CORRECTED - UPDATE 1-JA Solar profit tops market estimates

(Corrects to show revenue more than tripled) (Recasts; adds details, share movement)

May 12 (Reuters) - China-based solar cell maker JA Solar Holdings Co (JASO.O: Quote, Profile, Research) posted a better-than-expected quarterly profit as revenue more than tripled, driven by higher demand, sending shares up 8 percent in trading before the bell.

The first-quarter net income was $22 million, or 14 cents per American depositary share (ADS), compared with $8.6 million, or 7 cents per ADS, a year earlier.

Revenue rose to $160 million from $47.8 million.

Analysts were expecting earnings of 10 cents a share, excluding special items, on revenue of $149.4 million, according to Reuters Estimates.

During the quarter, the Hebei, China-based company more than doubled its power production to 49.2 mega watt (MW) and shipments tripled to 51.4 MW.

The company also maintained its 2008 revenue outlook of $1.03 billion to $1.14 billion. Analysts were expecting $1 billion.

JA Solar also backed its total production output of at least 340 MW for 2008, with a total annual production capacity of no less than 500 MW.

Shares of the company were trading at $25.49 in trading before the bell. They had closed at $23.54 on Nasdaq, Friday. (Reporting by Nachiket Kelkar in Bangalore; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Gerald E. McCormick)