0001104659-21-051958 | 20-F | XBRL Viewer

Years Ended December 31,

Share options and RSUs

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Document and Entity Information	12 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information	Dec. 31, 2020 shares
Document Information [Line Items]
Entity Central Index Key	0001375877
Document Type	20-F
Document Registration Statement	false
Document Annual Report	true
Document Transition Report	false
Document Shell Company Report	false
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2020
Entity File Number	001-33107
Entity Registrant Name	CANADIAN SOLAR INC.
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	A1
Entity Address, Address Line One	545 Speedvale Avenue West
Entity Address, City or Town	Guelph, Ontario
Entity Address, Country	CA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	N1K 1E6
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Interactive Data Current	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Document Accounting Standard	U.S. GAAP
Entity Shell Company	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding	59,820,384
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2020
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
ICFR Auditor Attestation Flag	true
Business Contact
Document Information [Line Items]
Entity Address, Address Line One	545 Speedvale Avenue West
Entity Address, City or Town	Guelph, Ontario
Entity Address, Country	CA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	N1K 1E6
Contact Personnel Name	Huifeng Chang
City Area Code	1-519
Local Phone Number	837-1881

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 1,178,752	$ 668,770
Restricted cash	458,334	526,723
Accounts receivable trade, net of allowance of $29,545 and $40,293 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively	408,958	436,815
Accounts receivable, unbilled	28,461	15,256
Amounts due from related parties	5,834	31,232
Inventories	695,981	554,070
Value added tax recoverable	102,460	108,920
Advances to suppliers-current, net of allowance of $7,222 and $5,845 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively	182,146	47,978
Derivative assets	23,351	5,547
Project assets	747,764	604,083
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	353,781	253,542
Total current assets	4,185,822	3,252,936
Restricted cash	2,629	9,927
Property, plant and equipment, net	1,157,731	1,046,035
Solar power systems, net	158,262	52,957
Deferred tax assets	170,656	153,963
Advances to suppliers, net of allowance of $13,059 and $13,855 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively	97,173	40,897
Prepaid land use rights	62,414	60,836
Investments in affiliates	78,291	152,828
Intangible assets, net	22,429	22,791
Project assets	389,702	483,051
Right-of-use assets	26,793	37,733
Other non-current assets	184,952	153,253
TOTAL ASSETS	6,536,854	5,467,207
Current liabilities:
Short-term borrowings	1,202,285	933,120
Long-term borrowings on project assets - current	198,794	286,173
Accounts payable	514,742	585,601
Short-term notes payable	710,636	544,991
Amounts due to related parties	314	10,077
Other payables	508,839	446,454
Advances from customers	189,470	134,806
Derivative liabilities	10,755	10,481
Operating lease liabilities	15,204	18,767
Other current liabilities	237,316	121,527
Total current liabilities	3,588,355	3,091,997
Accrued warranty costs	37,732	55,878
Long-term borrowings	446,090	619,477
Convertible notes	223,214
Derivative liabilities		1,841
Liability for uncertain tax positions	14,729	15,353
Deferred tax liabilities	49,080	56,463
Loss contingency accruals	26,458	28,513
Operating lease liabilities	13,232	20,718
Financing liabilities	81,871	76,575
Other non-current liabilities	163,308	75,334
TOTAL LIABILITIES	4,644,069	4,042,149
Commitments and contingencies (Note 21)
Equity:
Common shares - no par value: unlimited authorized shares, 59,371,684 and 59,820,384 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively	687,033	703,806
Treasury stock, at cost, 609,516 and nil common shares as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively		(11,845)
Additional paid-in capital	(28,236)	17,179
Retained earnings	940,304	793,601
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(28,679)	(109,607)
Total Canadian Solar Inc. shareholders' equity	1,570,422	1,393,134
Non-controlling interests in subsidiaries	322,363	31,924
TOTAL EQUITY	1,892,785	1,425,058
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY	$ 6,536,854	$ 5,467,207

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
Accounts receivable trade, allowance	$ 40,293	$ 29,545
Advances to suppliers - current, allowance	5,845	7,222
Advances to suppliers - non-current, allowance	$ 13,855	$ 13,059
Common share, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 0	$ 0
Common shares, shares issued (in shares)	59,820,384	59,371,684
Common shares, shares outstanding (in shares)	59,820,384	59,371,684
Treasury stock, shares issued (in shares)	0	609,516

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Net revenues:
-Non-related parties	$ 3,413,769	$ 3,101,113	$ 3,624,687
-Related parties	62,726	99,470	119,825
Total net revenues	3,476,495	3,200,583	3,744,512
Cost of revenues:
-Non-related parties	2,756,687	2,424,476	2,894,611
-Related parties	29,894	57,610	74,819
Total cost of revenues	2,786,581	2,482,086	2,969,430
Gross profit	689,914	718,497	775,082
Operating expenses:
Selling and distribution expenses	224,243	180,326	165,402
General and administrative expenses	225,597	242,783	245,376
Research and development expenses	45,167	47,045	44,193
Other operating income, net	(25,523)	(10,536)	(44,546)
Total operating expenses	469,484	459,618	410,425
Income from operations	220,430	258,879	364,657
Other income (expenses):
Interest expense	(71,874)	(81,326)	(106,032)
Interest income	9,306	12,039	11,207
Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives, net	50,001	(22,218)	(19,230)
Foreign exchange gain (loss)	(64,820)	10,370	6,529
Investment income (loss)	(8,559)	1,929	41,361
Other expenses, net	(85,946)	(79,206)	(66,165)
Income before income taxes and equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees	134,484	179,673	298,492
Income tax benefit (expense)	1,983	(42,066)	(61,969)
Equity in earnings (loss) of unconsolidated investees	10,779	28,948	5,908
Net income	147,246	166,555	242,431
Less: net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests	543	(5,030)	5,361
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc.	$ 146,703	$ 171,585	$ 237,070
Earnings per share - basic	$ 2.46	$ 2.88	$ 4.02
Shares used in computation - basic	59,575,898	59,633,855	58,914,540
Earnings per share - diluted	$ 2.38	$ 2.83	$ 3.88
Shares used in computation - diluted	62,306,819	60,777,696	62,291,670

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
Net income	$ 147,246	$ 166,555	$ 242,431
Other comprehensive income (loss) (net of tax of nil):
Foreign currency translation adjustment	76,188	319	(50,577)
Gain (loss) on commodity hedge			953
Gain (loss) on interest rate swap	10,724	(5,847)	5,141
De-recognition of commodity hedge and interest rate swap	(4,115)		(8,752)
Comprehensive income	230,043	161,027	189,196
Less: comprehensive income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests	2,412	(11,100)	8,241
Comprehensive income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc.	$ 227,631	$ 172,127	$ 180,955

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (Parenthetical) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Other Comprehensive Income, Net of Tax, Portion Attributable to Parent
Other comprehensive income tax	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0

- Definition

Amount of tax expense (benefit) allocated to other comprehensive income (loss).

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 740
-SubTopic 20
-Section 45
-Paragraph 11
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120385591&loc=d3e39076-109324

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 830
-SubTopic 30
-Section 45
-Paragraph 17
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=118261656&loc=d3e32136-110900

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 830
-SubTopic 30
-Section 45
-Paragraph 20
-Subparagraph (c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=118261656&loc=d3e32211-110900

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 740
-SubTopic 20
-Section 45
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (d)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120385591&loc=d3e38679-109324

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 942
-SubTopic 220
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.9-04(23))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120399700&loc=SL114874048-224260

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 220
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (SX 210.5-03(21))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120395209&loc=SL114868664-224227

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 740
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 10
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=84230637&loc=d3e32672-109319

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
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-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6450520&loc=d3e32583-110901

Reference 9: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 220
-SubTopic 10
-Section 45
-Paragraph 12
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=121641772&loc=d3e640-108580

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 944
-SubTopic 220
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.7-04(19))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120400993&loc=SL114874131-224263

+ Details

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN EQUITY - USD ($)
$ in Thousands

Common Shares

Treasury Stock

Additional Paid-in Capital

Retained Earnings

Cumulative effect, adjustment

Retained Earnings

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (loss)

Earnings Attributable to Canadian Solar Inc.

Cumulative effect, adjustment

Earnings Attributable to Canadian Solar Inc.

Non-Controlling Interest

Cumulative effect, adjustment

Total

Balance at Dec. 31, 2017

$ 702,162

$ 417

$ 383,681

$ (54,034)

$ 1,032,226

$ 27,549

$ 1,059,775

Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2017

58,496,685

Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity

Net Income (loss)

237,070

5,361

242,431

Foreign currency translation adjustment

(53,457)

2,880

(50,577)

Acquisition of subsidiaries

7,703

Acquisition non-controlling interest's ownership

(6,591)

Share-based compensation

10,258

Transfer of equity interest in subsidiaries to non-controlling shareholders

10,470

Exercise of share options and RSUs

$ 769

769

Exercise of share options and RSUs (in shares)

683,939

De-recognition of derivatives

(8,752)

Fair value change on derivatives

6,094

Balance (ASU 2014-09) at Dec. 31, 2018

$ 1,265

Balance at Dec. 31, 2018

$ 702,931

10,675

622,016

(110,149)

1,225,473

47,372

1,272,845

Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2018

59,180,624

Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity

Net Income (loss)

171,585

(5,030)

166,555

Foreign currency translation adjustment

6,389

(6,070)

319

Acquisition non-controlling interest's ownership

(4,178)

(9,998)

(14,176)

Repurchase of common shares

^[1]

$ (11,845)

(11,845)

$ (11,845)

Repurchase of common shares (in shares)

(609,516)

^[1]

609,516,000

^[1]

609,516

Repurchase of treasury stock (shares)

609,516,000

Share-based compensation

10,682

$ 10,682

Exercise of share options and RSUs

$ 875

875

Exercise of share options and RSUs (in shares)

800,576

Proceeds from non-controlling interests

5,650

Fair value change on derivatives

(5,847)

Balance at Dec. 31, 2019

$ 703,806

$ (11,845)

17,179

793,601

(109,607)

1,393,134

31,924

$ 1,425,058

Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2019

59,371,684

Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity

Net Income (loss)

146,703

543

$ 147,246

Foreign currency translation adjustment

74,319

1,869

76,188

Acquisition non-controlling interest's ownership

(8,414)

Repurchase of common shares

^[2]

$ (5,963)

(5,963)

Repurchase of common shares (in shares)

^[2]

(381,330)

381,330

Share-based compensation

12,350

Transfer of equity interest in subsidiaries to non-controlling shareholders

(49,351)

273,904

224,553

Exercise of share options and RSUs

$ 1,035

1,035

Exercise of share options and RSUs (in shares)

830,030

Retirement of treasury stock (in shares)

^[3]

(990,846,000)

Retirement of treasury stock

^[3]

$ (17,808)

$ 17,808

De-recognition of derivatives

(4,115)

Proceeds from non-controlling interests

14,123

Fair value change on derivatives

10,724

Balance at Dec. 31, 2020

$ 687,033

$ (28,236)

$ 940,304

$ (28,679)

$ 1,570,422

$ 322,363

$ 1,892,785

Balance (in shares) at Dec. 31, 2020

59,820,384

[1]	Following the share repurchase plan authorized by the Board Directors on December 9, 2019, the Company repurchased 609,516 outstanding shares with total costs of $11,845 in December 2019. The Company retired all outstanding shares repurchased during 2020.
[2]	Following the share repurchase plan authorized by the Board Directors on December 9, 2019, the Company repurchased 91,424 and 289,906 outstanding shares with total costs of $2,000 and $3,963 in January 2020 and March 2020, respectively. The Company retired all outstanding shares repurchased during 2020.
[3]	On September 30, 2020, the Company announced a RMB1.78 billion (approximately $261,332) capital raising for CSI Solar Co., Ltd., to qualify it for the planned carve-out IPO in China and bring in leading institutional investors and strategic partners. Refer to Note 1 to the consolidated financial statements for further information.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN EQUITY (Parenthetical)
$ in Thousands, ¥ in Millions

1 Months Ended

12 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

USD ($)

Jan. 31, 2020

USD ($)

Dec. 31, 2020

USD ($)

^[1]

Dec. 31, 2019

USD ($)

Sep. 30, 2020

USD ($)

Sep. 30, 2020

CNY (¥)

Number of shares repurchased | shares

289,906

91,424

609,516

Total cost of share repurchases | $

$ 3,963

$ 2,000

$ 5,963

$ 11,845

^[2]

CSI Solar Co

Capital Raising Announced

$ 261,332

¥ 1,780

[1]	Following the share repurchase plan authorized by the Board Directors on December 9, 2019, the Company repurchased 91,424 and 289,906 outstanding shares with total costs of $2,000 and $3,963 in January 2020 and March 2020, respectively. The Company retired all outstanding shares repurchased during 2020.
[2]	Following the share repurchase plan authorized by the Board Directors on December 9, 2019, the Company repurchased 609,516 outstanding shares with total costs of $11,845 in December 2019. The Company retired all outstanding shares repurchased during 2020.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Operating activities:
Net income	$ 147,246	$ 166,555	$ 242,431
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	209,118	159,723	129,256
Accretion of convertible notes	388
Loss (gain) on disposal of property, plant and equipment	(253)	1,227	2,565
Gain on disposal of solar power systems		(1,666)	(36,098)
Gain on disposal of investment in affiliates	(13,936)	(1,928)	(47,102)
Impairment loss of property, plant and equipment	11,854	21,866	30,968
Impairment loss of project assets	369	20,194	9,016
Impairment loss of investment	24,060	0	5,738
Loss (gain) on change in fair value of derivatives, net	(50,001)	22,218	19,230
Equity in loss of unconsolidated investees	(10,779)	(28,948)	(5,908)
Allowance for credit losses	9,874	1,250	2,812
Non-cash operating lease expenses	19,260	14,318
Write-down of inventories	42,907	19,447	14,646
Share-based compensation	12,350	10,682	10,258
Unrealized gain (loss) from sales to affiliates	(66)	6,194	(13,573)
Derecognition of commodity hedge and interest rate swap	4,439
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable trade	65,379	51,670	(179,607)
Accounts receivable, unbilled	(12,064)	(15,268)	1,158
Amounts due from related parties	26,828	(17,347)	9,237
Inventories	(180,974)	(312,781)	55,408
Value added tax recoverable	2,687	(849)	(9,206)
Advances to suppliers	(138,915)	(27,066)	29,001
Project assets	(443,730)	28,527	(30,501)
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	(72,188)	33,283	(2,208)
Other non-current assets	(11,913)	(24,037)	9,387
Accounts payable	(89,180)	209,175	47,756
Short-term notes payable	120,445	185,827	(173,148)
Amounts due to related parties	(9,773)	(5,798)	10,467
Other payables	10,386	42,810	39,791
Advances from customers	51,683	96,115	(11,225)
Operating lease liabilities	(19,369)	(12,566)
Other liabilities	179,911	(10,851)	(29,691)
Accrued warranty costs	(19,143)	4,624	(3,563)
Prepaid land use rights	452	2,622	6,557
Goodwill		1,005	5,243
Liability for uncertain tax positions	(623)	(4,775)	10,863
Deferred taxes	(21,439)	(12,455)	37,591
Net settlement of derivatives	33,054	(27,012)	28,731
Loss contingency accruals	1,115	4,126
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities	(120,541)	600,111	216,280
Investing activities:
Investments in affiliates	(17,758)	(7,684)	(11,036)
Return of investment from affiliates		3,012	816
Proceeds from disposal of investment in affiliates	33,037	1,649	337,773
Purchase of property, plant and equipment and intangible assets	(334,781)	(291,182)	(316,282)
Purchase of solar power systems	(160)
Proceeds from disposal of solar power systems		103	17,800
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	(319,662)	(294,102)	29,071
Financing activities:
Proceeds from short-term borrowings	1,667,703	1,257,009	1,430,708
Repayment of short-term borrowings	(1,561,597)	(1,649,721)	(2,368,967)
Proceeds from long-term borrowings	207,632	530,990	382,831
Acquisition of non-controlling interest		(14,176)	(6,591)
Proceeds from non-controlling interests	261,332	11,488	10,470
Proceeds from third party financing liabilities	6,419	3,000	119,095
Proceeds from sales-leaseback arrangement	9,945	9,044	35,944
Distributions to tax equity investors		(1,120)	(3,013)
Repayment of finance lease obligation	(22,173)	(42,658)	(64,859)
Net proceeds from issuance of convertible notes	222,826
Payments for repurchase of convertible notes		(127,500)
Proceeds from subscription of employee stock ownership plan	36,342
Proceeds from exercise of stock options	1,035	875	769
Payments for repurchase of treasury stock	(5,963)	(11,845)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities	823,501	(34,614)	(463,613)
Effect of exchange rate changes	50,997	(6,965)	(38,725)
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	434,295	264,430	(256,987)
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year	1,205,420	940,990	1,190,134
Less: net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash classified within assets held-for-sale			(7,843)
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year	1,639,715	1,205,420	940,990
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Interest paid (net of amounts capitalized)	78,747	85,362	103,236
Income taxes paid, net of tax refund	38,193	40,454	32,135
Supplemental schedule of non-cash activities:
Property, plant and equipment costs included in other payables	$ 244,512	$ 244,483	$ 228,970

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 1,178,752	$ 668,770
Restricted cash - current	458,334	526,723
Restricted cash - non-current	2,629	9,927
Total cash and cash equivalents, and restricted cash shown in the statements of cash flows	$ 1,639,715	$ 1,205,420	$ 940,990	$ 1,190,134

ORGANIZATION AND PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

ORGANIZATION AND PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES

ORGANIZATION AND PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES

1. ORGANIZATION AND PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES

Canadian Solar Inc. (“CSI”) was incorporated pursuant to the laws of the Province of Ontario in October 2001, and changed its jurisdiction by continuing under the Canadian federal corporate statute, the Canada Business Corporations Act, or CBCA, effective June 1, 2006. In July 2020, CSI filed articles of continuance, or the articles, to change its jurisdiction from the federal jurisdiction of Canada to the provincial jurisdiction of the Province of British Columbia. As a result, CSI is governed by the British Columbia Business Corporation Act, or the BCBCA, and its affairs are governed by its notice of articles and the articles.

