Canadian Solar Closes Canada's Largest EPC Agreement for the Construction of a 140 MW DC Solar Energy Farm in Ontario

GUELPH, Ontario, June 26, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Canadian Solar Inc. (the "Company", or "Canadian Solar") (NASDAQ: CSIQ), one of the world's largest solar power companies, today announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Canadian Solar Solutions Inc., has entered into an Engineering, Procurement, and Construction ("EPC") agreement with Kingston Solar LP, a solar energy project developed by Samsung Renewable Energy Inc. ("Samsung") for the construction of a 140 MW DC (100 MW AC) utility-scale solar energy farm. The EPC agreement is expected to generate revenue of over C$300 million for Canadian Solar. The construction of the utility-scale solar energy farm will begin in the third quarter of 2014, and is expected to be fully operational in the third quarter of 2015. This is Canadian Solar's second EPC agreement in connection with a solar project developed by Samsung and represents Phase II of Samsung's Green Energy Investment Agreement ("GEIA") solar project development in Ontario, which totals 300MW AC. This follows the Phase I agreement announced on June 10, 2013, for Canadian Solar to build the 130 MW DC Grand Renewable Energy Park in Haldimand County.

"We are delighted to partner with Samsung and Kingston Solar LP to collaborate on the construction of Canada's largest solar farm which will not only expand the use of solar energy but also create green manufacturing jobs in Ontario," said Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Canadian Solar. "We believe that this transaction demonstrates that our proven solar project experience, global reach as well as strong partner relationships sets Canadian Solar apart as a leading provider of solar energy solutions on a global basis, positioning us well to participate in the expected growth of solar energy deployment in the quarters and years ahead." 

This 140 MW DC utility-scale solar farm will produce approximately 173,000 MWh of electricity per year and power approximately 16,409 Canadian homes. It will also contribute to a cleaner environment by displacing approximately 119,292 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually. In addition, this project supports over 700 manufacturing jobs at Canadian Solar manufacturing facilities in London and Guelph. The Kingston solar farm will include more than 464,000 Ontario-made Canadian Solar Maxpower CS6X high-performance modules, which have undergone rigorous formal inspection, testing and certification.  This solar farm is expected to create several hundred new green energy jobs during the construction, development and operation phases of the project life cycle.

About Canadian Solar

Founded in 2001 in Ontario, Canada, Canadian Solar is one of the world's largest and foremost solar power companies. As a leading manufacturer of solar photovoltaic modules and provider of solar energy solutions, Canadian Solar has an industry leading and geographically diversified pipeline of utility-scale solar power projects as well as a track record of successful solar deployment boasting over 7 GW of premium quality modules installed in over 70 countries during the past decade. Canadian Solar is committed to providing high-quality solar products and solar energy solutions to customers around the world. For more information about our company, products and projects please 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 the risks regarding general business and economic conditions and the state of the solar industry; governmental support for the deployment of solar power; future available supplies of solar grade silicon; demand for solar products by consumers and inventory levels of such products in the supply chain; changes in demand from significant customers; changes in demand in our project markets, including Canada, the U.S., Japan and China;  changes in customer order patterns; capacity utilization; level of competition; pricing pressure and declines in average selling prices; delays in new product introduction; continued success in technological innovations and delivery of products with the features customers demand; utility-scale project approval process; delays in utility-scale project construction; shortage in supply of materials or capacity requirements; availability of financing; exchange rate fluctuations; trade protectionism in Europe, the U.S. and India; litigation and other risks as described in the Company's SEC filings, including its annual report on Form 20-F filed on April 28, 2014. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in its 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.

SOURCE Canadian Solar Inc.