Hanergy Thin Film Power Group posted a 34 percent decrease in first-half operating revenue and a net loss of HK$59.32 million ($7.65 million), according to the company's interim results released late on Friday.
This is the company's first net loss since it began trading on the Hong Kong bourse in 2013 via a backdoor listing.
The numbers reflect what happened when the company halted or canceled the bulk of connected transactions with member companies and other affiliates of Hanergy Holding Group to allay investor concerns, according to the filing to the Hong Kong bourse.
In the first six months of 2015, Hanergy Thin Film Power Group recorded operating revenue of HK$2.12 billion, down 34 percent year-on-year. The net loss was a turnaround from a net profit of HK$1.68 billion in the same period in 2014.
Large job losses are also apparently pending, although the scale is unclear. The filing said the company plans to trim its payroll by about 2,000 through a restructuring proposal, which is pending approval from shareholders. The company's current payroll stands at 15,000, according to its website.
A report by financial news portal caixin.com on Saturday said a conservative estimate is that about 30 percent of the staff at Hanergy will be trimmed. The report cited multiple sources.
Regional offices are negotiating severance agreements with employees accounting for no less than 30 percent of the total payroll, the caixin report said, citing an unidentified former manager of Hanergy.
A manager at the Hanergy headquarters in Beijing, who declined to be identified, confirmed to the Global Times Sunday that "optimization and restructuring" has been taking place since July. He said there is no "one-size---fits-all" approach in the "restructuring."
Another source inside Hanergy, who also asked to remain anonymous, told the Global Times that there have been layoffs, but said he had heard nothing about the 30 percent cut indicated in the caixin report.
Hanergy's valuation peaked at $48.5 billion in March
Its troubles began when the China Business News newspaper published reports in April raising questions about its mode of business.
Hanergy's share price then plummeted by nearly half in less than one hour on May 20. The Hong Kong securities regulator subsequently suspended the trading of its shares amid a probe into the plunge. The shares have since been removed from relevant international indices.
Wu Chenhui, an independent analyst following the new energy sector, said thin film, crystalline silicon cell technology and concentrated solar power are still competing with one another as the most viable way to harness solar power.
"The troubles confining Hanergy at the moment should not be seen as a defeat of the thin film technology it heralded," Wu said.
Production costs and pollution levels during production will decide which technology prevails, Wu noted.