CSI and its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company”) design, develop, and manufacture solar wafers, cells and solar power products. In recent years, the Company has increased investment in, and management attention on its total solutions business, which primarily consists of solar power project development and sale, partial ownership of solar projects, battery storage solutions, EPC and development services, O&M and asset management services, operating solar power and energy storage projects and sales of electricity, and sales of solar system kits. As of December 31, 2020, major subsidiaries of CSI are included in Appendix 1.

In July 2020, the Company announced its plan to carve-out and publicly list its legacy Module and System Solutions (“MSS”) subsidiary, CSI Solar Co., Ltd. (“CSI Solar Co”), in China (“the IPO”). In preparation for the IPO, the Company successfully completed the restructuring of its business segments during the fourth quarter of 2020. The main change being the transfer and inclusion of the China Energy business within the scope of CSI Solar Co, refer to Note 22 for further information.

On September 30, 2020, the Company announced a RMB1.78 billion (approximately $261,332) capital raising for CSI Solar Co, to qualify CSI Solar Co for the planned carve-out IPO in China and bring in leading institutional investors and strategic partners (“third-party investors”).

The third-party investors have agreed to purchase existing CSI Solar Co shares from the Company for an aggregate of RMB1.50 billion (approximately $219,000) at an equity valuation of RMB7.50 billion (approximately $1,100,000). At the same time, selected employees also purchased existing CSI Solar Co shares from the Company for an aggregate of RMB31 million (approximately $4,500) at the same valuation. As of December 31, 2020, $224,553 of share purchase proceeds were fully received and recorded as non-controlling interests in subsidiaries on the consolidated balance sheets.

In addition, CSI Solar Co approved an employee incentive plan (the “ESOP scheme”) and utilized a limited liability partnership (the “LLP”) as a vehicle to hold CSI Solar Co shares that will be used under the ESOP scheme. Eligible CSI Solar Co directors and employees and board members have collectively agreed to subscribe to equity interest in the LLP for an aggregate of RMB248 million ($36,342) at a discount of 30%, or at an equity valuation of RMB5.25 billion (approximately $768,000), for which the vesting conditions include the successful completion of the IPO and service period. The ESOP scheme will be accounted for based on the grant date fair value which equals to the value of the discount benefited by the ESOP scheme participants. Compensation cost recognized was nil in the year ended December 31, 2020. Compensation cost will be recognized over the vesting period upon and after completion of IPO. As of December 31, 2020, $36,342 of subscription advances were fully received and recorded as other payables on the consolidated balance sheets.

As of December 31, 2020, the third-party investors and Canadian Solar employees, in aggregate, owned 20.4% of CSI Solar Co. The Company’s wholly-owned global project development business, its Global Energy (formerly known as Energy) subsidiary, is not part of this transaction.

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

(a) Basis of presentation

The consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”).

(b) Basis of consolidation

The consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries in which it has a controlling financial interest or variable interest entities (“VIEs”) for which the Company is a primary beneficiary.

A controlling financial interest is typically determined when a company holds a majority of the voting equity interest in an entity. All intercompany balances and transactions between the Company and its subsidiaries have been eliminated in consolidation.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(b) Basis of consolidation (Continued)

The Company consolidates VIEs when the Company is the primary beneficiary. VIEs are entities that lack sufficient equity to finance their activities without additional financial support from other parties or whose equity holders, as a group, lack one or more of the following characteristics: (a) direct or indirect ability to make decisions; (b) obligation to absorb expected losses; or (c) right to receive expected residual returns. VIEs must be evaluated quantitatively and qualitatively to determine the primary beneficiary, which is the reporting entity that has (a) the power to direct activities of a VIE that most significantly impact the VIEs economic performance and (b) the obligation to absorb losses of the VIE that could potentially be significant to the VIE or the right to receive benefits from the VIE that could potentially be significant to the VIE. The primary beneficiary is required to consolidate the VIE for financial reporting purposes. A VIE can have only one primary beneficiary, but may not have a primary beneficiary if no party meets the criteria described above.

When evaluating whether the Company is the primary beneficiary of a VIE, and must therefore consolidate the entity, the Company performs a qualitative analysis that considers the design of the VIE, the nature of its involvement and the variable interests held by other parties. If that evaluation is inconclusive as to which party absorbs a majority of the entity’s expected losses or residual returns, a quantitative analysis is performed to determine the primary beneficiary.

For the Company’s consolidated VIEs, the Company has presented in note 10, to the extent material, the assets of its consolidated VIEs that can only be used to settle specific obligations of the consolidated VIE, and the liabilities of its consolidated VIEs for which creditors do not have recourse to its general assets outside of the consolidated VIE. All intercompany accounts and transactions between the Company and its consolidated VIEs have been eliminated in consolidation.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires the Company to make estimates and assumptions that affect reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Significant accounting estimates reflected in the Company’s consolidated financial statements include revenue recognition for sales of solar power projects, EPC and development services accounted for under a cost-based input method, allowance for credit losses and advances to suppliers, valuation of inventories and provision for firm purchase commitments, provision for contingent liability, impairment of long-lived assets and project assets, the estimated useful lives of long-lived assets, determination of assets retirement obligation (“ARO”), discount rates used to measure operating lease liabilities, accrual for warranty and the recognition of the benefit from the purchased warranty insurance, fair value estimate of financial instruments including warrants and other types of derivative, accrual for uncertain tax positions, valuation allowances for deferred tax assets, applying acquisition method of accounting to business acquisitions and the grant-date fair value of share-based compensation awards and related forfeiture rates.

(d) Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash

Cash and cash equivalents are stated at cost, which approximates fair value. Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash on hand and demand deposits, which are unrestricted as to withdrawal and use, and have original maturities of three months or less when acquired.

Restricted cash represents amounts held by banks, which are not available for the Company’s general use, as security for issuance of letters of credit, short-term notes payable and bank borrowings. Upon maturity of the letters of credit, repayment of short-term notes payable or bank borrowings, the deposits are released by the bank and become available for general use by the Company.

(e) Accounts receivable, unbilled

Accounts receivable, unbilled represents a contract asset for revenue that has been recognized in advance of billing the customer. The Company uses a cost-based input method to recognize revenue from EPC and development services when all relevant revenue recognition criteria have been met. Under this accounting method, revenue may be recognized in advance of billing the customer, which results in the recording of accounts receivable, unbilled. Once the Company meets the billing criteria under such contract, the rights to consideration becomes unconditional, it bills the customer and reclassifies the unbilled balance to accounts receivable trade. Billing requirements vary by contract, but are generally structured around completion of certain construction milestones.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(f) Allowance for credit losses

Before 2020, the Company determined its allowance for doubtful accounts by actively monitoring the financial condition of its customers to determine the potential for any nonpayment of accounts receivable trade, advances to suppliers and other receivables. In determining its allowance for doubtful accounts, the Company also considered other economic factors, such as aging trends. The Company believed that its process of specific review of customers, combined with overall analytical review, provided an effective evaluation of ultimate collectability of trade receivables. Provisions for allowance for doubtful accounts were recorded as general and administrative expenses in the consolidated statements of operations.

After the adoption of ASU 2016-13 “Financial Instruments—Credit Losses (Topic 326)” beginning on January 1, 2020, the financial instruments are presented net of an allowance for credit losses. The Company establishes current expected credit losses (“CECL”) through an assessment based on external credit rating, internal credit rating and historical loss rates of debtors. Where CECL is measured on a collective basis or cater for cases where evidence at the individual instrument level may not yet be available, the financial instruments are grouped on the aging status; and nature, size and industry of debtors. Refer to section (ak) of this Note for further details of the adoption of this ASU.

The Company began purchasing credit insurance from insurers, such as the China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation, since 2009 for certain of its accounts receivable trade in order to reduce its exposure to bad debt loss. The Company provides an allowance for accounts receivable trade using primarily a specific identification methodology. An allowance is recorded based on the likelihood of collection from the specific customer regardless whether such account is covered by credit insurance. At the time the claim is made, the Company records a receivable from these insurers equal to the expected recovery up to the amount of the specific allowance. The Company had recorded a receivable from these insurers in prepaid expenses and other current assets of $166 and $386 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively and a corresponding reduction in bad debt expense.

(g) Advances to suppliers

The Company makes prepayments to certain suppliers and such amounts are recorded in advances to suppliers in the consolidated balance sheets. Advances to suppliers expected to be utilized within twelve months as of each balance sheet date are recorded as current assets and the portion expected to be utilized after twelve months are classified as non-current assets in the consolidated balance sheets.

(h) Inventories

Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Cost is determined by the weighted-average method. Cost of inventories consists of direct materials and, where applicable, direct labor costs, tolling costs and those overhead costs that have been incurred in bringing the inventories to their present location and condition.

Adjustments are recorded to write down the cost of obsolete and excess inventories to the estimated net realizable value based on historical and forecast demand.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(i) Project assets

Project assets consist primarily of capitalized costs relating to solar power projects in various stages of development prior to the intended sale of the solar power projects to a third party. These costs include certain acquisition costs, land costs and costs for developing and constructing a solar power system. Development costs can include legal, consulting, permitting, and other similar costs. Construction costs can include execution of field construction, installation of solar equipment, solar modules and related equipment. Interest costs incurred on debt during the construction phase and all deferred financing costs amortized during the construction phase are also capitalized within project assets.

Solar power projects are preliminarily classified as project assets unless the Company has intention not to sell them to third parties. In that case, they will be classified as solar power systems on the balance sheet. During the development phase, solar power projects are accounted for in accordance with the recognition, initial measurement and subsequent measurement subtopics of ASC 970-360, as they are considered in substance real estates. The costs to construct solar power projects are presented as operating activities or investing activities in the consolidated statement of cash flows, if they are related to project assets or solar power systems, respectively. While the solar power projects are in the development phase, they are generally classified as non-current assets, unless it is anticipated that the sale will occur within one year. Appropriateness of the classification of the solar power projects is assessed based on the circumstances on each balance sheet date. Solar power projects that the Company intends to sell within one year, which meet the criteria of ASC 360, are classified as project assets-current. Solar power projects that the Company intends to hold and operate to generate electricity are classified as solar power systems.

The Company reviews project assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. The Company considers a project commercially viable or recoverable if it is anticipated to be sold for a profit once it is either fully developed or fully constructed. The Company considers a partially developed or partially constructed project commercially viable or recoverable if the anticipated selling price is higher than the carrying value of the related project assets. The Company examines a number of factors to determine if the project will be recoverable, the most notable of which include whether there are any changes in environmental, permitting, capital cost, market pricing or regulatory conditions that impact the project. Such changes could cause the costs of the project to increase or the selling price of the project to decrease. If a project is not considered recoverable, the Company impairs the project asset and adjusts the carrying value to the estimated recoverable amount, with the resulting impairment recorded within operations.

Project assets are often held in separate legal entities which are formed for the special purpose of constructing the project assets, which the Company refers to as “project companies”. The Company consolidates project companies as described in note 2(b) above. The cash paid to the non-controlling interest in connection with disposal of such project companies was recorded as a financing activity in the consolidated statement of cash flows.

The Company does not depreciate the project assets. Any revenue generated from a solar power system connected to the grid would be considered incidental revenue and accounted for as a reduction of the capitalized project costs for development. If circumstances change, and the Company intends to operate the project assets for the purpose of generating income from the sale of electricity, the project assets will be reclassified to solar power systems.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(j) Business combination

Business combinations are recorded using the acquisition method of accounting and, accordingly, the acquired assets and liabilities are recorded at their fair market value at the date of acquisition. Any excess of acquisition cost over the fair value of the acquired assets and liabilities, including identifiable intangible assets, is recorded as goodwill. The Company charges acquisition related costs that are not part of the purchase price consideration to general and administrative expenses as they are incurred. These costs typically include transaction and integration costs, such as legal, accounting, and other professional fees.

(k) Assets acquisition

When the Company acquires other entities, if the assets acquired and liabilities assumed do not constitute a business, the transaction is accounted for as an asset acquisition. Assets are recognized based on the cost, which generally includes the transaction costs of the asset acquisition, and no gain or loss is recognized unless the fair value of noncash assets given as consideration differs from the assets’ carrying amounts on the Company’s books. If the consideration given is not in the form of cash (that is, in the form of non cash assets, liabilities incurred, or equity interests issued), measurement is based on either the cost to the acquiring entity or the fair value of the assets (or net assets) acquired, whichever is more clearly evident and, thus, more reliably measurable. The cost of a group of assets acquired in an asset acquisition is allocated to the individual assets acquired or liabilities assumed based on their relative fair value and does not give rise to goodwill.

(l) Property, plant and equipment

Property, plant and equipment is recorded at cost less accumulated depreciation. The cost of property, plant and equipment comprises its purchase price and any directly attributable costs, including interest costs capitalized during the period the asset is brought to its working condition and location for its intended use. The Company expenses repair and maintenance costs as incurred.

Depreciation is computed on a straight-line basis over the following estimated useful lives:


Buildings		20 years
Leasehold improvements		Over the shorter of the lease term or their estimated useful lives
Machinery		5-10 years
Furniture, fixtures and equipment		5 years
Motor vehicles		5 years

Costs incurred in constructing new facilities, including progress payments, capitalized interests and other costs relating to the construction, are capitalized and transferred to property, plant and equipment on completion and depreciation commences from that time.

For property, plant and equipment that has been placed into service, but is subsequently idled temporarily, the Company continues to record depreciation expense during the idle period. The Company adjusts the estimated useful life of the idled assets if the estimated useful life has changed.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(m) Solar power systems

Solar power systems comprised of ground-mounted utility-scale projects that the Company intends to hold for use. The solar power systems are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. The cost consists primarily of direct costs incurred in various stages of development prior to the commencement of operations. For a self-developed solar power system, the actual cost capitalized is the amount of the expenditure incurred for the application of the feed-in tariff (“FIT”) or other similar power purchase agreements (“PPA”), permits, consents, construction costs, interest costs capitalized, and other costs capitalized. For a solar power system acquired from third parties, the initial costs include the consideration transferred and certain direct acquisition costs. Expenditures for major additions and improvements are capitalized and minor replacements, maintenance, and repairs are charged to expense as incurred.

When solar power systems is retired, or otherwise disposed of, the cost and accumulated depreciation is removed from the balance sheets and any resulting gain or loss is included in the results of operations for the respective period. Depreciation is recognized using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the solar power systems of 20 to 25 years.

