Canadian Solar Solutions Inc., a subsidiary of solar company Canadian Solar Inc., and SkyPower Limited, a Canadian owner and developer of solar energy projects, have signed an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) agreement. As part of the agreement, Canadian Solar Solutions, through SkyPower’s power purchase agreements, will commission two solar parks with a nameplate capacity of 18.5 megawatts (MW) in Ontario. SkyPower recently closed financing on these projects with Deutsche Bank. 

The first project is a 10.5 MW solar park in Napanee, Ont., home to First Light I, SkyPower’s first solar project and Canada’s first fully operational solar park. The second project is an 8.5 MW solar park located in Thunder Bay, Ont. 

The company hopes the agreement will help create new green energy jobs and further accelerate Canadian Solar’s EPC turn-key business in Ontario. 

“A new study called Solar Vision 2025, issued by the Canadian Solar Industry Association and prepared by consultants Ernst & Young, reports the cost of solar power projects will be cut by more than 50 percent before 2025, making the solar electricity competitive with electricity generated by oil, gas, hydro or nuclear plants,” said Dr. Shawn Qu, CEO and president of Canadian Solar, on December 13. 

“The report illustrates that solar power is already price-competitive with other sources at peak times. Agreements like the one announced today with SkyPower are very important. By partnering and also working closely together with the political leaders and other stakeholders in the province, we can help make the predictions in the study a reality,” he continued. 

Both projects are expected to be completed by mid-2011 and generate approximately 19 million KWh in their first full year of operation and almost 400 million kWh total over the next 20 years. 

“This is equivalent to producing enough electricity to power almost 33,000 homes and a CO2 offset of removing almost 60,000 cars off the road over the initial 20 years of the project,” read the company statement. 

“This agreement with Canadian Solar is an important milestone for both our companies and a direct result of the Province of Ontario’s efforts to create a world-leading market for renewable power,” said Kerry Adler, president and CEO of SkyPower. 

SkyPower‘s projects will be composed of 47, 710 CS6P high efficiency‚ polycrystalline modules and 36, 972 CS6P high efficiency monocrystalline respectively.