Canadian Solar, a Canada-based solar module manufacturer, reported a significant financial downturn in the second quarter of 2024. The company posted a loss of $47.98 million, a sharp decline from the $124.73 million profit recorded in the same quarter last year.
Revenue for Q2 fell by 31%, reaching $1.64 billion compared to $2.36 billion in Q2 2023. This decrease was driven by lower average selling prices for solar modules and reduced project sales. However, sales from battery energy storage solutions partially mitigated the decline.
Depreciation and amortization charges increased to $122 million in Q2, up from $110 million in Q1 and $73 million in Q2 2023, due to ongoing investments in vertical integration and capacity expansion.
Despite these challenges, Canadian Solar shipped 8.2 GW of solar modules during the quarter, marking a 30% increase from the previous quarter and maintaining consistency year-over-year. The company also reported that 135 MW of this total was allocated to its own utility-scale solar projects.
As of June 30, 2024, Canadian Solar's subsidiary, Recurrent Energy, had a global solar development pipeline of 27 GW and a battery energy storage pipeline of 63 GWh. The company also completed the initial closing of BlackRock’s investment in Recurrent Energy, part of a $500 million capital infusion.
For the first half of 2024, Canadian Solar saw a 27.27% drop in revenue, falling to $2.96 billion from $4.07 billion in the same period of 2023. Net profit for the first half turned into a loss of $82.93 million, a significant decrease from the $229.27 million profit reported the previous year.
Chairman and CEO Shawn Qu highlighted the company's focus on maintaining a competitive cost structure while adapting to industry changes. He emphasized ongoing investments in energy storage and global project development as key to achieving sustainable growth.
In August 2024, Canadian Solar secured $200 million from PAG through a private placement of secured convertible notes. In Q1 2024, the company faced an 85.25% drop in net income, underscoring the impact of lower module prices and ongoing pricing pressures.
