News that Q-Cells AG, one of many alt. e. stocks over the last few years which once claimed to be the largest by market cap.in the world, is investing $1.6 billion in a new plant in Malaysia gave me pause for thought. Will it be the first of many German solar companies to go east of East Germany?

If we were to view the semiconductor industry as a taste of things to come for solar manufacturers, then Western, Japanese and Korean firms started shifting production rapidly in the 90s away from Western Europe towards the less wealthy parts of the Pacific Basin. At the moment, most of Germany's solar firms are independently owned and quite happy where they are. A bit like the Mittelstand cadre of small and medium sized businesses. The difference though is that Germany's solar firms have a global future and are often publicly quoted on the Stock Exchange. So as the solar industry expands and giant utilities and multinational white goods manufacturers choose to buy them out - that is going to change pretty rapidly.

That's why yesterday's news about Ersol Solar Energy AG, which closed up a staggering 63%, because washing machines et al behemoth Bosch agreed to buy a majority stake, offers portents of the future. I doubt this will be the last German solar firm to be bought into by the white goods industry - solar is becoming commoditised. And utilities, will also be buying up a lot more operational windfarms.