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Study supports CPS plan to produce patterned solar glass in Manitoba

Canadian Premium Sand reported the results from its Front End Engineering and Design (“FEED”) study and the receipt of a market report confirming the economic viability of manufacturing patterned-solar-glass at a site identified in Selkirk, Man.

“These studies support our decision to build North America’s only patterned solar glass manufacturing facility,” stated Canadian Premium Sand president, Glenn Leroux. “The business strategy of integrating our high-quality solar spec sand, Manitoba’s inexpensive renewable hydroelectricity and proximity to our North American customer base through the Winnipeg logistics hub, is a highly attractive business plan that others cannot easily replicate.”

The FEED study was carried out by cm.project.ing, an internationally recognized independent engineering firm, specializing in glass manufacturing facilities and processes. The market report specifically analyzed the North American market for patterned solar glass and was completed by Clean Energy Associates, a global consulting firm specializing in the solar industry.

The market report conducted by Clean Energy Associates confirmed that patterned solar glass panels are the most efficient products on the market and can be expected to dominate industry demand for the next 20 years. The findings also included a positive outlook for the long-term price of patterned solar glass in North America, validating the company’s business model.

Since the company’s announcement of its intention to develop North America’s only patterned solar glass manufacturing facility, CPS has received strong levels of industry support for the project. The company has commenced commercial discussions with most solar panel manufacturers that have existing North American capacity, as well as a number of global manufacturing entities that are planning to establish a North American presence. To date, the company has secured expressions of interest for the purchase of solar glass in excess of the first phase of planned facility output.

The FEED study focused on the design, capital needs and operating costs of a patterned solar glass manufacturing facility in Selkirk, Man. and a sand extraction facility located at the Company’s wholly owned and permitted Wanipigow Sand Quarry, approximately 150 kilometres north. In addition to preliminary engineering design, the FEED study also included plant and equipment selection, production output flow with various product specifications as well as logistics considerations for raw materials and finished products.

Taking the FEED study and market report into consideration, the company is advancing plans to develop its integrated solar glass manufacturing project in multiple largescale phases. Highlights of the first phase of the project include:

• 550 to 600 tonnes per day patterned-solar-glass manufacturing and coating facility
• Multiple production lines that accommodate tempered glass specifications ranging in thickness between 1.8 to 4.0 millimetres
• The application of advanced anti-reflective and anti-soiling coatings capable of supplying up to four gigawatts of annual solar panel manufacturing
• $400 to $500 million capital cost estimate, which provides an 80 percent certainty level and includes costs for both solar glass manufacturing and sand extraction facilities

CPS expects to be the lowest cost provider of patterned solar glass to the North American market due to the use of low-cost renewable hydroelectric energy, proximity to customers and the integration of CPS’s wholly owned silica sand supply. Based on the growth profile of the market and the size of the Company-owned silica sand resource, CPS sees the potential to construct up to three additional equally sized manufacturing facilities at the same site. Construction of the initial manufacturing facility and the associated silica sand extraction operation is estimated to take approximately two years to complete.