Sunny day for solar glass project

Jun 20, 2023

Advertisement

Advertise with us

The prospects for Selkirk, Man. becoming the only place in North America where solar glass for solar panels is made is increasing becoming a reality.

Read this article for free:

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

$4.75 per week*

*Billed as $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel anytime.

The prospects for Selkirk, Man. becoming the only place in North America where solar glass for solar panels is made is increasing becoming a reality.

This month Canadian Premium Sands Inc. received an Environmental Act Licence for its proposed Selkirk production facility. The company has also hired an internationally experienced 20-year veteran as vice-president of glass operations and it has formally launched the process of securing the capital required to build the plant and the sand quarry in Seymourville.

When and if construction begins it will be one of the largest greenfield industrial projects in Manitoba since the Rocquette plant protein operation in Portage la Prairie.

SUPPLIED

Glenn Leroux, CEO of Calgary-based Canadian Premium Sands (CPS) said the capital raise could take different forms, but the actual costs for the construction of the manufacturing and the extraction operations will be about $880 million.

In addition to the having the regulatory permits in hand as well as the technical leadership, it has also lined up the engineering, procurement and construction team who will build the highly specialized plant. (A revised Environmental Act Licence for the Seymourville sand quarry is expected to be issued shortly.)

But most importantly, to have any chance of successfully financing the venture, CPS has secured binding commercial off-take agreements with three solar panel manufacturers in the U.S. accounting for as much as 77 per cent of the plant's production capacity.

"We are very optimistic," said Leroux. "We are at the point we have been striving for for some time, that is to launch the financing for the project."

It needed to have permits in place and a certain percentage of its output spoken for with firm off-take agreements before the financing could commence.

There is no guarantee the financing will be successful but with demand for solar panels continuing to grow and geopolitical uncertainties prompting more North American companies to try to create their own North American supply chains, Leroux has reason to be optimistic.

As one industry source said, "Those binding off-take agreements are bankable" which means lenders or investors can tally up a certain amount of revenue certainty even before the plant is built.

There is currently no solar glass manufactured in North America. All of it is shipped from China and other Asian production centres.

Meanwhile the three companies that have signed off-take agreements with CPS are planning to invest several billion dollars in solar panel production in North America.

As part of the financing process, the company has disclosed the financial forecast for the operation which has already ballooned in size from 550 tonnes of glass produced per day to 800 tonnes per day.

The company is forecasting $300 million-to-$330 million in annual revenue and $170 million-to-$190 million in annual cash flow.

Leroux said ideally the owners of CPS – which is publicly traded – would retain significant ownership in the company and the ideal financing model is for half of the needed capital to come in the form of debt and half in equity.

Weekday Mornings

A quick glance at the news for the upcoming day.

"We will see what happens. There is a myriad of combinations that could result from the financing process," said Leroux. "There is an old saying — the person with the biggest bag of gold will tell you how the deal is going to work."

He said it is difficult to guess how long the process will take, but he indicated it could take as long as six months.

Tim Feduniw, the director of sustainable economic development for the City of Selkirk, said CPS's option on a 121-acre parcel of land is in good shape and the city is excited about the prospects.

"Yes, there is optimism," he said. "All the progress the company is making makes us comfortable with the direction they are heading in. It is getting us closer to a major capital investment, with 300 good local jobs, maybe more, and a whole bunch of other things are really, really exciting."

[email protected]

Martin CashReporter

Martin Cash has been writing a column and business news at the Free Press since 1989. Over those years he's written through a number of business cycles and the rise and fall (and rise) in fortunes of many local businesses.

Read full biography

Advertisement Advertise With Us