduction and expansion into China, Japan” and emerging markets, Cormac Gilligan, a solar analyst at IHS, said.

SMA has cut jobs and is reducing costs in a bid to counter falling sales in Europe. It expects revenue to improve to as much as €1.3 billion this year from €933 million and an operating profit of as much as €20 million, even as price pressures accelerate. SMA, which has invested €300 million in the last three years on research and development, is developing a “completely new product platform for all applications” that will lead to lower material costs, chief executive officer Pierre-Pascal Urbon said. – (Bloomberg)