(n) Intangible assets

Intangible assets primarily represent the technical know-how and computer software purchased from third parties. Intangible assets are recorded at fair value at the time of acquisition less accumulated amortization, if applicable. Amortization is recorded according to the following table on a straight-line basis for all intangible assets:


Technical know-how		10 years
Computer software		1-10 years

(o) Prepaid land use rights

Prepaid land use rights, in substance right-of-use assets recorded according to ASC 842 from January 1, 2019, represent amounts paid for the use right of lands located in China (“PRC”). Amounts are charged to earnings ratably over the lease periods of 20 to 50 years.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(p) Investments in affiliates

The Company uses the equity method of accounting for the investments. The Company records the equity method investments at historical cost and subsequently adjusts the carrying amount each period for share of the earnings or losses of the investee and other adjustments required by the equity method of accounting. Dividends received from the equity method investments are recorded as reductions in the cost of such investments. The amount associated with the share of earnings is considered as return on investment, and the rest amount is considered as return of investment.

Investments are evaluated for impairment when facts or circumstances indicate that the fair value of the investment is less than its carrying value. An impairment is recognized when a decline in fair value is determined to be other-than-temporary. The Company reviews several factors to determine whether a loss is other-than-temporary. These factors include, but are not limited to, the: (i) nature of the investment; (ii) cause and duration of the impairment; (iii) extent to which fair value is less than cost; (iv) financial conditions and near term prospects of the affiliates; and (v) ability to hold the security for a period of time sufficient to allow for any anticipated recovery in fair value. During the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, the Company recorded $5,738, nil and $24,060 of impairment charges on its investments, respectively.

(q) Impairment of long-lived assets

The Company assesses the recoverability of the carrying value of long-lived assets when an indicator of impairment has been identified. The Company reviews the long-lived assets each reporting period to assess whether impairment indicators are present. For purposes of recognition and measurement of an impairment loss, a long-lived asset or assets is grouped with other assets and liabilities at the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows are largely independent of the cash flows of other assets and liabilities. For long-lived assets, when impairment indicators are present, the Company compares undiscounted future cash flows, including the eventual disposition of the asset group at market value, to the asset group’s carrying value to determine if the asset group is recoverable. Assessments also consider changes in asset group utilization, including the temporary idling of capacity and the expected timing of placing this capacity back into production. If the sum of the expected undiscounted cash flows is less than the carrying amount of the assets, the Company will recognize an impairment loss based on the fair value of the assets. The Company recorded impairment charges for long-lived assets of $30,968, $21,866 and $11,854 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(r) Interest capitalization

The Company capitalizes interest costs as part of the historical costs of acquiring or constructing certain assets during the period of time required to get the assets ready for their intended use or sell the asset to a customer. The Company capitalizes interest costs to the extent that expenditures to acquire, construct, or develop an asset have occurred and interest costs have been incurred. Interest capitalized for property, plant and equipment, or solar power systems is depreciated over the estimated useful life of the related asset, as the qualifying asset is placed into service. The interest capitalized for project assets forms part of the cost of revenues when such project assets are sold and all revenue recognition criteria are met. Interest capitalization ceases once a project is substantially complete or no longer undergoing construction activities to prepare it for its intended use.

(s) Assets retirement obligation

Certain jurisdictions in which the Company’s project assets are located or certain land lease agreements require the removal of the solar power systems when the project is decommissioned. Assets retirement obligation (“ARO”) for the estimated costs of decommissioning associated with long-lived assets at a future date are accounted for in accordance with ASC 410-20, Asset Retirement Obligations (“ASC 410-20”). ASC 410-20 requires an entity to recognize the fair value of a liability for an ARO in the period in which it is incurred and a reasonable estimate of fair value can be made. Upon initial recognition of a liability for an ARO, the asset retirement cost is capitalized by increasing the carrying amount of the related long-lived asset by the same amount. Over time, the liability is accreted to its expected future value, while the capitalized cost is depreciated over the useful life of the related asset. The Company’s ARO included in solar power systems was not material as of December 31, 2019 and 2020.

(t) Leases

Effective January 1, 2019, the Company adopted Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), as amended (“ASC 842”) for its lease arrangements, which were recorded under ASC 840, Leases, before implementation. Upon adoption of ASC 842, the Company elected to use the remaining lease term as of January 1, 2019 in the estimation of the applicable discount rate for leases that were in place at adoption. For the initial measurement of the lease liability for leases commencing after January 1, 2019, the Company use the discount rate as of the commencement date of the lease, incorporating the entire lease term. The Company, as a lessee, has both finance and operating lease arrangements. Right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and operating lease liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets include operating lease agreements. Finance lease agreements are recorded in property, plant and equipment, other payables and other non-current liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets. Lease liabilities that become due within one year of the balance sheet date are classified as current liabilities. The Company elected the practical expedient to combine the lease and related non-lease components for all existing leases.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(t) Leases (Continued)

The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at inception. Leases are classified as operating or finance leases in accordance with the recognition criteria in ASC 842-20-25. At the commencement date of a lease, the Company determines the classification of the lease based on the relevant factors and presents and records a right-of- use (“ROU”) asset and lease liability. ROU assets represent the right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent the obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. ROU assets and lease liabilities are calculated as the present value of the lease payments not yet paid. Variable lease payments are excluded from the ROU asset and lease liability calculations and are recognized in the period which the obligations for those payments are incurred. Operating lease ROU assets also include any lease prepayments made, initial direct costs and deferred rent if any and exclude lease incentives. As the rate implicit in the Company’s operating leases is not typically readily available, the Company uses an incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the lease commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. Some of the Company’s lease agreements include options to extend or terminate the lease, which are not included in its minimum lease terms unless they are reasonably certain to be exercised. All operating lease expenses are fixed, which are accounted for on a straight-line basis over the lease term and that of finance lease include interest and amortization expenses incurred during the current year.

The Company’s leases do not contain any material residual value guarantees or material restrictive covenants. Leases with an initial lease term of 12 months or less are not recorded on the consolidated balance sheet.

For finance leases, the amortization of the asset is recognized over the shorter of the lease term or useful life of the underlying asset within depreciation and amortization expense and other expenses from managed and franchised properties in consolidated statements of operations. The interest expense related to finance leases, including any variable lease payments, is recognized in interest expense in consolidated statements of operations.

The Company assesses ROU assets for impairment quarterly. When events or circumstances indicate the carrying value may not be recoverable, the Company evaluates the net book value of the asset for impairment by comparison to the projected undiscounted future cash flows. If the carrying value of the asset is determined to not be recoverable and is in excess of the estimated fair value, the Company recognizes an impairment charge in asset impairments on its consolidated statements of income.

(u) Contingencies

Liabilities for loss contingencies arising from claims, assessments, litigation, fines, and penalties and other sources are recorded when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount can be reasonably estimated. If a potential material loss contingency is not probable but is reasonably possible, or is probable but the amount cannot be estimated, then the nature of the contingent liability, together with an estimate of the range of possible loss if determinable and material, is disclosed. Legal costs incurred in connection with loss contingencies are expensed as incurred.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(v) Income taxes

Deferred income taxes are recognized for temporary differences between the tax basis of assets and liabilities and their reported amounts in the financial statements, net tax loss carry-forwards and credits using the enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the periods in which the deferred tax liability or asset is expected to be settled or realized. Deferred tax assets are reduced by a valuation allowance when it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. Current income taxes are provided for in accordance with the laws of the relevant taxing authorities.

Income tax expense includes (i) deferred tax expense, which generally represents the net change in the deferred tax asset or liability balance during the year plus any change in valuation allowances; (ii) current tax expense, which represents the amount of tax payable to or receivable from a taxing authority; and (iii) non-current tax expense, which represents the increases and decreases in amounts related to uncertain tax positions from prior periods and not settled with cash or other tax attributes. The Company only recognizes tax benefits related to uncertain tax positions when such positions are more likely than not of being sustained upon examination. For such positions, the amount of tax benefit that the Company recognizes is the largest amount of tax benefit that is more than fifty percent likely of being sustained upon the ultimate settlement of such uncertain tax position. The Company records penalties and interests associated with the uncertain tax positions as a component of income tax expense.

The Company uses the flow-through method to account for investment tax credits earned on qualifying projects placed into service. Under this method the investment tax credits are recognized as a reduction to income tax expense in the year the credit arises. The use of the flow-through method also results in a basis difference from the recognition of a deferred tax liability and an immediate income tax expense for reduced future tax depreciation of the related assets. Such basis differences are accounted for pursuant to the income statement method.

(w) Revenue recognition

The Company recognizes revenue when it satisfies a performance obligation by transferring a promised good or service to a customer.

Solar power products and materials

Solar power products, including solar modules, other solar power products, solar system kits and materials related to solar power products are transferred at a point in time when the customer obtains control of the products, which is typically upon shipment or delivery depending on the contract terms. Revenues of solar product sales also include reimbursements received from customers for shipping and handling costs. Sales agreements typically contain the assurance-type customary product warranties but do not contain any post-shipment obligations nor any return or credit provisions, see note 2 (aa) for the Company’s accounting policy for warranty.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(w) Revenue recognition (Continued)

The Company assessed whether it is probable that the Company will collect substantially all of the consideration to which it will be entitled in exchange for the products that will be transferred to the customer. As of December 31, 2019 and 2020, the Company had inventories of $7,701 and $9,548, respectively, relating to sales to customers where revenues were not recognized because the collection of payment was determined to be not probable. The delivered products remain as inventories on consolidated balance sheets, regardless of whether the control has been transferred. If the collection of payment becomes probable in the future, the Company would then recognize revenue, adjust inventories and recognize cost of revenues.

O&M and asset management services

O&M and asset management services are transferred over time when customers receive and consume the benefits provided by the Company’s performance under the terms of service arrangements. Revenues from O&M and asset management services are recognized over time based on the work completed to date which does not require re-performances and the costs of O&M and asset management services are expensed when incurred.

Battery storage solutions, EPC and development services

The Company recognizes revenue for sales of battery storage solutions, EPC and development services over time based on the estimated progress to completion using a cost-based input method. In applying the cost-based input method of revenue recognition, the Company use the actual costs incurred relative to the total estimated costs to determine the Company’s progress towards contract completion and to calculate the corresponding amount of revenue and gross profit to recognize. Cost-based input method of revenue recognition is considered a faithful depiction of the Company’s efforts to satisfy battery storage solutions, EPC and development services contracts and therefore reflect the transfer of goods or services to a customer under such contracts. Costs incurred towards contract completion may include costs associated with direct materials, labor, subcontractors, and other indirect costs related to contract performance. The cost-based input method of revenue recognition requires the Company to make estimates of net contract revenues and costs to complete the Company’s projects. In making such estimates, significant judgment is required to evaluate assumptions related to the amount of net contract revenues, including the impact of any performance incentives, liquidated damages, and other payments to customers. Significant judgment is also required to evaluate assumptions related to the costs to complete the Company’s projects, including materials, labor, contingencies, and other system costs. If estimated total costs of any contract are greater than the estimated net revenues, of the contract, the Company recognizes the entire estimated loss in the period the loss becomes known. The cumulative effect of revisions to estimates related to net contract revenues and costs to complete contracts, including penalties, claims, change orders, performance incentives, anticipated losses, and others are recorded in the period in which revisions to estimates are identified and the amounts can be reasonably estimated.

Solar power and energy storage projects

Sales of solar power and energy storage projects are recognized at a point in time when customers obtain control of solar power projects. For sales of solar power and energy storage projects in which the Company obtains an interest in the project sold to the customer, the Company recognizes all of the revenue for the consideration received, including the fair value of the non-controlling interest it obtained, and defer any profit associated with the interest obtained.

The solar power projects are often held in separate legal entities which are formed for the special purpose of constructing the solar power projects, which the Company refers to as “project companies”. The Company applies guidance under ASC 810 to determine deconsolidation of the project companies upon transfer of equity interest to the customers, and then applies guidance under ASC 606 for revenue recognition.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(w) Revenue recognition (Continued)

Electricity revenue

Electricity revenue is generated primarily by the Company’s solar power plants under long-term PPAs and performance based energy incentives. For electricity sold under PPAs, the Company recognizes electricity revenue based on the price stated in the PPAs when electricity has been generated and transmitted to the grid. Performance-based energy incentives are awarded under certain state programs for the delivery of renewable electricity when the attached conditions have been met and there is reasonable assurance that the incentives will be received. During the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, the Company recognized performance-based energy incentives related to electricity generated of $4,688, $3,915 and $6,628, respectively, in revenue.

Disaggregation of Revenue

The disaggregation of revenue from contracts with customers for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019, and 2020 has been disclosed under Segment Information. See Note 22 for details of revenues generated from each product or service and revenues generated from different geographic locations.

The following table represents a disaggregation of revenue recognized at a point in time or over time (Comparative period financial information for 2018 and 2019 by reportable segment has been recast to conform to current presentation. Refer to Note 22 for further information.):


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018		2019		2020
CSI Solar Segment:
Revenue recognized at a point in time	$	2,232,424	$	2,210,459	$	2,704,332
Revenue recognized over time		84,843		271,389		45,996

Global Energy Segment:
Revenue recognized at a point in time		1,406,196		696,326		687,759
Revenue recognized over time		21,049		22,409		38,408
		3,744,512		3,200,583		3,476,495

The Company’s contract assets and liabilities are as follow:


		At December 31,		At December 31,
	2019		2020
Contract Assets
Accounts receivable, unbilled	$	15,256	$	28,461

Contract Liabilities
Advances from customers		134,806		189,470
Other current liabilities		20,917		35,012
		155,723		224,482

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(w) Revenue recognition (Continued)

For the year ended December 31, 2020, $139,387 of the Company’s revenue was recognized from the beginning balance of contract liabilities as of January 1, 2020. Contract liabilities of $224,482 as of December 31, 2020 are expected to be realized within one year.

The Company has applied the practical expedients related to the revenue requirements to a portfolio of contracts (or performance obligations) with similar characteristics for transactions where it is expected that the effects on the financial statements of applying the revenue recognition guidance to the portfolio would not differ materially from applying this guidance to the individual contracts (or performance obligations) within that portfolio. Therefore, the Company has elected the portfolio approach in applying the revenue guidance.

The Company has made an accounting policy election to not assess whether promised products are performance obligations if they are immaterial in the context of the contract with the customer. If the revenue related to a performance obligation that includes products that are immaterial in the context of the contract is recognized before those immaterial products are transferred to the customer, then the related costs to transfer those products are accrued.

The Company does not disclose the value of unsatisfied performance obligations for (i) contracts with an original expected length of one year or less and (ii) contracts for which the Company recognizes revenue at the amount to which it has the right to invoice for services performed.

The Company generally expenses incremental costs of obtaining a contract when incurred because the amortization period would be less than one year. The incremental costs are recorded in operating expense. Incremental costs of obtaining a contract with an amortization period more than one year are not material to the Company.

(x) Shipping and handling costs

Payments received from customers for shipping and handling costs are included in net revenues. Shipping and handling costs relating to sales of $69,855, $88,079 and $134,248, are included in selling and distribution expenses for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

(y) Research and development

Costs related to the design, development, testing and enhancement of products are included in research and development expenses. Research and development costs are expensed when incurred and amounted to $44,193, $47,045 and $45,167 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

(z) Other operating income, net

Other operating income, net primarily consists of gains or losses on disposal of solar power systems and property, plant and equipment, and government grants received, and compensation from business interruption insurance.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(z) Other operating income, net (Continued)

Government grants received by the Company consist of unrestricted and restricted grants and subsidies. Unrestricted grants that allowed the Company’s full discretion in utilizing the funds are recognized as other operating income upon receipt of cash and when all the conditions for their receipt have been satisfied. Restricted grants related to prepaid land use rights, property, plants and equipment and certain projects, are recorded as deferred subsidies in other non-current liabilities and are amortized on a straight-line basis over the term of related assets.

The following table summarizes the Company’s other operating income, net:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Net gain on disposal of solar power system	(36,098)	(1,666)	—
Net (gain) loss on disposal of property, plant and equipment	2,565	1,227	(253)
Government grants	(11,013)	(10,097)	(24,245)
Business interruption insurance compensation	—	—	(1,025)
	(44,546)	(10,536)	(25,523)

(aa) Warranty cost

Before June 2009, the Company typically sold its standard solar modules with a two-year guarantee for defects in materials and workmanship and a 10-year and 25-year warranty against declines of more than 10% and 20%, respectively, from the initial minimum power generation capacity at the time of delivery. In June 2009, the Company increased its guarantee for defects in materials and workmanship to six years. In August 2011, the Company increased its guarantee for defects in materials and workmanship to ten years.

