KITCHENER, ON, Dec. 5, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Canadian Solar Inc. ("Canadian Solar" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: CSIQ) today announced financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024.

Highlights

• 16.4% gross margin, above guidance of 14% to 16%.
• Grew e-STORAGE contracted backlog to record $3.2 billion, as of November 30, 2024.
• Achieved final closing of BlackRock's $500 million investment in Recurrent Energy.

Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and CEO, commented, "The solar industry faces significant external and internal challenges. While we have achieved relatively strong results, the outlook remains complex. We are currently operating at an optimal scale with industry-leading technologies, and we remain committed to investing in R&D to ensure that we remain at the forefront of innovation across our portfolio of products and solutions. Our early-mover advantage, advanced manufacturing capabilities, and robust international sales network position us for continued growth in the rapidly expanding energy storage sector. In today's market, where trust is often in short supply, we are proud to be named the world's most trustworthy company in the energy and utilities sector on Newsweek's 'World's Most Trustworthy Companies 2024' list—a testament to our commitment to transparency, sustainability, and high-quality service across our global operations."

Yan Zhuang, President of Canadian Solar's subsidiary CSI Solar, said, "This quarter, CSI Solar posted stable performance, sustaining profitability while growing shipment volumes. We maintained a disciplined approach to order management, delivering over 30% of module volumes to the North American market. In energy storage, e-STORAGE recorded robust growth, reaching a record 4.4 GWh in shipments over the first three quarters of the year. At the same time, we are solidifying our market presence in established regions such as the U.S., Canada, and the UK, while expanding into emerging markets, exemplified by our inaugural project contract in Chile."

Ismael Guerrero, CEO of Canadian Solar's subsidiary Recurrent Energy, said, "We closed the $500 million BlackRock investment, which strengthens our balance sheet and supports our strategic transition towards a partial IPP business model. During the third quarter, we signed a record number of long-term PPAs in a single quarter of 540 MWp of solar and 600 MWh of storage. While we have experienced permitting and interconnection delays in certain European and North American markets, we continue to proactively manage these risks and remain focused on laying the foundation for long-term value. Currently, Recurrent Energy has a record number of projects in construction, including 1.6 GWp of solar and 1.8 GWh of battery energy storage capacity."

Xinbo Zhu, Senior VP and CFO, added, "In the third quarter, Canadian Solar generated $1.5 billion in net revenues, with a gross margin of 16.4%, and reported a net loss of $14 million. Recurrent Energy's relatively reduced project sales and delayed monetization of IPP projects combined with the impact of intra-group transactions will have an ongoing impact on Canadian Solar's P&L. We ended the quarter with a strong cash position of $2.8 billion, which we will strategically deploy to support our long-term growth plans and strengthen our financial position, as we continue to navigate industry challenges."

Third Quarter 2024 Results

Total module shipments recognized as revenues in the third quarter of 2024 were 8.4 GW, up 2% quarter-over-quarter ("qoq") and 1% year-over-year ("yoy"). Of the total, 31 MW were shipped to the Company's own utility-scale solar power projects.

Net revenues in the third quarter of 2024 decreased 8% qoq and 18% yoy to $1.5 billion. The sequential decrease primarily reflects lower third party battery energy storage solutions sales, a decline in average selling price ("ASP") and lower project sales, partially offset by higher solar module shipment volume. The yoy decrease primarily reflects a decline in module ASPs and lower project sales, partially offset by higher battery energy storage solutions sales and higher solar module shipment volume.

Gross profit in the third quarter of 2024 was $247 million, down 12% qoq and 20% yoy. Gross margin in the third quarter of 2024 was 16.4%, compared to 17.2% in the second quarter of 2024 and 16.7% in the third quarter of 2023. The gross margin sequential decrease was primarily caused by lesser margin contribution from third party battery energy storage solutions sales and lower module ASPs. The yoy decrease in gross margin was primarily driven by lower module ASPs, partially offset by lower manufacturing costs and higher margin contribution from battery energy storage solutions sales.

Total operating expenses in the third quarter of 2024 were $247 million, compared to $234 million in the second quarter of 2024 and $225 million in the third quarter of 2023. The sequential and yoy increases were primarily driven by higher shipping and handling expenses.

