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SCMP Reporter

Canadian Solar, a mainland solar power equipment maker, has set an indicative range of US$13 to US$15 a share for its up to US$115 million Nasdaq initial public offering, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The company plans to sell 7.7 million shares, with the proceeds going towards buying raw materials such as silicon and expansion into solar cell manufacturing. Existing shareholders will sell 1.4 million shares and the company will sell 6.3 million shares, according to a US Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Deutsche Bank, Lehman Brothers, Piper Jaffray and CIBC World Markets are arranging the sale.

Canadian Solar joins a number of mainland solar power companies planning to list in New York as they race to raise funds so they can buy the high-grade silicon needed to make photovoltaic cells

Prices for a kilogram of the raw material of chips have jumped to as much as US$200 from as low as US$20 at the beginning of last year as demand outstrips supply.

New mainland government regulations  on the transfer of assets overseas, required for a listing in New York, have forced several Chinese solar companies to postpone their  share flotation plans to next year, market sources said.

Canadian Solar, which is based in Canada and manufactures in China, is exempt from the new regulations because  it is controlled by non-mainland investors, according to legal advice the company sought before launching the  offering.

Should mainland regulators disagree, the  share sale could be scrapped, the company said in the filing.

Canadian Solar, which started sales in 2002, more than doubled net  profit to US$3.8 million last year from US$1.5 million  a year earlier as sales jumped 88 per cent to US$18.3 million.

The firm posted a net loss of US$4.6 million in this year's first half, due to losses  from derivatives based on convertible bonds  that it sold to investors. First-half revenue more than doubled to US$7.4 million from US$3 million in the six months  to June  last year.

Yingli Solar plans to raise US$400 million while LDK Solar Hi-Tech is looking to  generate US$300 million  from  a share sale. Two Jiangsu  companies, Trina Solar Energy and Linyang Solarfun, plan to sell shares worth between US$100 million and US$150 million.



Canadian Solar sets price range for US$115m Nasdaq IPO