In 2019, the Company increased its guarantee for defects in materials and workmanship up to twelve years and the Company warrant that, for a period of 25 years, its standard polycrystalline modules will maintain the following performance levels: (i) during the first year, the actual power output of the module will be no less than 97.5% of the labeled power output; (ii) from the second year to the 24th year, the actual annual power output decline of the module will be no more than 0.7%; and (iii) by the end of the 25th year, the actual power output of the module will be no less than 80.7% of the labeled power output.

The Company has lengthened the warranty against decline in performance for its bifacial module and double glass module products to 30 years.

For solar power projects built by the Company, the Company provides a limited workmanship or balance of system warranty against defects in engineering design, installation and construction under normal use, operation and service conditions for a period of up to ten years following the energizing of the solar power project. In resolving claims under the workmanship or balance of system warranty, the Company has the option of remedying through repair, refurbishment or replacement of equipment. The Company has entered into similar workmanship warranties with its suppliers to back up its warranties.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(aa) Warranty cost (Continued)

The Company maintains warranty reserves to cover potential liabilities that could arise under these guarantees and warranties. Due to limited warranty claims to date, the Company accrues the estimated costs of warranties based on an assessment of its competitors’ and its own actual claim history, industry-standard accelerated testing, estimates of failure rates from the Company’s quality review, and other assumptions that the Company believes to be reasonable under the circumstances. Actual warranty costs are accumulated and charged against the accrued warranty liability. To the extent that accrual for warranty costs differs from the estimates, the Company will prospectively revise its accrual rate. The Company currently records a 1% warranty provision against the revenue for sales of solar power products.

The Company has entered into agreements with a group of insurance companies with high credit ratings to back up its warranties. Under the terms of the insurance policies, which are designed to match the terms of the Company’s solar module product warranty policy, the insurance companies are obliged to reimburse the Company, subject to certain maximum claim limits and certain deductibles, for the actual product warranty costs that the Company incurs under the terms of its solar module product warranty policy. The Company records the insurance premiums initially as prepaid expenses and amortizes them over the respective policy period of one year. The unamortized carrying amount is $1,486 and $1,728 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively and was included as a component of prepaid expenses and other current assets.

The warranty obligations the Company records relate to defects that existed when the product was sold to the customer. The event which the Company is insured against through its insurance policies is the sale of products with these defects. Accordingly, the Company views the insured losses attributable to the shipment of defective products covered under its warranty as analogous to potential claims, or claims that have been incurred as of the product ship date, but not yet reported. The Company expects to recover all or a portion of the cost of its obligations with respect to the defective products through insurance claims. Therefore, the Company’s accounting policy is to record an asset for the amount determined to be probable of recovery from the insurance claims (not to exceed the amount of the total losses incurred), consistent with the guidance set forth at ASC 410-30.

The Company considers the following factors in determining whether an insurance receivable that is probable and recoverability can be reasonably estimated: (i) reputation and credit rating of the insurance company; (ii) comparison of the solar module product warranty policy against the terms of the insurance policies, to ensure valid warranty claims submitted by customers will be covered by the policy and therefore reimbursed by the insurance companies; and (iii) with respect to specific claims submitted, written communications from the insurance company are monitored to ensure the claim has been submitted to the insurance company, and reimbursements are probable to be subsequently collected. The successfully processed claims provide further evidence that the insurance policies are functioning as anticipated.

To the extent uncertainties regarding the solvency of insurance carriers or the legal sufficiency of insurance claims (including if they became subject to litigation) were to arise, the Company will establish a provision for uncollectible amounts based on the specific facts and circumstances. To date, no provision had been determined to be necessary. In addition, to the extent that accrual for warranty costs differs from the estimates and the Company prospectively changes its accrual rate, this change may result in a change to the amount expected to be recovered from insurance.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(aa) Warranty cost (Continued)

As the warranty obligation and related recovery asset do not meet the criteria for offsetting, the gross amounts are reported in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. The asset is expected to be realized over the life of the warranty obligation, which is 25 or 30 years and is treated as a non-current asset consistent with the underlying warranty obligation. When a specific claim is submitted, and the corresponding insurance proceeds will be collected within twelve months of the balance sheet date, the Company will reclassify that portion of the receivable as being current. The insurance receivable amounts were $79,888 and $82,532 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively, and were included as a component of other non-current assets.

The Company made downward adjustments to its accrued warranty costs of $243 and other non-current assets of $642, for the year ended December 31, 2020, to reflect the general declining trend of the average selling price of solar modules, which is a primary input into the estimated warranty costs. Accrued warranty costs (net effect of adjustments) of $13,188, $28,044 and $26,931 are included in cost of revenues for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

(ab) Foreign currency translation

The United States dollars (“U.S. dollars” or “$”), the currency in which a substantial amount of the Company’s transactions are denominated, is used as the functional and reporting currency of CSI. Monetary assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollars are translated into U.S. dollars at the rates of exchange ruling at the balance sheet date. Transactions in currencies other than the U.S. dollars during the year are converted into the U.S. dollars at the applicable rates of exchange prevailing on the transaction date. Transaction gains and losses are recognized in the consolidated statements of operations. Gains and losses on intra-entity foreign currency transactions that are of a long-term-investment nature (that is, settlement is not planned or anticipated in the foreseeable future) between consolidated entities are not recognized in earnings, but are included as a component of other comprehensive income.

The financial records of certain of the Company’s subsidiaries are maintained in local currencies other than the U.S. dollars, such as Renminbi (“RMB”), Euros, Canadian dollars (“CAD”), Japanese yen, Brazilian reals (“BRL”) and Australian dollars, which are their functional currencies. Assets and liabilities are translated at the exchange rates at the balance sheet date, equity accounts are translated at historical exchange rates and revenues, expenses, gains and losses are translated using the average rate for the year. Translation adjustments are reported as foreign currency translation adjustment and are shown as a separate component of other comprehensive income in the statements of comprehensive income.

(ac) Comprehensive income

Comprehensive income includes all changes in equity except those resulting from investments by owners and distributions to owners. For the years presented, total comprehensive income included (i) net income, (ii) foreign currency translation adjustments, (iii) gains and losses on intra-entity foreign currency transactions that are of a long-term-investment nature (that is, settlement is not planned or anticipated in the foreseeable future) between consolidated entities and (iv) the unrealized gains or losses (effective portion) on derivative instruments that qualify for and have been designated as cash flow hedges.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(ad) Foreign currency risk

The majority of the Company’s sales in 2018, 2019 and 2020 were denominated in U.S. dollars, Renminbi and Japanese yen, with the remainder in other currencies such as Euros, Brazilian reals, Australian dollars and Canadian dollars. The Company’s Renminbi costs and expenses are primarily related to the sourcing of solar cells, silicon wafers and silicon, other raw materials, including aluminum and silver paste, glass, toll manufacturing fees, labor costs and local overhead expenses within the PRC. From time to time, the Company enters into loan arrangements with commercial banks that are denominated primarily in Renminbi, U.S. dollars and Japanese yen. Most of its cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash are denominated in Renminbi. Fluctuations in exchange rates, particularly between the U.S. dollars, Renminbi, Thailand Baht, Canadian dollars, Japanese yen, Brazilian reals, Euros and Australian dollars, may result in foreign exchange gains or losses. Since 2008, the Company has hedged part of its foreign currency exposures against the U.S. dollars using foreign currency forward or option contracts.

(ae) Concentration of credit risk

Financial instruments that potentially expose the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, accounts receivable, advances to suppliers and amounts due from related parties.

All of the Company’s cash and cash equivalents are held with financial institutions that Company management believes to have high credit quality.

The Company conducts credit evaluations of customers and generally does not require collateral or other security from its customers. The Company establishes an allowance for credit losses primarily based upon the age of the receivables and factors surrounding the credit risk of specific customers. With respect to advances to suppliers, such suppliers are primarily suppliers of raw materials. The Company performs ongoing credit evaluations of its suppliers’ financial conditions. The Company generally does not require collateral or security against advances to suppliers, however, it maintains a reserve for potential credit losses and such losses have historically been within management’s expectation.

The prepayments made by the Company are unsecured and expose the Company to supplier credit risk. As of December 31, 2019, prepayments made to individual suppliers were all less than 10% of total advances to suppliers and the concentration risk is relatively low. As of December 31, 2020, gross prepayments made to individual suppliers in excess of 10% of total advances to suppliers are as follows:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2019		2020
	$		$
Supplier A	—	⁽¹⁾	43,821

(1)No individual supplier is in excess of 10% of total advances to suppliers in 2019.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(af) Fair value of financial instruments

The Company applies authoritative guidance for fair value measurements for its financial assets and liabilities. The guidance defines fair value as an exit price representing the amount that would be received upon the sale of an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants. The guidance also establishes a fair value hierarchy, which prioritized the inputs used in measuring fair value. The standard describes three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair value:

Level 1—Observable inputs that reflect quoted prices (unadjusted) for identical assets or liabilities in active markets. The Company’s restricted cash balance for all periods presented uses level one fair value inputs.

Level 2—Inputs reflect quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in markets that are not active; quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets; inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the assets or liabilities; or inputs that are derived principally from or corroborated by observable market data by correlation or other means.

Level 3—Unobservable inputs reflecting the Company’s own assumptions incorporated in valuation techniques used to determine fair value. These assumptions are required to be consistent with market participant assumptions that are reasonably available.

(ag) Derivatives instruments and hedging activity

The Company’s primary objective for holding derivative financial instruments is to manage risks. Depending on the terms of the specific derivative instruments and market conditions, some of the Company’s derivative instruments may be assets and liabilities at any particular point in time. The recognition of gains or losses resulting from changes in fair value of these derivative instruments is based on the use of each derivative instrument and whether it qualifies for hedge accounting.

The Company enters into derivatives to hedge its foreign currency risk exposure to losses from price adjustments of electricity and interest rate risk. When the Company determines to designate a derivative instrument as a cash flow hedge, the Company formally documents the hedging relationship and its risk management objective and strategy for undertaking the hedge, the hedging instrument, the hedged item, the nature of the risk being hedged, how the hedging instrument’s effectiveness in offsetting the hedged risk will be assessed, and a description of the method of measuring ineffectiveness. The Company also formally assesses, both at the hedge’s inception and on an ongoing basis, whether the derivative that is used in hedging transactions is highly effective in offsetting changes in cash flows of hedged items. The effective portion of gains and losses on derivatives designated as cash flow hedges are initially deferred in other comprehensive income before being recognized in the statements of operations in the same period as the hedged transactions are reflected in earnings. Gains and losses on derivatives that are not designated or fail to qualify as effective hedges are recognized in the statements of operations as incurred.

Fair value of the derivative instruments is determined using pricing models developed based on the underlying price of the hedged items. The values are also adjusted to reflect nonperformance risk of the counterparty and the Company, as necessary.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(ah) Earnings per share

Basic earnings per common share is computed by dividing income attributable to holders of common shares by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the year. Diluted earnings per common share reflects the potential dilution that could occur if securities or other contracts to issue common shares were exercised or converted into common shares. Common share equivalents are not included in the calculation of dilutive earnings per share if their effects are anti-dilutive.

(ai) Share-based compensation

The Company’s share-based compensation with employees, such as share options, restricted shares and restricted share units (“RSUs”) with a time-based vesting condition, is measured at the grant date, based on the fair value of the award, and is recognized as compensation expense, net of estimated forfeitures, over the period during which an employee is required to provide service in exchange for the award, which is generally the vesting period. The share-based compensation expense related to the award which contains both time-based and performance-based vesting condition will be recognized when it is probable that the performance-based condition will be met. The probability of the performance condition to be met is not reflected when determining the fair value of the award.

(aj) Risks and uncertainties related to the COVID-19 pandemic

In March 2020, the World Health Organization categorized the outbreak of novel coronavirus, or COVID-19 as a pandemic. The outbreak of COVID-19 posed significant challenges to many aspects of the Company’s business. COVID-19 continues to spread globally, and the duration, magnitude and severity of its effects on the global population and economy are unknown. The Company is unable to predict the impact that COVID-19 will ultimately have on its result of operations, financial condition, liquidity and cash flows because of numerous uncertainties, including the duration and severity of the pandemic and the impact of various mitigation efforts.

As of the date of issuance of these consolidated financial statements, the Company is not aware of any specific event or circumstance that would require updates to its estimates and judgments or revisions due to COVID-19 to the carrying value of its assets or liabilities. These estimates may change, as new events occur and additional information is obtained, and are recognized in the consolidated financial statements as soon as they become known.

(ak) Recently issued accounting pronouncements

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, “Financial Instruments—Credit Losses (Topic 326)”, which has been subsequently updated by ASU 2019-04, 2019-05, 2019-10, 2019-11 and 2020-03. The amendments change the impairment model for most financial assets, and will require the use of an “expected loss” model for instruments measured at amortized cost. Under this model, entities will be required to estimate the lifetime expected credit loss on such instruments and record an allowance to offset the amortized cost basis of the financial asset, resulting in a net presentation of the amount expected to be collected on the financial asset. The Company adopted this standard effective January 1, 2020 using the modified-retrospective approach, which no cumulative-effect adjustments were made due to its immaterial nature. Refer to Note 3 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further information.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(ak) Recently issued accounting pronouncements (Continued)

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-13, “Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Disclosure Framework–Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Fair Value”. ASU 2018-13 removes and modifies existing disclosure requirements on fair value measurement, namely regarding transfers between levels of the fair value hierarchy and the valuation processes for Level 3 fair value measurements. Additionally, ASU 2018-13 adds further disclosure requirements for Level 3 fair value measurements, specifically changes in unrealized gains and losses and other quantitative information. The Company adopted this standard effective January 1, 2020. The adoption of this new standard did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In October 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-17, “Consolidation (Topic 810): Targeted Improvements to Related Party Guidance for Variable Interest Entities”, which expands variable interests to indirect interests held through related parties under common control. The Company adopted this standard effective January 1, 2020. The adoption of this new standard did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, “Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes”, which simplifies income tax accounting in various areas including, but not limited to, the accounting for hybrid tax regimes, tax implications related to business combinations, and interim period accounting for enacted changes in tax law, along with some codification improvements. This ASU is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2020, with early adoption permitted. Certain changes in the standard require retrospective or modified retrospective adoption, while other changes must be adopted prospectively. The Company is currently evaluating ASU 2019-12 and its impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

In March 2020, the FASB issued ASU No. 2020-04, “Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848)”, to provide optional expedients and exceptions for applying generally accepted accounting principles to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions affected by reference rate reform if certain criteria are met. The new guidance is effective, at the Company’s election, beginning March 12, 2020 through December 31, 2022. The Company has borrowings with interest payments that are correlated to a reference rate, and it is currently evaluating the impact of adopting this guidance and the potential effects it could have on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES

ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES

3. ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES

Allowance for credit losses is comprised of allowances for accounts receivable trade, advances to suppliers and other receivables.

Accounts receivable trade, net consisted of the following:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Accounts receivable trade, gross	466,360	449,251
Allowance for credit losses	(29,545)	(40,293)
Accounts receivable trade, net	436,815	408,958

Advances to suppliers, net consisted of the following:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Advances to suppliers, gross	109,156	299,019
Allowance for credit losses	(20,281)	(19,700)
Advances to suppliers, net	88,875	279,319

Other receivable, net consisted of the following:

	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Other receivable, gross	181,524	238,779
Allowance for credit losses	(11,431)	(8,802)
Other receivable, net	170,093	229,977

3. ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES (Continued)

The following table presents the change in the allowances for credit losses related to the Company’s accounts receivable trade and advances to suppliers during 2020:


		Advances to
	Accounts Receivable	Suppliers and
	Trade	Other Receivable
	$	$
Balance as of December 31, 2017	32,941	29,111
Allowances made during the year, net	869	2,112
Accounts written-off against allowances	(297)	—
Foreign exchange effect	(780)	(593)
Balance as of December 31, 2018	32,733	30,630
Allowances made (reversed) during the year, net	(1,386)	2,657
Accounts written-off against allowances	(309)	(1,452)
Foreign exchange effect	(1,493)	(123)
Balance as of December 31, 2019	29,545	31,712
Cumulative-effect adjustment for the adoption of ASU 2016-13	—	—
Provision for credit losses, net	11,387	2,280
Writeoffs	(639)	(5,490)
Balance as of December 31, 2020	40,293	28,502

INVENTORIES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

INVENTORIES

INVENTORIES

4. INVENTORIES

Inventories consist of the following:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Raw materials	75,722	90,308
Work-in-process	74,105	69,132
Finished goods	404,243	536,541
	554,070	695,981

Finished goods include modules of $84,202 and $181,012 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively, that allow solar energy systems to qualify for the U.S. Federal Investment Tax Credit by satisfying the 5% safe harbor method outlined in the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance notice.