Depreciation and amortization charges in the third quarter of 2024 were $134 million, compared to $122 million in the second quarter of 2024 and $76 million in the third quarter of 2023. The sequential and yoy increases were primarily driven by the payment of vertical integration investments made by the Company over the past two years and incremental capacity in key strategic markets.

Net interest expense in the third quarter of 2024 was $20 million, compared to $19 million in the second quarter of 2024 and $11 million in the third quarter of 2023.

Net foreign exchange and derivative loss in the third quarter of 2024 was $4 million, compared to a net gain of $13 million in the second quarter of 2024 and a net loss of $17 million in the third quarter of 2023.

Net loss attributable to Canadian Solar in the third quarter of 2024 was $14 million, or $0.31 per diluted share, compared to a net income of $4 million, or $0.02 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2024, and net income of $22 million, or $0.32 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2023. Basic and diluted earnings (loss) per share ("EPS") includes Recurrent Energy redeemable preferred shares dividends payable in kind. As a result, an EPS effect of 10 cents was deducted in the third quarter of 2024 on a dilutive basis.

Net cash flow used in operating activities in the third quarter of 2024 was $231 million, compared to net cash flow used in operating activities of $429 million in the second quarter of 2024 and net cash flow provided by operating activities of $158 million in the third quarter of 2023. The operating cash outflow primarily resulted from increased project assets and lowered short-term notes payable.

Total debt was $5.4 billion as of September 30, 2024, including $2.5 billion, $2.7 billion, and $0.2 billion related to CSI Solar, Recurrent Energy, and convertible notes, respectively. Total debt increased as compared to $4.2 billion as of June 30, 2024, mainly driven by new borrowings for capacity investment, working capital, and development of projects and operational assets.

Business Segments

The Company has two business segments: Recurrent Energy and CSI Solar. The two businesses operate as follows:

• Recurrent Energy is one of the world's largest clean energy project development platforms with 15 years of experience, having delivered approximately 11 GWp of solar power projects and 3.7 GWh of battery energy storage projects. It is vertically integrated and has strong expertise in greenfield origination, development, financing, execution, operations and maintenance, and asset management.
• CSI Solar consists of solar module and battery energy storage manufacturing, and delivery of total system solutions, including inverters, solar system kits, and EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) services. CSI Solar's e-STORAGE branded battery energy storage business includes its utility-scale turnkey battery energy system solutions, as well as a small but growing residential battery energy storage business. These battery energy storage system solutions are complemented with long-term service agreements, including future battery capacity augmentation services.

Recurrent Energy Segment

As of September 30, 2024, the Company held a leading position with a total global solar development pipeline of 26 GWp and a battery energy storage development pipeline of 66 GWh.

While Recurrent Energy's business model was historically predominantly develop-to-sell, the Company has been adjusting its strategy to create greater asset value and retain greater ownership of projects in select markets to increase revenues generated through recurring income, such as power sales, operations and maintenance, and asset management income.

The business model consists of three key drivers:

• Electricity revenue from operating portfolio to drive stable, diversified cash flows in growth markets with stable currencies;
• Asset sales (solar power and battery energy storage) in the rest of the world to drive cash-efficient growth model, as value from project sales will help fund growth in operating assets in stable currency markets; and
• Power services (O&M) and asset management through long-term operations and maintenance ("O&M") contracts, currently with approximately 12 GW of contracted projects, to drive stable and long-term recurring earnings and synergies with the project development platform.

In October 2024, the Company announced it had achieved the final closing of a $500 million investment in Recurrent Energy by BlackRock through a fund management by BlackRock's Climate Infrastructure business. The transaction, announced in January 2024, had been completed following the receipt of the second and final payment. The first payment took place in June 2024. As agreed between the parties, BlackRock's total investment has reached $500 million, representing 20% of the outstanding fully diluted shares of Recurrent Energy on an as-converted basis. Canadian Solar will continue to own the remaining majority shares of Recurrent Energy.

This milestone enables Recurrent Energy to advance investment in its high value project development portfolio, supporting its strategic transition from a pure developer to a developer plus long-term owner and operator in select markets including the U.S. and Europe. This transition will allow Recurrent Energy to generate more stable long-term revenue in low-risk currencies and capture greater value from its diversified global project development pipeline.

