Search sponsor
Canadian Solar, a vertically-integrated manufacturer of PV modules, has signed an agreement with China Development Bank whereby the latter will provide a C$93 million (US$93.8 million) loan to the former.
Under the terms of the agreement, the loan has a five-year maturity and will be used to partially finance Canadian Solar’s previously announced C$185 million (US$186.6 million) acquisition of a majority interest in 16 solar projects. The projects, which were previously owned by SkyPower, have a total capacity of approximately 190MW to 200MW.
Each project has been awarded a 20-year power purchase contract by the Ontario Power Authority. Furthermore, 15 of the 16 projects have contracts issued under Ontario’s FiT programme whilst the remaining project has a contract issued under Ontario’s Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program.
Construction of the projects are expected to commence in 2013 and be fully operational in 2014, with the capacity expected to generate over C$ 800 million (US$ 785 million) in revenue.
“Our new credit agreement underscores Canadian Solar’s bankability and strong competitive position. We are pleased to have the support of one of the world's largest banks as we continue to execute on our business and advance our goal to generate 40% of our revenue from total solutions, which include solar power generation project development, facilitation of financing arrangements, EPC services and total hardware kit sales,” said Dr. Shawn Qu, Canadian Solar’s chairman and chief executive officer.