In 2018, 2019 and 2020, inventory was written down by $14,646, $19,447 and $42,907, respectively, to reflect the lower of cost and net realizable value.

PROJECT ASSETS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

PROJECT ASSETS

PROJECT ASSETS

5. PROJECT ASSETS

Project assets consist of the following:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Project assets — Acquisition cost	55,158	44,549
Project assets — EPC and other cost	1,031,976	1,092,917
	1,087,134	1,137,466
Current portion	604,083	747,764
Non-current portion	483,051	389,702

The Company recorded impairment charges and write-off for project assets of $9,016, $20,194 and $369 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET

6. PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET

Property, plant and equipment, net consist of the following:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Buildings	453,712	533,647
Leasehold improvements	14,225	14,804
Machinery	1,074,460	1,191,780
Furniture, fixtures and equipment	64,117	75,656
Motor vehicles	6,351	7,643
Land	20,451	20,231
	1,633,316	1,843,761
Accumulated depreciation	(598,297)	(827,601)
Impairment	(45,437)	(52,149)
Subtotal	989,582	964,011
Construction in process	56,453	193,720
Property, plant and equipment, net	1,046,035	1,157,731

Depreciation expense of property, plant and equipment was $120,834, $148,034 and $197,600 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively. Construction in process primarily represents production facilities under construction and the machinery under installation.

SOLAR POWER SYSTEMS, NET

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SOLAR POWER SYSTEMS, NET

SOLAR POWER SYSTEMS, NET

7. SOLAR POWER SYSTEMS, NET

Solar power systems, net consist of the following:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Solar power systems in operation	70,449	182,232
Solar power systems under construction	4,830	6,565
Accumulated depreciation	(22,322)	(30,535)
Solar power systems, net	52,957	158,262

Depreciation expense of solar power systems was $3,756, $6,379 and $6,396 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET

INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET

8. INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET

The following table summarizes the Company’s intangible assets:


	Gross
	Carrying	Accumulated
At December 31, 2020	Amount	Amortization	Net
	$	$	$
Technical know-how	1,543	(1,525)	18
Computer software	41,085	(18,674)	22,411
Total intangible assets, net	42,628	(20,199)	22,429


	Gross
	Carrying	Accumulated
At December 31, 2019	Amount	Amortization	Net
	$	$	$
Technical know-how	1,428	(1,425)	3
Computer software	38,205	(15,417)	22,788
Total intangible assets, net	39,633	(16,842)	22,791

Amortization expense for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020 were $4,666, $5,310 and $5,122, respectively.

Amortization expenses of the above intangible assets are expected to be approximately $4,443, $3,662, $3,035, $2,503, $2,034 and $6,752 for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 and thereafter, respectively.

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT

9. FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT

The Company measures at fair value its financial assets and liabilities by using a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. Fair value is the price that would be received from the sale of an asset or paid to transfer a liability (i.e., an exit price) on the measurement date in an orderly transaction between market participants.

As of December 31, 2019 and 2020, the Company’s financial assets and liabilities were measured at fair value on a recurring basis in periods subsequent to their initial recognition all using the significant other observable inputs, which are Level 2 inputs.

Foreign exchange option and forward contracts

The Company entered into certain foreign currency derivative contracts to protect against volatility of future cash flows caused by the changes in foreign exchange rates. The foreign currency derivative contracts do not qualify for hedge accounting and, as a result, the changes in fair value of the foreign currency derivative contracts are recognized in the consolidated statements of operations.

The Company’s foreign currency derivative instruments relate to foreign exchange options or forward contracts involving major currencies such as Renminbi, Canadian dollars, Brazilian reals, Japanese yen and Australian dollars. Since its derivative instruments are not traded on an exchange, the Company values them using valuation models. Interest rate yield curves and foreign exchange rates are the significant inputs into these valuation models. These inputs are observable in active markets over the terms of the instruments the Company holds, and accordingly, the fair value measurements are classified as Level 2 in the hierarchy. The Company considers the effect of its own credit standing and that of its counterparties in valuations of its derivative financial instruments.

Interest rate swap

In 2016, interest rate swap contracts of total notional amounts of approximately $399,000 were entered into for Recurrent projects and these were designated as cash flow hedges. The interest rate swap contracts were transferred along with the sale of the underlying projects, and the fair value of the residual notional contract amount of approximately $47,439 related to the Roserock back-leverage loan was recorded as derivative liabilities of $2,170 on the balance sheet as of December 31, 2019. In July 2020, the Company completed the sale of its class B membership interests in the Roserock project to an unrelated third party, and consequently all of the Company’s interest rate swap contracts were paid off following the loan repayment.

The estimated fair value of interest rate swaps was measured based on observable market data, which were considered Level 2 inputs.

9. FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT (Continued)

The fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2019 and 2020 and the effect of derivative instruments on the consolidated statements of operations for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020 are as follows:


	Fair Value of Derivative Assets
	At December 31, 2019		At December 31, 2020
	Balance Sheet Location	Fair Value	Balance Sheet Location	Fair Value
		$		$
Foreign exchange forward contracts	Derivative assets — current	5,097	Derivative assets — current	22,178
Foreign exchange option contracts	Derivative assets — current	450	Derivative assets — current	1,173
	Total	5,547	Total	23,351


	Fair Value of Derivative Liabilities
	At December 31, 2019		At December 31, 2020
	Balance Sheet Location	Fair Value	Balance Sheet Location	Fair Value
		$		$
Foreign exchange forward contracts	Derivative liabilities — current	10,127	Derivative liabilities — current	10,753
Foreign exchange option contracts	Derivative liabilities — current	25	Derivative liabilities — current	2
Interest rate swap	Derivative liabilities — current	329	Derivative liabilities — current	—
Interest rate swap	Derivative liabilities — non-current	1,841	Derivative liabilities — non-current	—
	Total	12,322	Total	10,755


		Amount of Gain (Loss)
		Recognized in Statements
	Location of	of Operations
	Gain (Loss) Recognized	Years Ended December 31
	in Statements of Operations	2018	2019	2020
		$	$	$
Foreign exchange forward contracts	Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives	(16,414)	(20,249)	49,807
Foreign exchange option contracts	Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives	(2,023)	(1,022)	1,376
Interest rate swap	Loss on change in fair value of derivatives	(793)	(947)	(1,182)
	Total	(19,230)	(22,218)	50,001

Other fair value measurements

The Company measures certain long-lived assets or long-term investments at fair value on a non-recurring basis in periods after initial measurement in circumstances when the fair value of such assets is below its recorded cost and impairment is required.

The Company recorded impairment charges for certain manufacturing asset group of $30,968, $21,866 and $11,854 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively. The fair value of these assets was measured based on prices offered by unrelated third-party willing buyers and classified as Level 3 fair value measurements as the offering prices are not observable. The impairment was recorded in general and administrative expenses of the CSI Solar segment.

9. FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT (Continued)

Other fair value measurements (Continued)

The Company also holds financial instruments that are not recorded at fair value in the consolidated balance sheets, but whose fair value is required to be disclosed under the U.S. GAAP.

The carrying values of cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, trade receivables, billed and unbilled, amounts due from related parties, accounts payables, short-term notes payable, amounts due to related parties and short-term borrowings approximate their fair values due to the short-term maturity of these instruments. Long-term borrowings were $619,477 and $446,090 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively, which approximate their fair values since most of the borrowings contain variable interest rates. The fair value of long-term borrowings was measured based on discounted cash flow approach, which is classified as Level 2 as the key inputs can be corroborated with market data.

The carrying value of the Company’s outstanding convertible notes was nil and $223,214 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively, which approximates the fair value.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References + Details

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES

10. VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES

Since 2016, the Company, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, CSE Japan Investment Company Limited, entered into silent partnership agreements with various Japan project companies, to securitize project finance bonds and other type of project assets. Under the silent partnership agreements, the project entities are considered VIEs in which the Company has no equity interests, but is entitled to substantially all of the economic interests of the projects. In addition, the Company has the power to make decisions over the activities that most significantly impact the economic performance of the projects under the asset management agreement signed simultaneously between the project companies and a wholly-owned subsidiary, Canadian Solar Project K.K. As such, the Company concluded it was the primary beneficiary of the project companies and thus these project companies were accounted for as consolidated VIEs since their establishment.

As of December 31, 2019 and 2020, the carrying amounts and classifications of the consolidated VIEs’ major assets and liabilities with immaterial items combined, excluding intercompany balances which are eliminated upon consolidation, included in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets are as follows:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Cash	14,011	42,064
Project assets	197,366	337,836
Other assets	12,091	79,580
Total assets	223,468	459,480

Short-term borrowings	139,708	180,773
Long-term borrowings	—	52,408
Other liabilities	66,569	60,845
Total liabilities	206,277	294,026

Net income and overall cash flow activities during the year are immaterial to the consolidated financial statements.

INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES

INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES

11. INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES

Investments in affiliates consist of the following:


	At December 31,
	2019		2020
	Carrying	Ownership	Carrying	Ownership
	Value	Percentage	Value	Percentage
	$	(%)	$	(%)
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc.	19,162	14.66	19,980	14.66
Suzhou Financial Leasing Co., Ltd.	16,050	6	23,969	6
RE Roserock Holdings LLC (“Roserock”)	83,034	49	—	—
Others	34,582	15-49	34,342	15-49
Total	152,828		78,291

In 2017, Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc. (“CSIF”) completed its initial public offering. As of December 31, 2019 and 2020, the Company owned 14.66% of total units of CSIF. One out of the three members of the board of directors of CSIF represents the Company. The quorum for a board resolution of CSIF is a majority of the members of the board of directors, and the adoption of a resolution requires a majority of the votes presents. As such, the Company is considered having significant influence over the investee and the equity method is used in this investment.

CSI Solar Co established an entity, Suzhou Financial Leasing Co., Ltd., in 2015, in which the Company holds 6% voting interests. One of five board members is designated by CSI Solar Power Group, and as such CSI Solar Power Group is considered having significant influence over the investee and the equity method is used in this investment.

In December 2018, the Company wrote down the class B membership interests in Roserock project to its anticipated resell value by $4,995. In July 2020, the Company completed the sale of its class B membership interests in Roserock project to an unrelated third party, and recognized $18,486 of loss from this transaction as investment loss in the consolidated statements of operations.

In September 2018, the Company made full impairment charge of $700 on investment in eNow, Inc., in which the Company holds 10% voting interests, due to deterioration of the investee’s financial position.

In December 2020, the Company fully disposed of its ownership of Suzhou iSilver Materials Co., Ltd to an unrelated third party, and recognized $13,140 of gain from this transaction as investment gain in the consolidated statements of operations.

Equity in earnings of unconsolidated investees were $5,908, $28,948 and $10,779 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

LEASE

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

LEASE

LEASE

12. LEASE

The Company leases office space, office equipment and vehicles for solar power plants construction, and manufacturing facilities in various regions where the Company operates. Leased assets are mainly located in PRC, United States and Canada.

The operating and financing lease expenses were $20,905 and $24,696, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2018, as defined under the previous lease accounting guidance of ASC Topic 840.

12. LEASE (Continued)

Upon adoption of ASC 842, the leases considered as ROU assets have various terms of up to twenty years. The Company also has certain leases with terms of 12 months or less, which are not recorded on the consolidated balance sheet.

The components of lease expenses were as follows:


	Year ended	Year ended
	December 31, 2019	December 31, 2020
	$	$
Finance lease cost:
Amortization of right-of-use assets	18,900	8,036
Interest on lease liabilities	3,213	1,497
Operating fixed lease cost	17,619	19,630
Short-term lease cost	8,920	850
Total lease cost	48,652	30,013

Other supplemental information related to leases is summarized below:


	Year ended	Year ended
	December 31, 2019	December 31, 2020
	$	$
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities
Operating cash outflows from finance lease	(3,213)	(1,497)
Operating cash outflows from operating lease	(15,866)	(20,589)
Financing cash outflows from finance lease	(33,614)	(19,163)
ROU assets obtained in exchange of new finance lease liabilities in non-cash transaction	7,300	10,666
ROU assets obtained in exchange of new operating lease liabilities in non-cash transaction	18,222	14,892
ROU assets disposed through early termination of operating leases in non-cash transaction	—	(6,572)


	At December 31,		At December 31,
	2019		2020
Weighted average of remaining operating lease term - finance leases (in years)	1.41		0.90
Weighted average of remaining operating lease term - operating leases (in years)	3.03		3.07

Weighted average of operating lease discount rate - finance lease	5.82	%	5.54	%
Weighted average of operating lease discount rate - operating lease	4.36	%	4.18	%

12. LEASE (Continued)

As of December 31, 2020, maturities of operating and finance lease liabilities were as follows:


	Operating Lease	Finance Lease	Total Lease
	Payment	Payment	Payment
	$	$	$
Year Ending December 31:
2021	14,374	22,706	37,080
2022	7,427	2,514	9,941
2023	3,632	—	3,632
2024	1,242	—	1,242
2025	369	—	369
Thereafter	1,859	—	1,859
Total future minimum lease payments	28,903	25,220	54,123
Less: imputed interest	467	963	1,430
NPV for future minimum lease payments	28,436	24,257	52,693

Analysis as:
Short-term	15,204	21,887	37,091
Long-term	13,232	2,370	15,602
Total lease liabilities	28,436	24,257	52,693

As of December 31, 2019, maturities of operating and finance lease liabilities were as follows:


	Operating Lease	Finance Lease	Total Lease
	Payment	Payment	Payment
	$	$	$
Year Ending December 31:
2020	18,953	27,439	46,392
2021	12,980	13,087	26,067
2022	4,666	604	5,270
2023	2,541	—	2,541
2024	1,077	—	1,077
Thereafter	1,504	—	1,504
Total future minimum lease payments	41,721	41,130	82,851
Less: imputed interest	2,236	2,056	4,292
NPV for future minimum lease payments	39,485	39,074	78,559

Analysis as:
Short-term	18,767	25,998	44,765
Long-term	20,718	13,076	33,794
Total lease liabilities	39,485	39,074	78,559

BORROWINGS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

BORROWINGS

BORROWINGS

13. BORROWINGS

Borrowings consist of the following:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Short-term borrowings	819,031	912,549
Long-term borrowings, current portion	114,089	289,736
Subtotal for short-term borrowings	933,120	1,202,285
Long-term borrowings on project assets — current⁽¹⁾	286,173	198,794
Long-term borrowings	619,477	446,090
Total	1,838,770	1,847,169

(1)	Certain long-term borrowings were classified as current liabilities because these borrowings are associated with certain solar power projects that are expected to be sold within one year.

As of December 31, 2020, the Company had contractual credit facilities of $2,618,761, and $707,174 was available for draw down upon demand. In addition, as of December 31, 2020, the Company also had non-binding credit facilities of $966,270. As of December 31, 2020, $433,628 of the Company’s borrowings were non-recourse in nature.

As of December 31, 2020, short-term borrowings of $628,519, long-term borrowings, current portion of $258,978, long-term borrowings on project assets – current of $198,794 and long-term borrowings of $351,431 were secured by property, plant and equipment with carrying amounts of $224,893, inventories of $243,124, prepaid land use rights of $9,509, restricted cash of $107,598, accounts receivable of $15,882, equity interest of $529,431 and project assets and solar power systems of $696,955.

Significant long-term borrowings newly obtained during the year ended December 31, 2019 and 2020 were as follows:

In 2019, Recurrent Energy, LLC entered into two credit facilities with syndicated financial institutions, which agreed to provide financing of $123,708 and $60,000, respectively. The proceeds from the credit facilities were available for purchasing solar modules and other eligible equipment that will allow solar energy systems to qualify for the U.S. Federal Investment Tax Credit by satisfying the 5% safe harbor method outlined in the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance notice. The outstanding balance at December 2020 was $177,214 and requires repayment by 2022. The credit facilities are secured by the solar modules and certain project equity interests and is guaranteed by CSI. As of December 31, 2020, the Company met all the requirements of financial covenants.

