Canadian Solar Shipped Over 21 GW Modules In 2022

• Canadian Solar's 2022 module shipments increased 45% annually to 21.1 GW of which 6.4 GW were shipped in Q4/2022
• Top 5 markets for quarterly module shipments were China, the US, Brazil, Spain and Germany
• Management has reiterated its revenue and shipment guidance for Q1/2023 and full year 2023
• It has also secured approval for manufacturing subsidiary CSI Solar's IPO carve-out in China from CSRC

Canadian Solar Inc has secured approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) for its manufacturing subsidiary CSI Solar's carve-out initial public offering (IPO) making way for the latter to be listed in China, the company announced while sharing its 2022 financial results that show it shipped 21.1 GW modules last year.

The Canada headquartered company with manufacturing in China said that module shipments last year went up by 45% annually with a 42% increase in revenues of $7.47 billion. It also reported 39% increase in gross profit to $1.2 billion while net income grew by over 152%.

For Q4/2022, module shipments added up to 6.4 GW with 68% annual increase and 29% growth in revenues of $1.97 billion, as guided by the company in a revised forecast it shared in February 2023 (see Canadian Solar Expects Higher Quarterly Guidance).

China, the US, Brazil, Spain, and Germany were its top 5 markets for quarterly module shipments. In early March, Canadian Solar said it is expanding its Spanish portfolio with 6 of its projects here representing 685 MW capacity having secured environmental clearance, while in Japan its operational portfolio has grown by 42 MW that came online recently (see Canadian Solar Strengthens Spanish & Japan Business).

Results in the 4^th quarter were attributed to higher solar module shipment volumes, partially offset by small decline in module ASPs. Management experienced drop in both material and logistical costs during the quarter. "The fourth quarter of 2022 was impacted by the timing of project sales, as expected, and adjustments in our growth strategy to hold valuable solar assets for the longer term," said Canadian Solar's Corporate VP and President of Global Energy subsidiary, Ismael Guerrero.

Guidance  

"Margins are taking a turn for the better as we continue to deliver on our vertical integration and cost reduction programs, further helped by lower raw material input costs," said Canadian Solar Chairman and CEO Dr Shawn Qu. "On the operating profit side, we expect to achieve operating leverage this year from the significant volume growth, especially given the decline in unit logistics costs."

As of January 31, 2023, its solar development pipeline stood at 25 GW along with 47 GWh of battery storage capacity. Of this, 13.5 GW solar and 11.6 GWh storage projects have secured interconnections.

In Q1/2023, management expects to report revenues within $1.6 billion to $1.8 billion, with a gross margin of 18% to 20%. It targets to ship between 5.9 GW to 6.2 GW in this quarter, including around 133 MW to its own projects. Lean guidance is due to Q1 being seasonally softer, but management expects acceleration in end market demand through the year.

For full year 2023, it reiterates module shipment guidance of 30 GW to 35 GW through CSI Solar and its battery storage shipments as 1.8 GWh to 2.0 GWh. Its revenue guidance for the current year is between $8.5 billion to $9.5 billion.

Anticipating growing demand and to prepare for a tight supply scenario, Canadian Solar presented end of Jan. 2023 an upward revision of its manufacturing targets for 2023-end, now aiming to expand the same cumulatively to 20 GW ingot, 35 GW wafer and 50 GW for solar cell and module capacity each, while also adding battery system manufacturing capacity in China (see Canadian Solar Updates Production Capacity Expansion Plans)