IKEA drops Hanergy as residential solar supplier

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - IKEA, the world's biggest furniture retailer, has dropped struggling Hanergy Thin Film Power (HTF) as a supplier in a pilot project to sell solar panels across three markets. IKEA Group, which owns most of the IKEA stores worldwide, said in an emailed statement that while its roll-out of residential solar panels in stores in Britain, the Netherlands and Switzerland had been successful, it had not renewed a contract with Hanergy that ended Nov. 1. "We are looking into sensible solutions (to continue to sell solar panels) but we have decided Hanergy is not our partner," IKEA Group spokeswoman Martina Smedberg said. HTF is under investigation by Hong Kong's stock market regulator and its shares are suspended. (Reporting by Anna Ringstrom; Editing by Mark Heinrich)