Canadian Solar Inc. (the "Company", or "Canadian Solar") (NASDAQ: CSIQ), announced today that a special committee of independent directors of the Company, with the assistance of outside financial and legal advisors, has completed a review of strategic alternatives available to the Company.
After an assessment of the results of the strategic review, the board of directors of the Company (the "Board") decided to pursue a listing of the Company's Modules and System Solutions ("MSS") business on either the Shanghai Stock Exchange's Science and Technology Innovation Board ("STAR market") or the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's ChiNext Market, both of which are intended to support innovative and fast-growing companies. The listing of the MSS business includes the shares of Canadian Solar's principal China subsidiary and overseas sales subsidiaries (collectively "Subsidiary").
Based on precedents in the China IPO market, the listing process is estimated to take 18-24 months. To qualify, according to Chinese securities regulations, the Subsidiary is required to be converted into a Sino-foreign joint stock company prior to listing which shall be completed through a round of equity raising from China-domiciled investors.
The Company, which also holds a world-leading global energy business focused on the development and selective partial ownership of solar and storage projects, remains committed to its NASDAQ listing. For this purpose, the Company will continue to seek capital partnerships with long-term investors looking for opportunities to deploy capital in clean, profitable and countercyclical solar energy infrastructure investments, either through public or private investment vehicles.
"This potential listing of our MSS in China will provide us a new platform to raise investment capital and strengthen our leading position in solar manufacturing. Meanwhile, by remaining listed on the NASDAQ as a Canadian company and partnering with long-term investors, we will continue to grow our solar project development platform in every major market around the world and reap the synergies from the two complementary businesses," said Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and CEO.
Dr. Qu added, "Canadian Solar shareholders, as owners of the China IPO issuer, will continue to own the solar manufacturing business and benefit from its potential growth upside. We appreciate China's continued efforts to open its financial markets and welcome foreign issuers such as Canadian Solar."
Whether the company can successfully list its MSS business in the Chinese stock market and its market valuation after listing will depend on various factors, including but not limited to, capital market conditions in China and globally, the regulatory environment for listed securities, the Company's financial performance and fulfilling the listing requirements in China.
About Canadian Solar Inc.
Canadian Solar was founded in 2001 in Canada and is one of the world's largest solar power companies. It is a leading manufacturer of solar photovoltaic modules and provider of solar energy solutions and has a geographically diversified pipeline of utility-scale solar power projects in various stages of development.
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