In April 2020, Canadian Solar New Energy Holding Co., Ltd. entered into a $30,000 facility agreement with China-Portuguese Speaking Countries Cooperation and Development Fund for the development and construction of solar projects in Brazil. The facility is unsecured, guaranteed by CSI, and matures in March 2023. The agreement does not contain any financial covenants or restrictions. As of December 31, 2020, the facility was fully drawn.

13. BORROWINGS (Continued)

In July 2020, Recurrent Energy, LLC entered into a debt financing of $282,000 with a bank club led by Norddeutsche Landesbank to construct 327.5 MWp Maplewood solar power project in Pecos County, Texas. The loan is secured by project assets, guaranteed by CSI and will mature in September 2021. As of December 31, 2020, $203,747 was drawn and the Company met all the performance obligations.

In August 2020, Recurrent Energy, LLC entered into a $75,000 development loan facility with Nomura Corporate Funding Americas, LLC. The loan facility is secured by certain project assets and equity interests of certain entities wholly-owned by Recurrent Energy, LLC, guaranteed by CSI and matures in August 2022. As of December 31, 2020, the loan was fully drawn.

In October 2020, Canadian Solar International Limited entered into a working capital facility up to $50,000 with China Development Bank. The loan facility is unsecured, guaranteed by CSI Solar Co., Ltd. (formerly known as “CSI Power China Group Co., Ltd.”), and matures in November 2022. As of December 31, 2020, the loan was fully drawn.

These obtained long-term borrowings mentioned above bear effective floating interest rates from 1.7% to 6.5%.

Future principal repayments on the long-term borrowings are as follows. Included in the future principal repayment of 2021 are $198,794 of long-term borrowings on project assets – current, associated with certain solar power projects that are expected to be sold within one year:


2021	$	488,530
2022		275,985
2023		71,563
2024		18,785
2025		2,912
Thereafter		76,845
Total		934,620
Less: future principal repayment related to long-term borrowings, current portion		(488,530)
Total long-term portion	$	446,090

13. BORROWINGS (Continued)

Interest expenses

Average effective interest rates on borrowings are as follows:


	At December 31,		At December 31,
	2019		2020
Short-term borrowings	4.86	%	3.26	%
Long-term borrowings on project assets – current	3.65	%	3.63	%
Long-term borrowings	5.43	%	4.37	%

The Company capitalized interest costs incurred on borrowings obtained to finance construction of solar power projects or property, plant and equipment until the asset is ready for its intended use. The interests incurred during the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020 are as follows:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Interest capitalized — project assets	15,462	10,794	10,197
Interest capitalized — property, plant and equipment	1,182	2,620	154
Interest expense	106,032	81,326	71,874
Total interest incurred	122,676	94,740	82,225

SHORT-TERM NOTES PAYABLE

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SHORT-TERM NOTES PAYABLE

SHORT-TERM NOTES PAYABLE

14. SHORT-TERM NOTES PAYABLE

The Company enters into arrangements with banks whereby the banks issue notes to the Company’s vendors, which effectively serve to extend the payment date of the associated accounts payable. Vendors may present the notes for payment to a bank, including the bank issuing the note, prior to the stated maturity date, but generally at a discount from the face amount of the note. The Company is generally required to deposit restricted cash balances with the issuing bank, which are utilized to immediately repay the bank upon the banks’ settlement of the notes. Given the purpose of these arrangements is to extend the payment dates of accounts payable, the Company has recorded such amounts as short-term notes payable. As payments by the bank are immediately repaid by the Company’s restricted cash balances and other deposits with the same bank, the notes payable does not represent cash borrowings from the bank. As of December 31, 2019 and 2020, short-term notes payable was $544,991 and $710,636, respectively.

ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS

ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS

15. ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS

The Company’s warranty activity is summarized below:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Beginning balance	55,659	50,605	55,878
Warranty provision	13,188	28,044	26,931
Warranty costs incurred	(16,732)	(23,282)	(46,067)
Foreign exchange effect	(1,510)	511	990
Ending balance	50,605	55,878	37,732

RESTRICTED NET ASSETS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

RESTRICTED NET ASSETS

RESTRICTED NET ASSETS

16. RESTRICTED NET ASSETS

As stipulated by the relevant laws and regulations applicable to PRC’s foreign investment enterprise, the Company’s PRC subsidiaries are required to make appropriations from net income as determined under accounting principles generally accepted in the PRC (“PRC GAAP”) to non-distributable reserves, which include general reserve, enterprise expansion reserve and staff welfare and bonus reserve. The wholly-owned PRC subsidiaries are not required to make appropriations to the enterprise expansion reserve but appropriations to the general reserve are required to be made at not less than 10% of the profit after tax as determined under PRC GAAP. The board of directors determines the staff welfare and bonus reserve.

The general reserve is used to offset future losses. The PRC subsidiaries may, upon a resolution passed by the stockholder, convert the general reserve into capital. The staff welfare and bonus reserve is used for the collective welfare of the employee of the subsidiaries. The enterprise expansion reserve is for the expansion of the PRC subsidiaries’ operations and can be converted to capital subject to approval by the relevant authorities. These reserves represent appropriations of the retained earnings determined in accordance with Chinese law.

In addition to the general reserve, the Company’s PRC subsidiaries are required to obtain approval from the local PRC government prior to distributing any registered share capital. Accordingly, both the appropriations to general reserve and the registered share capital of the Company’s PRC subsidiaries are considered as restricted net assets amounting to $568,931 as of December 31, 2020.

CONVERTIBLE NOTES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

CONVERTIBLE NOTES

CONVERTIBLE NOTES

17. CONVERTIBLE NOTES

On September 16, 2020, the Company issued $200,000 of convertible notes (the “2020 Notes”). The Company granted the initial purchasers a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional $30,000 aggregate principal amount of the 2020 Notes. The option was fully exercised by initial purchasers on the same day. The key terms of the 2020 Notes are described as follows:

Maturity date. The 2020 Notes mature on October 1, 2025.

Interest. The 2020 Notes holders are entitled to receive interest at 2.50% per annum on the principal outstanding, in semi-annually installments, payable in arrears on April 1 and October 1 of each year, beginning April 1, 2021.

Conversion. The initial conversion rate is 27.2707 shares per $1,000 initial principal amount, which represents an initial conversion price of approximately $36.67 per share. The 2020 Notes are convertible at any time prior to maturity. The conversion rate is subject to change for certain anti-dilution events and upon a change in control. If the holders elect to convert the 2020 Notes upon a change of control, the conversion rate will increase by a number of additional shares as determined by reference to an adjustment schedule based on the date on which the change in control becomes effective and the price paid per common share in the transaction (referred to as the “Fundamental Change Make-Whole Premium”). The Fundamental Make-Whole Premium is intended to compensate holders for the loss of time value upon early exercise.

Redemption. The Company may redeem for cash all or any portion of the notes (i) at the Company’s option, on or after October 6, 2023, if the last reported sale price of the Company’s common stock has been at least 130% of the conversion price then in effect for at least 20 trading days (whether or not consecutive) during any 30 consecutive trading day period (including the last trading day of such period) ending on, and including, the trading day immediately preceding the date on which the Company provides notice of redemption, or (ii) following the occurrence of certain tax related events, in each case, at a redemption price equals to 100% of the principal amount of the notes to be redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the redemption date.

As of December 31, 2020, the carrying value of the convertible notes was $223,214, net of unamortized issuance costs of $6,786. The debt issuance costs are being amortized through interest expense over the period from September 16, 2020, the date of issuance, to October 1, 2025, the date of expiration, using the effective interest rate method at the rate of 3.18%. The amortization expense was $388 for the year ended December 31, 2020. Coupon interest of $1,677 was recorded for the year ended December 31, 2020, and was reflected as other payables as of December 31, 2020.

INCOME TAXES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

INCOME TAXES

INCOME TAXES

18. INCOME TAXES

Income tax expenses (benefits)

The provision for income taxes is comprised of the following:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Income (loss) before income taxes
Canada	10,570	(61,880)	(31,896)
United States	61,377	8,319	(113,262)
PRC including Hong Kong and Taiwan	178,050	204,632	189,398
Japan	27,555	29,335	50,642
Other	26,848	28,215	50,381
	304,400	208,621	145,263
Current tax expense (benefit)
Canada	(1,846)	(3,420)	36,226
United States	(14,786)	(4,803)	(71,421)
PRC including Hong Kong and Taiwan	27,285	44,622	30,276
Japan	5,325	13,229	18,941
Other	2,397	7,057	8,233
	18,375	56,685	22,255
Deferred tax expense (benefit)
Canada	12,117	(6,558)	(10,792)
United States	32,696	(2,412)	23,173
PRC including Hong Kong and Taiwan	2,653	(5,333)	(17,998)
Japan	(3,381)	(2,953)	(10,571)
Other	(491)	2,637	(8,050)
	43,594	(14,619)	(24,238)
Total income tax expense (benefit)
Canada	10,271	(9,978)	25,434
United States	17,910	(7,215)	(48,248)
PRC including Hong Kong and Taiwan	29,938	39,289	12,278
Japan	1,944	10,276	8,370
Other	1,906	9,694	183
	61,969	42,066	(1,983)

The Company mainly operates in Canada, PRC, Japan, the United States and Hong Kong.

18. INCOME TAXES (Continued)

Canada

CSI was incorporated in Ontario, Canada and was subject to both federal and Ontario provincial corporate income taxes at a rate of 26.5% for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2019, and for the period from January 2020 to June 2020. In July 2020, CSI filed articles of continuance, or the articles, to change its jurisdiction from the federal jurisdiction of Canada to the provincial jurisdiction of the Province of British Columbia. CSI is subject to federal, Ontario provincial and British Columbia provincial corporate income taxes at a rate of 26.5% for the period from July 2020 through December 31, 2020.

Canadian Solar Solutions Inc. was incorporated in Ontario, Canada and is subject to both federal and Ontario provincial corporate income taxes at a rate of 25% for all years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020.

United States

Canadian Solar (USA) Inc. was incorporated in Delaware, U.S. and is subject to federal and state corporate income taxes at a rate of 24.8%, 22.9% and 22.2% for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

Recurrent Energy Group Inc. was incorporated in Delaware, U.S. and is subject to federal and state corporate income taxes at a rate of 25.3%, 27.9% and 26.1% for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

In March 2020, the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act” was signed into law. The CARES Act allows net operating losses incurred in 2018, 2019, and 2020 to be carried back to each of the five preceding taxable years. As a result, the Company has received tax refund of $62,699 in 2020.

Japan

Canadian Solar Japan K.K. was incorporated in Japan and is subject to Japanese corporate income taxes at a normal statutory rate of approximately 32.0%, 31.8% and 31.8% for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

Germany

Canadian Solar EMEA GmbH was incorporated in Munich, Germany and is subject to German corporate income tax at a rate of approximately 33% for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

Vietnam

Canadian Solar Manufacturing Vietnam Co., Ltd was incorporated in Vietnam and is subject to Vietnamese corporate income taxes at a normal statutory rate of 10%. The Company enjoyed full tax exemption from 2016 to 2019 and uses a reduced statutory rate of 5% from 2020 to 2028.

18. INCOME TAXES (Continued)

Thailand

Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Thailand) Co.,Ltd. was incorporated in Thailand and is subject to Thailand corporate income taxes at a normal statutory rate of 20%. The Company currently has two Board of Investment certificates for full tax exemption which have different effective years. The licenses both started from year 2017, one of which will expire in year 2022 and the other in year 2025.

Hong Kong

Canadian Solar New Energy Holding Company Ltd and Canadian Solar International Ltd. were incorporated in Hong Kong, China, and are subject to Hong Kong profits tax at a rate of 16.5% for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

PRC

The other major operating subsidiaries, including CSI Solartronics (Changshu) Co., Ltd., CSI Solar Technologies Inc., CSI Cells Co., Ltd., Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Luoyang) Inc., CSI Solar Co., Ltd. (formerly “CSI Solar Power (China) Inc.”) and Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Changshu) Inc., and Suzhou Sanysolar Materials Technology Co., Ltd. were governed by the PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law (“EIT Law”).

CSI Solartronics (Changshu) Co., Ltd., CSI Solar Technologies Inc., Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Luoyang) Inc., CSI Solar Co., Ltd. (formerly “CSI Solar Power (China) Inc.”) are all subject to the enterprise income tax rate of 25% for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020.

Certain of the Company’s PRC subsidiaries, such as CSI New Energy Holding and CSI Luoyang Manufacturing, were once HNTEs and enjoyed preferential enterprise income tax rates. These benefits have, however, expired. In 2020, Suzhou Sanysolar, CSI Cells, CSI Changshu Manufacturing, Changshu Tegu, CSI New Energy Development (Suzhou) (formerly “Suzhou Gaochuangte New Energy Development”), Canadian Solar Sunenergy (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. (merged with CSI Cells in 2020) and Changshu Tlian enjoyed preferential enterprise income tax rates.

Reconciliation between the provision for income tax computed by applying Canadian federal and provincial statutory tax rates to income before income taxes and the actual provision and benefit for income taxes is as follows:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018		2019		2020
Combined federal and provincial income tax rate	27	%	27	%	27	%
Effect of permanent difference	(11)	%	(1)	%	4	%
Effect of different tax rate on earnings in other jurisdictions	—	%	3	%	(6)	%
Effect of tax holiday	(1)	%	(4)	%	(1)	%
Unrecognized tax provision	4	%	(3)	%	(13)	%
Change in valuation allowance	7	%	(3)	%	(14)	%
Effect of change in tax rate	(3)	%	(1)	%	2	%
Others	(3)	%	2	%	—	%
	20	%	20	%	(1)	%

18. INCOME TAXES (Continued)

PRC (Continued)

The aggregate amount and per share effect of tax holiday are as follows:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020

	(In Thousands of U.S. Dollars, except per share data)
The aggregate amount	3,089	7,956	1,287
Per share — basic	0.05	0.13	0.02
Per share — diluted	0.05	0.13	0.02

The components of the deferred tax assets and liabilities are presented as follows:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Deferred tax assets:
Accrued warranty costs	8,326	8,699
Bad debt allowance	10,324	3,218
Inventory write-down	1,128	3,121
Future deductible expenses	20,731	24,454
Depreciation and impairment difference of property, plant and equipment and solar power systems	23,380	30,138
Accrued liabilities related to antidumping, countervailing and other duty costs and true-up charges	496	406
Government subsidies	8,927	16,461
Net operating losses carry-forward	112,710	85,850
Unrealized foreign exchange loss and capital loss	7,064	1,221
Interest limitation	2,767	1,956
Others	26,415	30,958
Total deferred tax assets, gross	222,268	206,482
Valuation allowance	(70,627)	(50,118)
Total deferred tax assets, net of valuation allowance	151,641	156,364

Deferred tax liabilities:
Derivative assets	217	996
Depreciation difference of property, plant and equipment	18,789	17,027
Insurance recoverable	15,771	785
Unrealized foreign exchange gain	10,984	10,746
Others	8,380	5,234
Total deferred tax liabilities	54,141	34,788
Net deferred tax assets	97,500	121,576
Analysis as:
Deferred tax assets	153,963	170,656
Deferred tax liabilities	(56,463)	(49,080)
Net deferred tax assets	97,500	121,576

18. INCOME TAXES (Continued)

PRC (Continued)

In accordance with the EIT Law, dividends, which arise from profits of foreign invested enterprises in PRC earned after January 1, 2008, are subject to a 10% withholding income tax. Under applicable accounting principles, a deferred tax liability should be recorded for taxable temporary difference attributable to excess of financial reporting basis over tax basis in the investment in a foreign subsidiary. However, a deferred tax liability is not recognized if the basis difference is not expected to reverse in the foreseeable future and is expected to be permanent in duration. As of December 31, 2020, all of the undistributed earnings of approximately $381,716 attributable to the Company’s PRC subsidiaries and affiliates are considered to be permanently reinvested, and no provision for PRC withholding income tax on dividend has been made thereon accordingly. Upon distribution of those earnings generated after January 1, 2008, in the form of dividends or otherwise, the Company would be subject to the then applicable PRC tax laws and regulations. Distributions of earnings generated before January 1, 2008 are exempt from PRC dividend withholding tax. The amounts of unrecognized deferred tax liabilities for these earnings are in the range of $19,086 to $38,172, as the withholding tax rate of the profit distribution will be 5% or 10% depends on whether the immediate offshore companies can enjoy the preferential withholding tax rate of 5%.

