Canadian Solar, a large solar equipment manufacturer, announced June 10 that their subsidiary, Canadian Solar Solutions, won a contract to build a $304 million dollar solar plant outside Ontario. This plant is one of 29 that the company intends to build around the province.
The solar farm, when complete, will generate 130 megawatts (MW) of elctricity. Each year, that will total 165,000 megawatt hours (Mwh), enough to provide the energy needs of 13,750 homes.
"We are delighted to announce... this landmark solar project in Canada. This transaction represents the largest... contract in our history," Shawn Qu, chairman and chief executive officer of Canadian Solar, said.
The renewable energy will be generated by 440,000 CS6X high-performance solar cell modules, produced by Canadian Solar. Made from an anodized aluminum alloy, each of there modules is made up from 72 solar cells arranged in a 6x12 pattern. This will total 31,680,000 solar cells over the entire new facility. The modules, measuring approximately 77 x39 inches, are less than 1.6 inches thick. They are up to 15.9 percent efficient and have a self-cleaning surface. Designed to produce power in a low-light environment, they could work well in the Ontario area, located around 50 degrees latitude, immediately north of the United States' midwest region.
Canadian Solar is one of the world's largest producers of solar cells, earning $1.3 billion dollars in revenues in 2012. Despite the name, the company is based in Suzhou, China.
The solar equipment manufacturer also announced the construction of four other new solar plants for the area that will produce 400 MW of power, powering almost 6,900 homes. The plants will be operated by BluEarth, a renewable energy firm.
"These projects are a great fit with our existing renewable energy plants and projects, moving us closer to our goal of $1 billion of high-quality, long-term contracted renewable energy plants," Kent Brown, President and CEO of BluEarth, said.
The production of electricity by the solar farm will prevent over 178,500 tons of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere over a 20-year period. Canadian Solar also estimates that the project will create hundreds of jobs from construction though the operation of the plant.
Construction of the plant, which is commissioned by Samsung Renewable Energy, will begin in the third quarter of 2013 and continue through 2015.
