GUELPH,
ON and LONDON,
July 25,
2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Canadian Solar Inc.
("Canadian Solar") (NASDAQ: CSIQ), announces today that it has
completed the sale of two fully-permitted solar and battery energy
storage projects in the UK to specialist alternative asset manager,
Gresham House.
The two projects comprise a collocated solar and battery energy
storage project in Durham, with 50
MWp solar capacity and 38 MW (or 76 MWh) of battery energy storage,
and a standalone solar project in Warwickshire of 28 MWp.
Both parties aim to continue to prioritise collocated renewable
projects, where the solar PV and battery energy storage plants are
built together and share the same grid connection infrastructure.
These projects provide both economic advantages, particularly in
the form of shared capital and operating costs, as well as
significant benefits to the UK grid by improving system
reliability, enabling greater integration of renewables and thereby
helping the UK economy meet its net-zero carbon targets.
The project in Durham is
Canadian Solar's first collocated solar PV and battery energy
storage project in the UK and it represents the second collocated
solar and battery energy storage project acquired by Gresham
House.
The projects are entirely subsidy-free, consistent with Canadian
Solar's long pipeline of UK opportunities under development.
Both projects are fully permitted and construction-ready.
Canadian Solar will continue to be involved in the projects, being
responsible for the long-term operations and maintenance
activities.
Gresham House New Energy invests in clean energy projects
harnessing battery energy storage, solar and wind technologies. The
team has a proven track record in acquiring and managing projects
throughout their development, construction and operational phases,
with a total capacity of 0.7 GW currently operating in the UK.
Canadian Solar is active in the UK renewables market with a 1.8
GWp PV solar and 4.3 GWh battery energy storage pipeline under
development. Canadian Solar also has significant track record in
this market, having developed and interconnected to the grid a
total capacity of 200 MWp. This transaction is consistent with
Canadian Solar's growth strategy in the UK and broader Europe, Middle
East and Africa (EMEA)
region which combines an increasing retention of strategic
long-term ownership with the execution of strategic sales of
selected portfolios in partnership with top tier investors.
Dr. Shawn
Qu,
Canadian Solar's Chairman and CEO, commented: "The
execution of this transaction demonstrates again our expertise in
battery energy storage development and proves the recognised value
of our fast-growing pipeline in the UK, one of Canadian Solar's
core markets in EMEA. This sale represents our very first
collocated solar and battery energy storage project successfully
delivered in the UK. Our decision to sell the two projects
before construction is primarily aimed at obtaining immediate
market recognition and it does not preclude Canadian Solar from
building, alone or in partnerships, the next projects developed in
the UK or in EMEA. We are pleased to partner with Gresham House,
whose undisputed position as the UK's leading investor in battery
energy storage certifies the strong appreciation of our
project development and O&M capabilities, strengthening our
position and strategy in the UK."
Peter Bolton, Investment
Director, Renewable Energy at Gresham House, said: "We are
excited by the opportunity to expand our portfolio of subsidy-free
renewables and to secure further collocated solar and battery
energy storage assets. Gresham House is a long-established investor
in both renewables and battery energy storage, and we believe in
the strong economic case for collocating the technologies on the
same site. This reflects a UK-wide requirement for more renewables
capacity and for battery energy storage to support the grid system
as further intermittent renewable generation is added.
"It is great to formalise our relationship with Canadian Solar.
Their strong reputation across the solar and battery energy storage
supply chain, combined with development-stage track record, means
we hope to complete further transactions together in the
future."
About Gresham House
Gresham House plc is a specialist alternative investment manager
with assets under management of c.£7.2 billion (as at 30 June
December 2022 - unaudited figures,
13 July 2022 Trading Statement).
Gresham House New Energy is the clean energy division of Gresham
House, focused on battery energy storage, solar and wind
technologies. The New Energy Team has a proven track record in
acquiring and managing projects throughout their development,
construction and operational phases, with a total capacity of 0.7GW
currently operating in the UK.
Gresham House Asset Management is the FCA-authorised operating
business of Gresham House plc, a London Stock Exchange quoted
specialist alternative asset manager. Gresham House is committed to
operating responsibly and sustainably, taking the long view in
delivering sustainable investment solutions. For more information
visit www.greshamhouse.com
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 around 71 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 6.6 GWp in over 20
countries across the world. Currently, the Company has around 800
MWp of solar projects in operation, 5.3 GWp of projects under
construction or in backlog (late-stage), and an additional 18.5 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.
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, regulatory and economic
conditions and the state of the solar and battery storage market
and industry; geopolitical tensions and conflicts, including
impasses, sanctions and export controls; volatility, uncertainty,
delays and disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic; supply
chain disruptions; 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., China, Brazil
and India; changes in effective
tax rates; changes in customer order patterns; changes in product
mix; changes in corporate responsibility, especially environmental,
social and governance ("ESG") requirements; capacity utilization;
level of competition; pricing pressure and declines in or failure
to timely adjust 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; continued success in technological
innovations and delivery of products with the features that
customers demand; shortage in supply of materials or capacity
requirements; availability of financing; exchange and inflation
rate fluctuations; uncertainties related to the CSI Solar carve-out
listing; litigation and other risks as described in the Company's
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its
annual report on Form 20-F filed on April
28, 2022. 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.
Canadian Solar Inc. Investor Relations
Contacts
Isabel Zhang
Investor Relations
Canadian Solar Inc.
investor@canadiansolar.com
David Pasquale
Global IR Partners
Tel: +1-914-337-8801
csiq@globalirpartners.com
Gresham House Contact
KL Communications
Charles Gorman / Henry Taylor
gh@kl-communications.com
020 3995 6699
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SOURCE Canadian Solar Inc.