Project Development Pipeline – Solar

As of September 30, 2024, Recurrent Energy's total solar project development pipeline was 26.4 GWp, including 1.7 GWp under construction, 4.8 GWp of backlog, and 19.9 GWp of projects in advanced and early-stage pipelines, defined as follows:

• Backlog projects are late-stage projects that have passed their risk cliff date and are expected to start construction in the next 1-4 years. A project's risk cliff date is the date on which the project passes the last high-risk development stage and varies depending on the country where it is located. This is usually after the projects have received all the required environmental and regulatory approvals, and entered into interconnection agreements, feed-in tariff ("FIT") arrangements, and power purchase agreements ("PPAs"). A significant majority of backlog projects are contracted (i.e., have secured a PPA or FIT), and the remaining have a reasonable assurance of securing PPAs.
• Advanced pipeline projects are mid-stage projects that have secured or have more than 90% certainty of securing an interconnection agreement.
• Early-stage pipeline projects are early-stage projects controlled by Recurrent Energy that are in the process of securing interconnection.

While the magnitude of the Company's project development pipeline is an important indicator of potential expanded power generation and battery energy storage capacity as well as potential future revenue growth, the development of projects in its pipeline is inherently uncertain. If the Company does not successfully complete the pipeline projects in a timely manner, it may not realize the anticipated benefits of the projects to the extent anticipated, which could adversely affect its business, financial condition, or results of operations. In addition, the Company's guidance and estimates for its future operating and financial results assume the completion of certain solar projects and battery energy storage projects that are in its pipeline. If the Company is unable to execute on its actionable pipeline, it may miss its guidance, which could adversely affect the market price of its common shares and its business, financial condition, or results of operations.

The following table presents Recurrent Energy's total solar project development pipeline.

Project Development Pipeline – Battery Energy Storage

As of September 30, 2024, Recurrent Energy's total battery energy storage project development pipeline was 66.1 GWh, including 9.8 GWh under construction and in backlog, and 56.3 GWh of projects in advanced and early-stage pipelines.

The table below sets forth Recurrent Energy's total battery energy storage project development pipeline.

Projects in Operation – Solar Power and Battery Energy Storage Power Plants (Including Unconsolidated Projects)

As of September 30, 2024, the solar power and battery energy storage plants in operation totaled over 1.7 GWp and 1.0 GWh respectively, with a combined estimated net resale value of over $1.0 billion. The estimated net resale value is based on selling prices that Recurrent Energy is currently negotiating or comparable asset sales.

Operating Results

The following table presents select unaudited results of operations data of the Recurrent Energy segment for the periods indicated.

CSI Solar Segment

Solar Modules and Solar System Kits

CSI Solar shipped 8.4 GW of solar modules and solar system kits to more than 70 countries in the third quarter of 2024. For the third quarter of 2024, the top five markets ranked by shipments were the U.S., China, Pakistan, Germany, and Brazil.

CSI Solar's revised manufacturing capacity expansion targets are set forth below.

e-STORAGE: Battery Energy Storage Solutions

e-STORAGE is CSI Solar's utility-scale battery energy storage platform. e-STORAGE provides customers with competitive turnkey, integrated, utility-scale battery energy storage solutions, including bankable, end-to-end, utility-scale, turnkey battery energy storage system solutions across various applications. System performance is complemented with long-term service agreements, which include future battery capacity augmentation services and bring in long-term, stable income.

As of September 30, 2024, e-STORAGE had a total project turnkey pipeline of over 60 GWh, which includes both contracted and in-construction projects, as well as projects at different stages of the negotiation process. In addition, e-STORAGE had over 4.2 GWh of operating battery energy storage projects contracted under long-term service agreements, all of which were battery energy storage projects previously executed by e-STORAGE.

As of November 30, 2024, the contracted backlog, including contracted long-term service agreements, was $3.2 billion. These are signed orders with contractual obligations to customers, providing significant earnings visibility over a multi-year period.

The table below sets forth e-STORAGE's manufacturing capacity expansion targets.

Operating Results 

The following table presents select unaudited results of operations data of the CSI Solar segment for the periods indicated. 

The table below provides the geographic distribution of the net revenues of CSI Solar: