GUELPH, Ontario and SAO PAULO,
Dec. 14, 2021 /PRNewswire/
-- Canadian Solar Inc. (the "Company", or "Canadian Solar")
(NASDAQ: CSIQ), one of the world's largest solar energy and battery
storage companies, and VTRM, a leading renewable energy company in
Brazil, announced today the sale
of Canadian Solar's 635 MWp Jaíba V solar project to VTRM.
The Jaíba V Project, located in the Northeastern state of Minas
Gerais, is in advanced stage of development and is expected to
begin construction in 2022, and reach commercial operation in 2023.
Once operational, the project will be one of the largest solar
projects in the country, covering approximately 3,706 acres of land
(1,500 ha), and is estimated to generate clean electricity
equivalent to the annual consumption of over 500,000 households.
Approximately 40% of Jaíba V's installed capacity is already
committed through long-term PPAs (power purchase agreements), and
the remaining energy will be sold in the free market.
"We are pleased to partner with VTRM in this transaction for the
Jaiba V project, which will meaningfully contribute towards
Brazil's goal of obtaining 23% of
its energy from non-hydro renewable energy sources by 2030,"
commented Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and CEO
of Canadian Solar. "With the completion of this sale,
Canadian Solar will have successfully monetized 1.6 GWp of
utility-scale solar projects in Brazil and will continue to
execute and monetize its remaining pipeline of more than 2.5 GWp of
high-quality, contracted solar projects. Canadian Solar is a leader
in the Brazilian market, and we continue to expand our leadership
position across more Latin American markets, including Colombia and Chile."
According to Fabio Zanfelice, CEO of Votorantim Energia and
Chairman of VTRM's Management Board, "The acquisition is part
of the company's business expansion strategy with a focus on
diversifying renewable energy sources to explore new growth
opportunities, in order to bring more robustness and
complementarity to VTRM's current portfolio." The investment is
part of the company's 1.9 GWp pipeline in hydro and solar projects,
as well as hybrid solutions, which the market was informed about in
October. At the time, VTRM's shareholders – Votorantim and CPP
Investments – announced their intention to consolidate their energy
assets into a single platform.
About VTRM
VTRM Energia Participações S.A. is a joint venture
between Votorantim Energia and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
(CPP Investments). The joint venture started operations in
May 2018 with a focus on investment
and development of clean energy generation in Brazil. Currently, the company is the
controller of CESP - Companhia Energética de São Paulo, with more
than 1.6GW of hydroelectric generation capacity, and also the owner
of 31 wind farms with total installed capacity of 974MW, of which
21 are in operation and 10 under construction, all located in the
Northeast region of Brazil and
expected to start commercial operations in 2022. The company also
has a pipeline of growth projects that combine hydro, solar and
wind sources, as well as hybrid solutions.
About Canadian Solar Inc.
Canadian Solar was founded in 2001 in Canada and is one of the world's largest solar
technology and renewable energy companies. It is a leading
manufacturer of solar photovoltaic modules, provider of solar
energy and battery storage solutions, and developer of
utility-scale solar power and battery storage projects with a
geographically diversified pipeline in various stages of
development. Over the past 20 years, Canadian Solar has
successfully delivered over 63 GW of premium-quality, solar
photovoltaic modules to customers across the world. Likewise, since
entering the project development business in 2010, Canadian Solar
has developed, built and connected over 6.2 GWp in over 20
countries across the world. Currently, the Company has around 430
MWp of solar projects in operation, nearly 7 GWp of projects under
construction or in backlog (late-stage), and an additional 17 GWp
of projects in pipeline (mid- to early- stage). Canadian Solar is
one of the most bankable companies in the solar and renewable
energy industry, having been publicly listed on the NASDAQ since
2006. For additional information about the Company, follow Canadian
Solar on LinkedIn or visit www.canadiansolar.com
Canadian Solar Safe Harbor/Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking
statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially. These statements
are made under the "Safe Harbor" provisions of
the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by
such terms as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "intends,"
"estimates," the negative of these terms, or other comparable
terminology. Factors that could cause actual results to differ
include general business and economic conditions and the state of
the solar industry; volatility, uncertainty, delays and disruptions
related to the COVID-19 pandemic; governmental support for the
deployment of solar power; future available supplies of high-purity
silicon; demand for end-use products by consumers and inventory
levels of such products in the supply chain; changes in demand from
significant customers; changes in demand from major markets such
as Japan,
the U.S., India, China and Brazil; changes
in customer order patterns; changes in product mix; capacity
utilization; level of competition; pricing pressure and declines in
average selling prices; delays in new product introduction; delays
in utility-scale project approval process; delays in utility-scale
project construction; delays in the completion of project sales;
delays in the process of qualifying to list the CSI
Solar subsidiary in the PRC; continued success in
technological innovations and delivery of products with the
features customers demand; shortage in supply of materials or
capacity requirements; availability of financing; logistical
challenges that could increase the selling costs of the Company;
exchange rate fluctuations; litigation; potential initiation of an
anti-circumvention investigation and other risks as described in
the Company's SEC filings, including its annual report on
Form 20-F filed on April 19, 2021. Although the Company
believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking
statements are reasonable, it cannot guarantee future results,
level of activity, performance, or achievements. Investors should
not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All
information provided in this press release is as of today's date,
unless otherwise stated, and Canadian Solar undertakes no
duty to update such information, except as required under
applicable law.
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SOURCE Canadian Solar Inc.