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.

Votorantim Energia and VTRM - FleishmanHillard Brasil Contacts: Andrea Giardino, andrea.giardino@fleishman.com.br; Simei Morais, simei.morais@fleishman.com.br; Investors: Canadian Solar Inc. Contacts, Isabel Zhang, Investor Relations, Canadian Solar Inc., investor@canadiansolar.com; David Pasquale, Global IR Partners, Tel: +1-914-337-8801, csiq@globalirpartners.com