By Krishna N Das

(Reuters) – First Solar (FSLR.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has not released funds for its 230-megawatt Antelope Valley project in California due to construction permit issues, a development that could undo the sale of the project to Exelon Corp (EXC.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).

First Solar shares, down more than 66 percent over the last one year, fell as much 10 percent to $44.25 in early trade on Friday on the Nasdaq.

In September, the DOE had finalized an up to $646 million loan and loan guarantee to support financing for the Antelope project in northern Los Angeles County, California.

First Solar said in a regulatory filing on Thursday that if initial funding for the project does not come by February 24, it will have to buy the project back from Exelon for about $75 million, plus costs.

They could also decide to extend the deadline.

“We believe Exelon will not exit (the Antelope project) over minor issues like a construction permit,” Auriga USA analyst Hari Chandra Polavarapu wrote in a note.

Dec 8 (Reuters) – MEMC Electronic Materials Inc slashed its outlook for the current quarter and said it will cut jobs and reduce capacity as the silicon-wafer maker grapples with lower demand.

The company will cut more than 1,300 jobs, or a fifth of its workforce, and will be idling some of its facilities, as it looks to lower costs amid a severe downturn in the renewable energy sector.

MEMC, like its solar-wafer rivals LDK Solar and Renesola, has seen a sharp decline in its margins and sales as prices for renewable energy systems fell by 40 percent. A number of solar companies have gone bankrupt and a host of them have cut capacity.

MEMC will reduce capacity at its Portland, Oregon crystal facility. It also plans to idle its polysilicon facility in Merano, Italy and may close it unless “dramatic feedstock, power, and other cost reductions are achieved in the near term.”

“We expect capacity related actions in solar materials to lower the average cost of our modules for our downstream solar energy systems and provide greater manufacturing flexibility in the future,” Chief Financial Officer Mark Murphy said on a conference call with analysts.

MEMC said about 250 of the positions to be eliminated are in the United States. An estimated 41 percent are in its semiconductor materials segment and 47 percent in the solar materials segment.

The company expects to take a related charge of $700 million in the fourth quarter.

BANGALORE (Reuters) – Infosys Ltd (INFY.NS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) expects its third-quarter revenue growth closer to the lower end of its forecast as customers delay decisions on large contracts, its chief executive said.

The Bangalore-based company, a pioneer in India’s $76 billion IT sector, has grown rapidly by employing thousands of engineers in low-cost Indian centers but is seeing its pace of growth slowing amid a sputtering U.S. economy and the European debt crisis.

“Economic uncertainties are slowing down decisions,” S.D. Shibulal, also a co-founder of Infosys, said at the Reuters India Investment Summit in Bangalore.

“We’re clearly seeing it. The slowness has increased in the last month or month and a half,” he said.

Infosys had forecast quarter-on-quarter revenue growth of 3.2-4.5 percent for the October-December period.

“We’re also seeing higher scrutiny of larger contracts … larger contracts are difficult to come by,” Shibulal said, adding that consumer and customer confidence was very low.

India’s No. 2 software services exporter is facing severe competition from rivals Tata Consultancy Services (TCS.NS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), Cognizant Technology (CTSH.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), IBM (IBM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Accenture (ACN.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) in clinching large deals.

BANGALORE (Reuters) – Infosys Ltd expects its third-quarter revenue growth closer to the lower end of its forecast as customers delay decisions on large contracts, its chief executive said.

The Bangalore-based company, a pioneer in India’s $76 billion (48 billion pound) IT sector, has grown rapidly by employing thousands of engineers in low-cost Indian centres but is seeing its pace of growth slowing amid a sputtering U.S. economy and the European debt crisis.

“Economic uncertainties are slowing down decisions,” S.D. Shibulal, also a co-founder of Infosys, said at the Reuters India Investment Summit in Bangalore.

“We’re clearly seeing it. The slowness has increased in the last month or month and a half,” he said.

Infosys had forecast quarter-on-quarter revenue growth of 3.2-4.5 percent for the October-December period.

“We’re also seeing higher scrutiny of larger contracts … larger contracts are difficult to come by,” Shibulal said, adding that consumer and customer confidence was very low.

India’s No. 2 software services exporter is facing severe competition from rivals Tata Consultancy Services, Cognizant Technology, IBM and Accenture in clinching large deals.

Nov 17 (Reuters) – General Maritime Corp, a crude oil and refined petroleum products shipper, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Thursday, becoming the latest victim of a downturn triggered by an oversupply of vessels amid weak demand.

Bankers expect more bankruptcies and restructuring in the sector as daily rates for vessels fall below their operating costs, hurting companies’ cash flows and ability to comply with loan agreements.

General Maritime, which listed total assets of $1.72 billion and liabilities of $1.41 billion as of September end, said private equity firm Oaktree Capital Management will provide it with $175 million in equity.

The company’s lenders have also agreed to defer cash payments of about $140 million to June 2014.

“(Oaktree investment) is good in this situation as tanker markets will stay soft for at least 2-3 years,” First Securities ASA analyst Erik Folkeson said.

“However, they will still have a negative operating cash flow. The question is, when will the markets turn and will they have sufficient cash to live through a long period of tough market?”

The company has a commitment for up to $100 million in new debtor-in-possession financing from a group of lenders, led by Nordea as the administrative agent. The debtors are expecting the company to emerge from bankruptcy in the spring of 2012.

Oct 28 (Reuters) – Arch Coal Inc posted a lower-than-expected quarterly profit as flooding in the U.S. Midwest hit shipments and West Virginia mine costs rose, but it forecast record exports this year on strong demand from Asian steelmakers.

Shares of the St. Louis-based company rose 6 percent to $19.37 on Friday on the New York Stock Exchange. The stock had lost 48 percent of its value this year by Thursday’s close.

The coal producer maintained its earnings estimates for the full year, and unveiled higher-priced sales commitments for next year.

For 2012, Arch has a commitment to sell 93.3 million tons of coal from the Powder River Basin (PRB) in Wyoming at an average price of $14.49 per ton, higher than some of its recent contracts.

“On the positive side, Arch booked 2012 PRB thermal coal prices well above our estimate for average uncommitted PRB thermal coal,” Brean Murray, Carret & Co analyst Lucas Pipes said in a note.

The price of PRB coal is generally less than that of coal produced in other regions as it exists in greater abundance, is easier to mine and has a lower cost of production. PRB coal’s heat content is generally lower.

“We are seeing a real demand for PRB coal which is benefiting from the rebuilding efforts from PRB served generators that are seeing their stockpiles dip below normal and from interest in ultra low sulfur coal,” Chief Operating Officer John Eaves said on a conference call.

Oct 27 (Reuters) – Airgas Inc beat Wall Street estimates with a 17 percent rise in quarterly profit, as manufacturing and energy customers kept demand high, prompting the industrial gas supplier to raise its full-year adjusted earnings outlook.

Manufacturing, medical, petrochemical and utilities sectors are the strongest customer bases for Airgas, which supplies canisters of oxygen, argon and other gases used in construction, healthcare and many other industries.

Airgas shares were up 1.5 percent at $70.34 at midday on Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange.

“On the strength of our second quarter results and outlook for sustained volumes in the coming quarter, we have raised our earnings guidance for fiscal 2012,” Airgas Chief Executive Peter McCausland, who founded the company in 1982, said on a conference call.

“October sales are trending well, consistent with the favorable daily sales run rates we saw in September.”

He said Airgas continues to see strength in the manufacturing-intensive regions of the United States and in its petrochemical and energy customers.

Rival Praxair Inc earlier this week reported a slightly higher-than-expected quarterly profit, while Air Products’ earnings came in line with Wall Street’s expectations.

Oct 26 (Reuters) – U.S. power utilities reported higher quarterly profits on Wednesday, as a pickup in industrial activity and rate hikes helped sales overcome the drag of a weak economy.

American Electric Power , headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, expects to see an improvement in the economy.

“Industrial volume is up 5 percent for the quarter and year, based primarily on increased production by our metals customers and refiners,” said AEP Chief Executive Michael Morris.

“We see this as a positive sign for the economy as a whole.”

AEP’s third-quarter profit jumped, and the company narrowed its ongoing full-year earnings outlook to $3.07-$3.17 per share from $3.00-$3.20 per share.

AEP and Exelon Corp , the operator of the largest fleet of nuclear power plants in the United States, benefited from hotter-than-normal summertime weather in their service territories.

“Exelon Generation’s performance was exceptional, producing a nuclear fleet capacity factor of 95.8 percent and above normal output from our Texas plants to meet much higher demand due to hot weather,” CEO John Rowe said in a statement.

By Krishna Das – Analysis

(Reuters) – Chinese solar companies are snapping up their own shares amid a brutal selloff in the stock market, spending crucial resources on the effort rather than conserving cash or spending on new strategic projects.

The buyback programs come as the industry struggles to maintain profitability in the face of rapidly falling prices for solar panels that have driven many of the stocks to multi-year lows.

LDK Solar has already bought back $110 million worth of its shares this year. Yingli Green Energy, ReneSola and JA Solar Holdings plan to buy back up to $100 million each, while JinkoSolar Holding intends to repurchase $30 million.

The buybacks represent anywhere from 15 percent to about one-half of the companies’ current market value.

Buybacks are common among companies that are cash-rich and seeking either to soak up extra shares they have issued under compensation plans or to convince investors that their shares are undervalued.

“Companies go for buybacks to reduce the float and increase their share price,” said Peter Bible, partner-in-charge in the public companies group at accounting firm EisnerAmper.

By Michael Erman and Krishna Das

(Reuters) – Pipeline company Plains All American Pipeline LP (PAA.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said it made an unsolicited $1 billion bid for rival SemGroup Corp (SEMG.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) but the $24-a-share offer was rejected.

Shares of SemGroup soared 19 percent to $28.11 in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange, indicating investors are looking for a higher bid.

Plains said on Monday that it offered $24 a share for SemGroup, a 1.9 percent premium over the stock’s closing price of $23.56 on Friday. It said the proposal was first submitted on October 6.

“It’s possible that some others bidders emerge,” said Avi Feinberg, an analyst with Morningstar Inc.

Feinberg said crude oil-focused and refined products-focused master limited partnerships could consider a bid, but noted that “Plains has the best natural fit (with SemGroup) of any company.”

SemGroup’s assets include 620-mile pipeline network in Kansas and Oklahoma as well as a 51 percent stake in a 527-mile pipeline that transports crude oil from Colorado to Oklahoma.