Summary
The solar market in the U.S. and China is expected to grow at an impressive rate in the long run.
Canadian Solar is ramping up its capacity in China and the U.S. to tap the expected growth in solar energy in these markets.
Canadian Solar is also focusing on other growth markets such as Japan and Brazil.
Canadian Solar is cheap at its trailing P/E ratio, making it a good buy at current levels.
At the same time, Canadian Solar is also expanding its presence in global solar markets. For example, the company is on an expansion drive to beef up its production capacity in China. Canadian Solar will be adding 500 MW of solar module capacity at its Changshu and Luoyang plants. This will ramp up the total module capacity to 3.5 GW once it is operational by the second quarter of fiscal 2015. Also, the company has planned to upgrade the furnaces at the Luoyang plant to expand total wafer capacity from 260 MW to 400 MW by the middle of 2015.
Moreover, the construction of an 80 MW high-efficiency crystalline cell line in Funing is on schedule. By the second quarter of 2015, the company plans to expand this by another 400 MW to take the high-efficiency cell capacity to 1.9GW. Once completed, this will boost solar cell efficiency north of 19%.
Making its mark in China is important for Canadian Solar, as this particular market is growing at an impressive pace....China has been the leader in solar PV installations for the past two years, and the momentum looks set to continue in 2015. It is on target to exit 2014 with 33 GW of solar power, ahead of Spain, Italy, and the U.K. combined.
Beyond China, Canadian Solar is also witnessing growth in the Japanese and Brazilian markets. Japan aims to generate 20% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030, according to the industry minister Yuko Obuchi. In fact, Japan will soon have the world's largest floating solar power plant.More importantly, Canadian Solar has maintained its position as the leading foreign-brand supplier in Japan with shipments of 181 MW DC. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2014, the company plans to expand its utility-scale pipelines to approximately 540. The company has plans to connect 80MW to the grid in 2015. So, it is evident that Canadian Solar is also making its presence felt in Japan.
Meanwhile, in Brazil, Canadian Solar recently won a contract for a 114 MW plant under PPA with the Brazil government.
The company is upgrading its capacity, and is also working on improving efficiency. As such, after losing 23% of its market capitalization in 2014, Canadian Solar looks like a good bet at just 7 times last year's earnings.
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