Valuation allowance

Movement of the valuation allowance is as follows:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Beginning balance	65,399	76,522	70,627
Additions (reversals)	11,051	(6,156)	(21,585)
Foreign exchange effect	72	261	1,076
Ending balance	76,522	70,627	50,118

As of December 31, 2020, the Company has accumulated net operating losses of $567,049 of which $466,507 will expire between 2021 and 2040, and the remaining can be carried forward and back.

The Company considers positive and negative evidences to determine whether some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. This assessment considers, among other matters, the nature, frequency and severity of recent losses, forecasts of future profitability, the duration of statutory carry-forward periods, the Company’s experience with tax attributes expiring unused and tax planning alternatives. The Company has considered the following possible sources of taxable income when assessing the realization of deferred tax assets:

●

Tax planning strategies;

●

Future reversals of existing taxable temporary differences;

●

Further taxable income exclusive of reversing temporary differences and carry-forwards;

18. INCOME TAXES (Continued)

Valuation allowance (Continued)

The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of future taxable income during the periods in which those temporary differences become deductible for tax purposes. The CARES Act allows net operating losses incurred in 2018, 2019, and 2020 to be carried back to each of the five preceding taxable years. As a result, the tax effect of releasing the valuation allowance on net operating losses is $15,227.

The Company has recognized a valuation allowance of $70,627 and $50,118 as at December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

Uncertain tax positions

The Company makes an assessment of the level of authority for each of its uncertain tax positions (including the potential application of interest and penalties) based on their technical merits, and has measured the unrecognized benefits associated with such tax positions. This liability is recorded as liability for uncertain tax positions in the consolidated balance sheets. In accordance with its policies, the Company accrues and classifies interest and penalties associated with such unrecognized tax benefits as a component of its income tax provision. The amount of interest and penalties accrued as of December 31, 2019 and 2020 was $4,795 and $5,101, respectively. The Company does not anticipate any significant changes to its liability for unrecognized tax positions within the next 12 months.

The following table illustrates the movement and balance of the Company’s liability for uncertain tax positions (excluding interest and penalties) for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Beginning balance	6,181	15,730	10,557
Addition for tax positions related to the current year	9,806	11	—
Reductions for tax positions from prior years/Statute of limitations expirations	—	(5,720)	(1,011)
Foreign exchange effect	(257)	536	82
Ending balance	15,730	10,557	9,628

The Company is subject to taxation in various jurisdictions where it operates, mainly including Canada, PRC, the United States and Japan. Generally, the Company’s taxation years from 2015 to 2020 are open for reassessment to the Canadian tax authorities. The Company is subject to taxation in the United States and various state jurisdictions. The Company is not currently under examination by the federal or state tax authorities. The Company’s income tax returns for 2016 through 2020 remain open to examination by the U.S. tax authorities.

According to the PRC Tax Administration and Collection Law, the statute of limitations is three years if the underpayment of income taxes has resulted from the computational errors of the taxpayer. The statute of limitations could be extended to five years under special circumstances. For income tax adjustments relating to transfer pricing matters, the statute of limitations is ten years. Therefore, the Company’s PRC subsidiaries might be subject to reexamination by the PRC tax authorities on non-transfer pricing matters for taxation years up to 2015 retrospectively, and on transfer pricing matters for taxation years up to 2010 retrospectively. There is no statute of limitations in case of tax evasion in PRC.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for income taxes. Disclosures may include net deferred tax liability or asset recognized in an enterprise's statement of financial position, net change during the year in the total valuation allowance, approximate tax effect of each type of temporary difference and carryforward that gives rise to a significant portion of deferred tax liabilities and deferred tax assets, utilization of a tax carryback, and tax uncertainties information.

+ References + Details

EARNINGS PER SHARE

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

EARNINGS PER SHARE

EARNINGS PER SHARE

19. EARNINGS PER SHARE

The following table sets forth the computation of basic and diluted earnings per share for the years indicated:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018		2019		2020

	(In Thousands of U.S. Dollars, except share and per share data)
Numerator:
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc. — basic	$	237,070	$	171,585	$	146,703
Dilutive effect of interest expense of convertible notes		4,683		975		1,518
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc. — diluted	$	241,753	$	172,560	$	148,221
Denominator:
Denominator for basic calculation — weighted average number of common shares — basic		58,914,540		59,633,855		59,575,898
Diluted effects of share number from share options and RSUs		543,797		794,526		897,258
Dilutive effects of share number from convertible notes		2,833,333		349,315		1,833,663
Denominator for diluted calculation — weighted average number of common shares — diluted		62,291,670		60,777,696		62,306,819
Basic earnings per share	$	4.02	$	2.88	$	2.46
Diluted earnings per share	$	3.88	$	2.83	$	2.38

The following table sets forth anti-dilutive shares excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share for the years indicated.

RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS

20. RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS

Related party balances

The amount due from related parties of $5,834 as of December 31, 2020 consists of (i) trade receivables of $3,364, $195 and $2,123 respectively for modules sales to Salgueiro I Renewable Energy S.A., Salgueiro II Renewable Energy S.A., Jaíba 4 Energias Renováveis S.A., each the Company’s 20% owned affiliate, (ii) a cash funding of $16 to Pilipinas Newton Energy Corp, the Company’s 40% owned affiliate, and (iii) a $136 receivable for asset management service provided to CSIF, the Company’s 14.66% owned affiliate. No amount was due as of December 31, 2020.

The amount due to related parties of $314 as of December 31, 2020 consists of (i) a trade advance of $104 from Salgueiro III Renewable Energy S.A., the Company’s 20% owned affiliate and (ii) a payable of $210 for material purchased from Luoyang Jiwa New Material Technology Co., Ltd., the Company’s 20% owned affiliate.

20. RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS (Continued)

Related party balances (Continued)

Guarantees and loans

Dr. Shawn Qu fully guaranteed loan facilities from two Chinese banks of RMB1,270 million ($185,045), RMB1,420 million ($203,549) and RMB135 million ($20,648) in 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively. Amounts drawn down under the facilities as of December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020 were $155,956, $82,937 and nil, respectively.

The Company granted 83,805, 26,691 and 26,073 restricted share units to Dr. Shawn Qu in 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively, on account of his having guaranteed these loan facilities.

Sales and purchase contracts with affiliates

In 2019 and 2020, the Company sold three and two solar power projects to CSIF, the Company’s 14.66% owned affiliate in Japan, respectively, in the amount of JPY5,889,000 ($53,874) and JPY888,000 ($8,392), respectively, recorded in revenue.

In 2018, the Company sold 5 solar power projects to CSIF, the Company’s 14.66% owned affiliate in Japan, in the amount of JPY12,276,404 ($109,597) recorded in revenue, and JPY89,238 ($836) recorded in other operating income, respectively.

In 2018, 2019 and 2020, the Company provided asset management service to CSIF in the amount of JPY247,341 ($2,210), JPY 281,094 ($2,573) and JPY394,506 ($3,723), respectively.

In 2018, 2019 and 2020, the Company provided O&M service to CSIF in the amount of JPY122,529 ($1,105), JPY 223,598 ($2,052) and JPY805,021 ($7,564), respectively.

In 2020, the Company sold modules to Salgueiro I Renewable Energy S.A., Salgueiro II Renewable Energy S.A. and Salgueiro III Renewable Energy S.A., each the Company’s 20% owned affiliate in Brazil, in the amounts of $11,636, $9,996 and $9,403, respectively.

In 2020, the Company sold modules to Jaiba 3 Renewable Energy S.A., Jaiba 4 Renewable Energy S.A. and Jaiba 9 Renewable Energy S.A., each the Company’s 20% owned affiliate in Brazil, in the amounts of $5,971, $3,696 and $1,372, respectively.

In 2018 and 2019, the Company sold solar power products to ET Solutions South Africa 1 Pty, the Company’s 49% owned affiliate in South Africa in the amount of RMB45,407 ($6,859) and ZAR586,832 ($40,970), respectively.

In 2019 and 2020, Company purchased raw materials from Luoyang Jiwa New Material Technology Co., Ltd., the Company’s 20% owned affiliate, in the amount of RMB18,124 ($2,584) and RMB31,388 ($4,545), respectively.

In 2020, the Company provided EPC services to Lavras Solar Holding S.A., the Company’s 20% owned affiliate in Brazil, in the amount of BRL5,061 ($974).

20. RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS (Continued)

Sales and purchase contracts with affiliates (Continued)

In 2018 and 2019, the Company purchased raw materials from Suzhou iSilver Materials Co., Ltd, the Company’s former 14.63% owned affiliate in PRC, in the amount of RMB512,154 ($74,490) and RMB350,590 ($50,359), respectively. In December 2020, the Company fully disposed of its ownership of Suzhou iSilver Materials Co., Ltd to an unrelated third party. From January 1, 2020 through the date of disposal, the Company purchased raw materials in the amount of RMB168,032 ($24,301) from this former affiliate.

In 2018 and 2019, the Company purchased equipment from Suzhou Kzone Equipment Technology Co., Ltd, the Company’s former 32% owned affiliate in PRC, in the amount of RMB41,635 ($6,056) and RMB61,174 ($8,787), respectively. In July 2020, the Company fully disposed of its ownership of Suzhou Kzone Equipment Technology Co., Ltd to an unrelated third party. From January 1, 2020 through the date of disposal, the Company purchased raw materials in the amount of RMB7,381 ($1,048) from this former affiliate.

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

a) Capital commitments

As of December 31, 2020, the commitments for the purchase of property, plant and equipment were approximately $304,712, and the payment schedule for the commitments is as follow:


Year Ending December 31:		$
2021		174,509
2022		84,795
2023		45,408
Total		304,712

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Continued)

b) Contingencies

Class Action Lawsuits

Following the two subpoenas from the SEC in 2010, six class action lawsuits were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, or the New York cases, and another class action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, or the California case. The New York cases were consolidated into a single action in December 2010. On January 5, 2011, the California case was dismissed by the plaintiff, who became a member of the lead plaintiff group in the New York action. On March 11, 2011, a Consolidated Complaint was filed with respect to the New York action. The Consolidated Complaint alleges generally that the Company’s financial disclosures during 2009 and early 2010 were false or misleading; asserts claims under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 thereunder; and names the Company, its chief executive officer and its former chief financial officer as defendants. The Company filed its motion to dismiss in May 2011, which was taken under submission by the Court in July 2011. On March 30, 2012, the Court dismissed the Consolidated Complaint with leave to amend, and the plaintiffs filed an Amended Consolidated Complaint against the same defendants on April 19, 2012. On March 29, 2013, the Court dismissed with prejudice a class action lawsuit filed against the Company and certain named defendants alleging that the Company’s financial disclosures during 2009 and early 2010 were false or misleading and in violation of federal securities law. The court found that the plaintiffs failed to adequately allege a securities law violation and granted the Company’s motion to dismiss all claims against all defendants with prejudice. On December 20, 2013, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the district court’s order dismissing such class action lawsuit.

In addition, a similar class action lawsuit was filed against the Company and certain of its executive officers in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice on August 10, 2010. The lawsuit alleges generally that the Company’s financial disclosures during 2009 and 2010 were false or misleading and brings claims under the shareholders’ relief provisions of the CBCA, Part XX III.1 of the Ontario Securities Act as well as claims based on negligent misrepresentation. In December 2010, the Company filed a motion to dismiss the Ontario action on the basis that the Ontario Court has no jurisdiction over the claims and potential claims advanced by the plaintiff. The court dismissed the Company’s motion on August 29, 2011. On March 30, 2012, the Ontario Court of Appeal denied the Company’s appeal with regard to its jurisdictional motion. On November 29, 2012, the Supreme Court of Canada denied the Company’s application for leave to appeal the order of the Ontario Court of Appeal. The plaintiff’s motions for class certification and leave to assert the statutory cause of action under the Ontario Securities Act were served in January 2013 and initially scheduled for argument in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in June 2013.However, the plaintiff’s motions were adjourned in view of the plaintiff’s decision to seek an order compelling the Company to file additional evidence on the motions. On July 29, 2013 the Court dismissed the plaintiff’s motion to compel evidence. On September 24, 2013 the plaintiff’s application for leave to appeal from the July 29 order was dismissed. In September 2014, the plaintiff obtained an order granting him leave to assert the statutory cause of action under the Ontario Securities Act for certain of his misrepresentation claims.

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Continued)

b) Contingencies (Continued)

In January 2015, the plaintiff in the class action lawsuit filed against the Company and certain of its executive officers in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice obtained an order for class certification in respect of certain claims for which he had obtained leave in September 2014 to assert the statutory cause of action for misrepresentation under the Ontario Securities Act, for certain negligent misrepresentation claims and for oppression remedy claims advanced under the CBCA. The Court approved a settlement of the action on October 30, 2020. The settlement is no admission of liability or wrongdoing by the Company or any of the other defendants.

Solar 1

On October 17, 2012, the United States Department of Commerce, or USDOC, issued final affirmative determinations with respect to its antidumping and countervailing duty investigations on crystalline silicon photovoltaic, or CSPV, cells, whether or not incorporated into modules, from China. On November 30, 2012, the U.S. International Trade Commission, or USITC, determined that imports of CSPV cells had caused material injury to the U.S. CSPV industry. The USITC’s determination was subsequently affirmed by the U.S. Court of International Trade, or CIT, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, or Federal Circuit.

As a result of these determinations, the Company was required to pay cash deposits on Chinese-origin CSPV cells imported into the U.S., whether or not incorporated into modules. The rates applicable to the company were 13.94% (antidumping duty) and 15.24% (countervailing duty). The Company paid all the cash deposits due under these determinations. Several parties challenged the determinations of the USITC in appeals to the CIT. On August 7, 2015, the CIT sustained the USITC’s final determination and on January 22, 2018, the Federal Circuit upheld the CIT’s decision. There was no further appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and, therefore, this decision is final.

The rates at which duties will be assessed and payable are subject to administrative reviews.

The USDOC published the final results of the first administrative reviews in July 2015. As a result of these decisions, the duty rates applicable to the Company were revised to 9.67% (antidumping duty) and 20.94% (countervailing duty). The assessed rates were appealed to the CIT. The CIT affirmed the USDOC’s countervailing duty rates, and no change was made to the Company’s countervailing duty rate. This decision by the CIT was not appealed to the Federal Circuit. The CIT likewise affirmed USDOC’s antidumping duty rates, and no change was made to the Company’s antidumping duty rate. This decision by the CIT was, however, appealed to the Federal Circuit, which upheld the CIT’s decision. There was no further appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and, therefore, this decision is final.

The USDOC published the final results of the second administrative reviews in June 2016 (antidumping duty) and July 2016 (countervailing duty). As a result of these decisions, the antidumping duty rate applicable to the Company was reduced to 8.52% (from 9.67%) and then to 3.96% (from 8.52%). Because the Company is not subject to the second administrative review of the countervailing duty order, the Company’s countervailing duty rate remained at 20.94%. The antidumping duty rates were appealed to the CIT. The CIT affirmed the USDOC’s second antidumping duty rate. This decision by the CIT was appealed to the Federal Circuit, which in June 2020 reversed the CIT’s decision, in part, and directed the USDOC to reconsider certain issues related to its final determination. The USDOC has submitted its antidumping duty redetermination to the CIT. A decision is expected in mid-2021.

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Continued)

b) Contingencies (Continued)

The USDOC published the final results of the third administrative reviews in June 2017 (antidumping duty) and July 2017 (countervailing duty), and later amended in October 2017. As result of these decisions, the duty rates applicable to the Company were changed to 13.07% (from 8.52%) (antidumping duty) and 18.16% (from 20.94%) (countervailing duty). The assessed rates were appealed to the CIT. The CIT has twice remanded the antidumping duty appeal to the USDOC to consider adjustments to the Company’s rate. Pursuant to CIT’s remand orders, the USDOC issued a redetermination. The antidumping duty rate applicable to the company was reduced to 4.12% (from 13.07%) and then further to 3.19% (from 4.12%). In June 2020, the CIT issued its third opinion sustaining the USDOC’s remand redetermination. The Company filed a motion for reconsideration with the CIT advocating for an even lower antidumping duty rate. In September 2020, the CIT granted the Company’s motion for reconsideration and remanded to USDOC for further consideration of the Company’s antidumping duty rate. The CIT has likewise twice remanded the countervailing duty appeal to the USDOC to consider adjustments to the Company’s rate. In August 2020, the CIT sustained USDOC’s second remand redetermination. As a result, the company’s countervailing duty rate was reduced to 7.36% (from 18.16%). There was no further appeal to the Federal Circuit of the USDOC’s countervailing duty redetermination and, therefore, this decision is final.

