Integrated solar PV manufacturer Canadian Solar had a strong year in 2021, exiting it with 28% annual improvement in module shipments of 14.5 GW, and 47% growth in revenues that added up to $5.3 billion in Q4/2021 due to higher solar module ASP and increase in project sales.
In Q4/2021, the Canada headquartered Chinese company recorded a 28% annual increase in module shipments with 3.83 GW, well within the guided range and $1.53 billion revenues. Its gross margin for the period exceeded guided range of 14% to 16% to settle at 19.7%. Annual increase was attributed to higher shipment volumes and ASP and significant growth in its battery storage solutions business.
The top 5 markets it shipped to during both Q4/2021 and 2021 were China, the US, Brazil, Germany and Japan.
Manufacturing
The vertically integrated module maker ended the year 2021 with 5.4 GW of ingot, 11.5 GW wafer, 13.9 GW cell and 23.9 GW module capacity. By June 2022, it aims to expand module capacity to 27.9 GW and by December 2022, to 32 GW. Ingot, wafer and cell capacities will be increased by year end to 10.4 GW, 14.5 GW and 14.5 GW, respectively.
Canadian Solar's global energy solar project pipeline was 24 GW and storage pipeline of 27 GWh as of January 2022.
Guidance
"First quarter margins will be impacted by the recent uptick in material costs, partially mitigated through pricing and sales channel strategies. Shipping costs are also expected to remain elevated, but should start to normalize with improvement in the global pandemic situation later in the year," said the company's Chairman and CEO, Dr. Shawn Qu.
For Q1/2022, the management has guided for its module shipments to fall within the range of 3.6 GW to 3.8 GW, including 210 MW for its own projects. During this quarter, it expects to report $1.25 to $1.35 billion revenues and gross margin of 14.5% to 15.5% reflecting higher material costs which it plans to partially mitigate through pricing and sales channel strategies.
It has reiterated guidance of 20 GW to 22 GW of annual module shipments in 2022, however expects revenues to now increase to $7.0 to $7.5 billion, raising it from previous guidance of $6.5 to $7.0 billion. Project sales are likely between 2.1 GW to 2.6 GW and battery storage shipments will be within 1.8 GWh to 1.9 GWh range.
Management also shared an update on its initial public offering (IPO) for CSI Solar in China which it said remains on track. It has received approval from the Shanghai Stock Exchange and is undergoing registration process with the China Securities Regulatory Commission at present.