- USD$7.0 billion of commercial
real estate managed by Fiera Real Estate
- The project represents SolarBank's first construction
project for Fiera, with more expected in the future
TORONTO, April 15,
2024 /CNW/ - SolarBank Corporation (Cboe CA:
SUNN) (Nasdaq: SUUN) (FSE: GY2) ("SolarBank" or the
"Company") is pleased to announce that it has commenced
construction on a 1.4 mW DC rooftop solar project for
Fiera Real Estate ("Fiera") in Alberta (the "Project") as a pilot project.
This Project is expected to operate as a "Small Scale Generator".
The Project received interconnection approval in December 2023, full permitting in March 2024 is currently undergoing the process of
engineering and final design. Construction of the Project is
expected to be completed in November
2024.
The Company, with the support of Zathura Investments, is
providing development and EPC services under an EPC agreement with
Fiera and expects to complete additional projects for Fiera in the
future. This initial Project is part of Fiera's commitment to its
Net Zero Pathway where its funds have established targets of Net
Zero Carbon by 2040.
Locally the Alberta government
report that during 2023 there were a total of 1,092 wildfires
burning a record 2.2-million hectares. As climate change is
increasing the risk of wildfires, the Company and Fiera are aligned
that renewable energy projects that help to decarbonize the grid
are an important step in combatting climate change.
Fiera Real Estate is a leading investment management company
with offices in North America and
Europe and a team of over 80
employees. The firm globally manages over USD$7.0 billion of commercial real estate through
a range of investment funds and accounts as at December 31, 2023. The highly diverse nature of
its portfolio – in terms of both geographies and types of
properties – combined with a range of high-quality strategies
provides investors with opportunities to diversify their exposure
and customize their investment experience within the real estate
asset class.
Fiera Real Estate is wholly owned by Fiera Capital Corporation,
a leading independent global asset management firm with more than
USD122.1 billion of AUM as at
December 31, 2023. Fiera Capital
provides Fiera Real Estate with access to global investment market
intelligence, which enhances its ability to innovate within a
framework that emphasizes risk assessment and mitigation.
There are several risks associated with the development of the
Project. The development of any project is subject to the risks
associated with the construction of a solar power project. In
addition, governments may revise, reduce or eliminate incentives
and policy support schemes for solar power, which could result in
future projects no longer being economic. Please refer to
"Forward-Looking Statements" for additional discussion of the
assumptions and risk factors associated with the statements in this
press release.
About SolarBank Corporation
SolarBank Corporation is an independent renewable and clean
energy project developer and owner focusing on distributed and
community solar projects in Canada
and the USA. The Company develops
solar projects that sell electricity to utilities, commercial,
industrial, municipal and residential off-takers. The Company
maximizes returns via a diverse portfolio of projects across
multiple leading solar markets including projects with utilities,
host off-takers, community solar, and virtual net metering
projects. The Company has a potential development pipeline of over
one gigawatt and has developed renewable and clean energy projects
with a combined capacity of over 70 megawatts built. To learn more
about SolarBank, please visit www.solarbankcorp.com.
About Zathura Investments
Zathura Investments is a trusted partner of landlords across
North America, supporting their
commercial and industrial sustainability efforts. Working with
various strategic partners Zathura has been at the forefront of
renewable energy opportunities since the early 2000s with a focus
on solar, battery storage and EV charging installations. To learn
more about Zathura please visit www.zathurainvestments.com
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This news release contains forward-looking statements and
forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian
securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking
statements") that relate to the Company's current expectations and
views of future events. Any statements that express, or involve
discussions as to, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives,
assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always,
through the use of words or phrases such as "will likely result",
"are expected to", "expects", "will continue", "anticipates",
"believes", "estimated", "intends", "plans", "forecast",
"projection", "strategy", "objective" and "outlook") are not
historical facts and may be forward-looking statements and may
involve estimates, assumptions and uncertainties which could cause
actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those
expressed in such forward-looking statements. In particular and
without limitation, this news release contains forward-looking
statements pertaining to the Company's expectations regarding its
industry trends and overall market growth; the Company's growth
strategies the expected energy production from the solar power
project mentioned in this press release; the reduction of carbon
emissions; the expected timeline to completion construction of the
Project; and the completion of additional projects with Fiera. No
assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be
correct and such forward-looking statements included in this news
release should not be unduly relied upon. These statements speak
only as of the date of this news release.
Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and
analyses made by the Company in light of the experience and
perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected
future developments and other factors it believes are appropriate,
and are subject to risks and uncertainties. In making the forward
looking statements included in this news release, the Company has
made various material assumptions, including but not limited to:
obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals; that regulatory
requirements will be maintained; general business and economic
conditions; the Company's ability to successfully execute its plans
and intentions; the availability of financing on reasonable terms;
the Company's ability to attract and retain skilled staff; market
competition; the products and services offered by the Company's
competitors; that the Company's current good relationships with its
service providers and other third parties will be maintained; and
government subsidies and funding for renewable energy will continue
as currently contemplated. Although the Company believes that the
assumptions underlying these statements are reasonable, they may
prove to be incorrect, and the Company cannot assure that actual
results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements.
Given these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, investors should
not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.
Whether actual results, performance or achievements will conform
to the Company's expectations and predictions is subject to a
number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and
other factors, including those listed under "Forward-Looking
Statements" and "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual
Information Form, and other public filings of the
Company, which include: the Company may be adversely affected by
volatile solar power market and industry conditions; the execution
of the Company's growth strategy depends upon the continued
availability of third-party financing arrangements; the Company's
future success depends partly on its ability to expand the pipeline
of its energy business in several key markets; governments may
revise, reduce or eliminate incentives and policy support schemes
for solar and battery storage power; general global economic
conditions may have an adverse impact on our operating performance
and results of operations; the Company's project development and
construction activities may not be successful; developing and
operating solar projects exposes the Company to various risks; the
Company faces a number of risks involving Power Purchase Agreements
("PPAs") and project-level financing arrangements; any changes to
the laws, regulations and policies that the Company is subject to
may present technical, regulatory and economic barriers to the
purchase and use of solar power; the markets in which the Company
competes are highly competitive and evolving quickly; an
anti-circumvention investigation could adversely affect the Company
by potentially raising the prices of key supplies for the
construction of solar power projects; foreign exchange rate
fluctuations; a change in the Company's effective tax rate can have
a significant adverse impact on its business; seasonal variations
in demand linked to construction cycles and weather conditions may
influence the Company's results of operations; the Company may be
unable to generate sufficient cash flows or have access to external
financing; the Company may incur substantial additional
indebtedness in the future; the Company is subject to risks from
supply chain issues; risks related to inflation; unexpected
warranty expenses that may not be adequately covered by the
Company's insurance policies; if the Company is unable to attract
and retain key personnel, it may not be able to compete effectively
in the renewable energy market; there are a limited number of
purchasers of utility-scale quantities of electricity; compliance
with environmental laws and regulations can be expensive; corporate
responsibility may adversely impose additional costs; the future
impact of COVID-19 on the Company is unknown at this time; the
Company has limited insurance coverage; the Company will be reliant
on information technology systems and may be subject to damaging
cyberattacks; the Company may become subject to litigation; there
is no guarantee on how the Company will use its available funds;
the Company will continue to sell securities for cash to fund
operations, capital expansion, mergers and acquisitions that will
dilute the current shareholders; and future dilution as a result of
financings.
The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required
by law. New factors emerge from time to time, and it is not
possible for the Company to predict all of them, or assess the
impact of each such factor or the extent to which any factor, or
combination of factors, may cause results to differ materially
from those contained in any forward-looking statement. Any
forward-looking statements contained in this news release are
expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary
statement.
SOURCE SolarBank Corporation