Canadian Solar and Green City Energy Complete Large Solar Project in Saxony in Record Time

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1 MW Solar System Established in Haertensdorf, Germany

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Jul 20, 2010, 06:00 ET

MUNICH, July 20 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- Canadian Solar Inc. (Nasdaq: CSIQ), one of the world's largest solar companies, and Green City Energy, the alternative energy provider, have jointly installed a 1 MW solar system in the city of Haertensdorf, Germany. The system, located in sunny Saxony, was completed before June 30. Interested private investors can get involved in the scope of the current Solar Deutschland 2010 fund available at Green City Energy.

Canadian Solar and Green City Energy have jointly completed a 1 MW installation in the city of Haertensdorf in Saxony, Germany. The solar system, situated in the county of Zwickau, is part of the Burgersolarpark installation. With a global radiation value of 1000 kWh/m2, it is located in one Germany's sunniest regions. The two companies have fitted solar modules on a total of 16 rooftops with a surface of 17,000 square meters. The modules by Canadian Solar will produce 1,000,000 Kwh of green solar energy per year -- enough to power approximately 300 households. The Munich-based project company, Green City Energy, has completed the project within the record time of only 2 months of construction. The company has set up a solar fund -- the Solarpark Deutschland 2010 -- in which private investors can get involved.

Construction work began in early 2010 with the required reconstruction of the roof. Prior to installing the modules, material that was contaminated with asbestos had to be removed, which took four months to complete. Installing the solar modules was then accomplished in only one month. For the reconstruction of the roof and the installation of the solar modules, Green City Energy contracted closely with local firms. "All the partners involved in the project showed a great deal of partnership. This reduced friction to a minimum, so we managed to install the system in no time at all," said Andreas Horn, Division Manager Photovoltaic at Green City Energy. "And also with regard to technology, with Canadian Solar and its high performance modules we had a very strong and reliable partner." The system was already feeding electricity into the local grid before June 30, which exempts it from the cutbacks of the PV feed-in tariffs.

From a very early stage in the project, Green City Energy opted for solar modules made by Canadian Solar. "We are very proud to be a partner with Green City Energy in this project to promote the use of solar power. Canadian Solar has been active in the German PV market since 2004, working closely with local distributors, installers and project management firms. This project is another example showcasing our expertise in solar energy," commented Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and CEO of Canadian Solar.


    The solar plant in Haertensdorf at a glance:

    Size of the solar system
     (approx.)                        1 MW
    Produced electricity (approx.)    1.000.000 kWh p.a.
    Module type                       CS6P modules of Canadian Solar
    Technology                        Poly crystalline silicon
    Alignment                         South East and South West
    Information on investments        http://www.solarparkdeutschland2010.de

About Green City Energy GmbH

The company with headquarters in Munich, Germany, was founded in May 2005 as a full subsidiary of Green City e.V. The Managing Director is Thomas Prudlo. The company stands for a shift in energy supply to 100 percent renewables. All projects, services and investments by Green City Energy strongly contribute to the energy shift, and guarantee green energy supply independent from resources and at stable prices. The company's workforce currently comprises 40 employees. The projected turnover in 2009 is 27 million Euros. Since the foundation of the company, a broad portfolio of renewable energy funds was launched or designed for partners, such as the Bio & Solar-Fonds I & II, the 3-Wetter-Fonds I, the solar parks 2005 to 2009, plus three bonds. This has empowered investments in renewable energy projects to the amount of 100 million euros. The energy services division comprises the planning, implementation and financing of renewable energy projects as well as energy consulting for municipalities.

About Canadian Solar

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) is one of the world's largest solar companies. As a leading vertically integrated provider of ingot, wafer, solar cell, solar module and other solar applications, Canadian Solar designs, manufactures and delivers solar products and solar system solutions for on-grid and off-grid use to customers worldwide. With operations in North America, Europe and Asia, Canadian Solar provides premium quality, cost-effective and environmentally friendly solar solutions to support global, sustainable development. For more information, visit http://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 general business and economic conditions and the state of the solar industry; 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, including customers of our silicon materials sales; changes in demand from major markets such as Germany and Canada; risks associated with building our new Ontario facility; 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; 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; exchange rate fluctuations; litigation and other risks as described in the Company's SEC filings, including its annual report on Form 20-F originally filed on June 8, 2009, as amended by its report on Form 20-F/A filed on October 14, 2009. 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. You 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.