The USDOC published the final results of the fourth administrative reviews in July 2018 (both antidumping duty and countervailing duty), with the countervailing duty rate later amended in October 2018. Because the Company is not subject to the fourth administrative review of the antidumping duty order, the Company’s antidumping duty rate remains at 13.07%. Because of these decisions, the countervailing duty rate applicable to the Company was reduced to 11.59% (from 18.16%). The countervailing duty rates were appealed to the CIT. The CIT remanded the countervailing duty appeal to the USDOC to consider adjustments to the Company’s rate. Pursuant to the CIT’s remand orders, the USDOC made a redetermination that reduced the Company’s countervailing duty rate to 5.02% (from 11.59%). The Company appealed the CIT decision to the Federal Circuit to contest USDOC’s continued assessment of a countervailing duty rate related to the alleged electricity subsidy program; a decision is expected in late 2021.

The USDOC published the final results of the fifth administrative reviews in July and August 2019. The antidumping duty rate applicable to the Company was lowered to 4.06% (from 13.07%). The countervailing duty rate applicable to the Company was reduced to 9.70% (from 11.59%). The countervailing duty final results were amended to correct ministerial errors in December 2019, but they resulted in no change to the Company’s 9.70% rate. The countervailing duty and antidumping duty rates were appealed to the CIT, which is likely to issue decisions in late 2021.

The USDOC published the final results of the sixth administrative reviews in October 2020 and December 2020, and amended final results of the sixth administrative review of the antidumping order in December 2020. In the amended antidumping final results, the antidumping duty rate applicable to the Company was raised to 95.50% (from 13.07%). USDOC assessed a countervailing duty rate of 12.67% (from 9.70%). The countervailing duty final results were amended to correct ministerial errors in March 2021 and, as a result, the company’s countervailing duty rate was reduced to 11.97% (from 12.67%). The antidumping duty rates were appealed to the CIT, which is likely to issue decisions in late 2021 or early 2022. The Company did not appeal USDOC’s final results of its sixth administrative review of the countervailing duty order and, therefore, this decision is final and the Company’s countervailing duty rate will remain at 11.97%.

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Continued)

b) Contingencies (Continued)

The seventh and eighth antidumping duty and countervailing duty administrative reviews were initiated in February 2020 and February 2021 and are currently underway. The USDOC is currently scheduled to release the preliminary results of the seventh administrative reviews on April 16, 2021 (antidumping duty) and April 19, 2021 (countervailing duty). The final results of both the seventh antidumping and countervailing reviews will likely be published in late 2021. USDOC will likely issue preliminary results of the eighth administrative reviews in early 2022. The final results of the seventh and eighth administrative reviews may result in duty rates that differ from the previous duty rates and cash deposit rates applicable to the Company. These duty rates could materially and adversely affect the Company’s U.S. import operations and increase the Company’s cost of selling into the U.S. market.

Between 2017 and 2019, the USDOC and USITC conducted five-year sunset reviews and determined to continue the Solar 1 antidumping and countervailing duty orders. In March 2018, the USDOC published the results of its expedited first sunset reviews and concluded that revocation of the Solar 1 orders would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping and a countervailable subsidy. The Company did not participate in USDOC’s first sunset review. The Company did, however, participate in the USITC’s first sunset review and requested that the Solar 1 duties be revoked. The USITC issued an affirmative determination in March 2019 declining to revoke the Solar 1 orders and finding that such revocation would be likely to lead to a continuation or recurrence of material injury to the U.S. industry within a reasonably foreseeable time. As a result, the Solar 1 orders remain in effect.

Solar 2

On December 31, 2013, SolarWorld Industries America, Inc. filed a new trade action with the USDOC and the USITC accusing Chinese producers of certain CSPV modules of dumping their products into the U.S. and of receiving countervailable subsidies from the Chinese authorities. This trade action also alleged that Taiwanese producers of certain CSPV cells and modules dumped their products into the U.S. Excluded from these new actions were those Chinese-origin solar products covered by the Solar 1 orders described above. The Company was identified as one of a number of Chinese producers exporting the Solar 2 subject goods to the U.S. market.

“Chinese CSPV products subject to Solar 2 orders” refers to CSPV products manufactured in mainland China using non-Chinese (e.g., Taiwanese) CSPV cells and imported into the U.S. during the investigation or administrative review periods of Solar 2. “Taiwanese CSPV products subject to Solar 2 orders” refer to CSPV products manufactured outside of mainland China using Taiwanese CSPV cells and imported into the U.S. during the investigation or review periods of Solar 2.

On December 23, 2014, the USDOC issued final affirmative determinations with respect to its antidumping and countervailing duty investigation on these CSPV products. On January 21, 2015, the USITC determined that imports of these CSPV products had caused material injury to the U.S. CSPV industry. As a result of these determinations, the Company is required to pay cash deposits on these CSPV products, the rates of which applicable to the Company’s Chinese CSPV products were 30.06% (antidumping duty) and 38.43% (countervailing duty).

The USDOC’s determination and the assessed countervailing duty rates were appealed to the CIT and the Federal Circuit. In March 2019, the Federal Circuit affirmed the CIT’s decision confirming the USDOC’s determination but reduced the Company’s countervailing duty rate to 33.58% (from 38.43%). There was no further appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and, therefore, this decision is final.

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Continued)

b) Contingencies (Continued)

The antidumping cash deposit rate applicable to the Company’s Taiwanese CSPV products subject to Solar 2 orders varied by solar cell producer. The Company paid all the cash deposits due under these determinations. There is no countervailing duty order on Taiwan Solar 2 products. The rates at which duties will be assessed and payable are subject to administrative reviews.

The USDOC published the final results of the first administrative reviews in July 2017 (China and Taiwan antidumping duty orders) and September 2017 (China-only countervailing duty order). Because the Company is not subject to the first administrative reviews of the Chinese orders of Solar 2, the Company’s duty rates will remain at 30.06% (antidumping duty) and 33.58% (countervailing duty) for the Company’s Chinese CSPV products. The Company’s antidumping duty rates for the Company’s Taiwanese CSPV products had ranged from 3.56% to 4.20%, until they were changed to 1.52% to 3.78% in June 2019.

The second administrative reviews for the Chinese antidumping and countervailing duty orders were rescinded, meaning that there is no change in the Chinese antidumping and countervailing duty rates applicable to the Company’s Chinese CSPV products 30.06% (antidumping duty) and 33.58% (countervailing duty). The USDOC published the final results of the second administrative review for the Taiwanese antidumping duty order (there is no countervailing duty order) in June 2018. The rate applicable to the Company is 1.33%. There is no ongoing litigation related to the Taiwanese antidumping duty rate.

The Company was not subject to the third administrative reviews of the Chinese orders and, therefore, the Company’s duty rates remained unchanged at 30.06% (antidumping duty) and 33.58% (countervailing duty) for the Company’s Chinese CSPV products. The third administrative review of the Taiwanese antidumping order concluded in mid-2019. The rate assessed to the Company was 4.39% (from 1.33%). There is no ongoing litigation related to the Taiwanese antidumping duty rate.

The USDOC rescinded the fourth administrative reviews of the Chinese antidumping duty and countervailing duty orders in late 2019. The Company’s duty rates will remain unchanged at 30.06% (antidumping duty) and 33.58% (countervailing duty) for the Company’s Chinese CSPV products. The rate assessed to the Company in the fourth administrative review of the Taiwanese antidumping order was 2.57% (from 4.39%). The USDOC also found that certain Canadian Solar entities had no shipments during this period of this review.

The USDOC rescinded the fifth administrative reviews of the Chinese antidumping and countervailing duty orders. The Company’s duty rates will remain unchanged at 30.06% (antidumping duty) and 33.58% (countervailing duty) for the Company’s Chinese CSPV products. The USDOC initiated the fifth administrative review of the Taiwanese antidumping duty order in April 2020, and that review remains ongoing. Certain Canadian Solar entities have filed a no shipment letter for this period of review. The USDOC is scheduled to publish the preliminary results of the fifth administrative review for the Taiwanese antidumping duty order on April 23, 2021. The final results will likely be published in late 2021.

The USDOC is expected to initiate the sixth administrative reviews of the Chinese antidumping and countervailing duty orders soon. No party, however, requested an antidumping or countervailing duty administrative review for any company, including the Company and, therefore, these reviews should be rescinded. The Company’s duty rates will remain unchanged at 30.06% (antidumping duty) and 33.58% (countervailing duty) for the Company’s Chinese CSPV products. The USDOC is expected to initiate the sixth administrative review of the Taiwanese antidumping duty order soon.

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Continued)

b) Contingencies (Continued)

In 2020, the USDOC and USITC conducted five-year sunset reviews and determined to continue the Solar 2 antidumping and countervailing duty orders. In May 2020, the USDOC published the results of its expedited first sunset reviews and concluded that revocation of the Solar 2 orders would likely lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping and a countervailable subsidy. The USITC issued an affirmative determination on September 4, 2020, declining to revoke the Solar 2 orders and finding that such revocation would be likely to lead to a continuation or recurrence of material injury to the U.S. industry within a reasonably foreseeable time. As a result, the Solar 2 orders are expected to remain in effect for an additional five years.

Section 201

On May 17, 2017, following receipt of a petition from Suniva, Inc., which was later joined by SolarWorld Americas, Inc., the USITC instituted a safeguard investigation to determine whether there were increased imports of CSPV products in such quantities as to be a substantial cause of serious injury, or the threat thereof, to the domestic industry producing like or directly competitive products. On September 22, 2017, the USITC determined that CSPV products are being imported into the United States in such increased quantities as to be a substantial cause of serious injury to the domestic industry.

On January 23, 2018, the President of the United States imposed a safeguard measure on imports of CSPV cells, whether or not partially or fully assembled into other products such as modules, consisting of (1) a tariff-rate quota for four years on imports of CSPV cells not partially or fully assembled into other products, with (a) an in-quota quantity of 2.5 gigawatts, and (b) a tariff rate applicable to over-quota CSPV cells of 30%, declining annually by five percentage points to 25% in the second year, 20% in the third year, and 15% in the fourth year; and (2) a 30% tariff for four years on CSPV modules, declining annually by five percentage points to 25% in the second year, 20% in the third year, and 15% in the fourth year. This safeguard measure, which became effective on February 7, 2018, applies to CSPV products imported from all countries, except for certain developing country members of the World Trade Organization.

On June 13, 2019 and following an abbreviated public comment period, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (or USTR) granted an exclusion from the safeguard measure for solar panels comprising solely bifacial solar cells (or bifacial solar panels). In October 2019, USTR determined to withdraw this exclusion. Invenergy Renewables LLC (or Invenergy) promptly contested USTR’s withdrawal determination at the CIT and secured a temporary restraining order against USTR in November 2019. In December 2019, the CIT preliminarily enjoined USTR’s withdrawal due to procedural deficiencies. USTR then sought and was granted a voluntary remand to reconsider its withdrawal determination for bifacial solar panels.

In early 2020, USTR conducted a renewed notice-and-comment process regarding the exclusion for bifacial solar panels from the safeguard measures. In April 2020, USTR again determined that the exclusion for bifacial solar panels should be withdrawn based on the findings of its second notice-and-comment process. Notwithstanding, in May 2020 the CIT denied without prejudice the United States’ motion to dissolve the preliminary injunction and to resume the collection of the safeguard tariff on entries of bifacial modules. USTR appealed the CIT’s interlocutory decision to the Federal Circuit in July 2020, but subsequently dismissed its appeal in January 2021. The United States has continued to litigate the merits of USTR’s April 2020 withdrawal of the bifacial exclusion before the CIT.

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Continued)

b) Contingencies (Continued)

In early 2020, the USITC conducted a midterm review of the safeguard order, issuing its monitoring report in February 2020. Additionally, in March 2020, at the request of the USTR, the USITC released a report regarding the probable economic effect on the domestic CSPV cell and module manufacturing industry of modifying the safeguard measure on CSPV products. The USITC found that increasing the tariff-rate quota (TRQ) on CSPV cells (an integral component of CSPV modules) would likely result in a substantial increase in U.S. module producers’ production, capacity utilization, and employment.

The President must consider the USITC’s views but is not required to follow them or to take any action in the safeguard midterm review. On October 10, 2020, President Trump issued Proclamation 10101 pertaining to the midterm review. Proclamation 10101 authorized the following: (1) the revocation of the bifacial module exclusion effective October 25, 2020; (2) the reduction of the safeguard tariff to 18% ad valorem (as opposed to 15% ad valorem as prescribed in the original safeguard measures) effective February 7, 2021; and (3) the delegation to USTR of the President’s authority to ask the USITC to assess whether the safeguard measures should be extended. The President decided not to follow the USITC’s recommendation to increase the TRQ applicable to CSPV cells.

Following the issuance of Proclamation 10101, Invenergy and other plaintiffs (AES Distributed Energy, Inc., Clearway Energy Group LLC, EDF Renewables, Inc. (or EDF), the Solar Energy Industries Association (or SEIA)) sought to challenge the Proclamation and filed motions to amend their complaints with the CIT. The CIT ultimately denied plaintiffs’ motions and refused to extend the bifacial module exclusion beyond October 24, 2020 as a consequence of the Proclamation (as opposed to USTR’s withdrawals). Subsequently, on December 29, 2020, Invenergy and another set of plaintiffs (SEIA, NextEra Energy, Inc., and EDF) commenced new and separate litigation once again challenging Proclamation 10101 in the CIT. This new complaint alleges that the President unlawfully terminated the bifacial module exclusion and revised the safeguard tariff, effective February 7, 2021, to be 18% ad valorem (as opposed to the originally announced 15% ad valorem). This new CIT case has also been assigned to Judge Katzmann, and no substantive decision has been made to date.

European Antidumping and Anti-Subsidy Investigations

On September 6, 2012, following a complaint lodged by EU ProSun, an ad-hoc industry association of EU CSPV module, cell and wafer manufacturers, the European Commission initiated an antidumping investigation concerning EU imports of CSPV modules and key components (i.e., cells and wafers) originating in China. On November 8, 2012, following a complaint lodged by the same parties, the European Commission initiated an anti-subsidy investigation on these same products. On December 6, 2013, the EU imposed definitive antidumping and countervailing measures on imports of CSPV modules and key components (i.e., cells and wafers) originating in or consigned from China. On March 3, 2017, the European Commission extended the antidumping and countervailing measures for 18 months on imports of CSPV modules and key components (i.e., cells and wafers) originating in or consigned from China. On September 16, 2017, the European Commission amended the form of the antidumping and countervailing measures for certain Chinese exporters (but not for Canadian Solar). On March 9, 2018, the antidumping and countervailing measures expired. As a result, since then, the Company’s CSPV modules and cells that originate in, or are consigned from, China, are no longer subject to antidumping or countervailing measures.

21. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Continued)

b) Contingencies (Continued)

On February 28, 2014, the Company filed separate actions with the General Court of the EU for annulment of the regulation imposing the definitive antidumping measures and of the regulation imposing the definitive countervailing measures (case T-162/14 and joined cases T-158/14, T-161/14, and T-163/14). The General Court rejected these actions for annulment. On May 8, 2017, the Company appealed the judgements of the General Court before the Court of Justice of the EU (cases C-236/17 and C-237/17). On March 27, 2019, the Court of Justice rejected the appeals. There is no further action with regard to these matters.

Canadian Antidumping and Countervailing Duties Expiry Review

On June 3, 2015, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) released final determinations regarding the dumping and subsidization of solar modules and laminates originating from China. The CBSA determined that such goods were dumped and subsidized. The CBSA found Canadian Solar to be a “cooperative exporter” and, as such, ascertained a low (relative to other Chinese exporters) Canadian Solar-specific subsidies rate of RMB0.014 per Watt. On July 3, 2015 the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) determined that the Canadian industry was not negatively affected as a result of imported modules but was threatened with such negative impact. As a result of these findings, definitive duties were imposed on imports of Chinese solar modules into Canada starting on July 3, 2015. The CITT may initiate an expiry review pursuant to Subsection 76.03(3) of the Special Import Measures Act (“SIMA”) before the end of 5 years of its finding. If the CITT does not initiate such an expiry review pursuant to Subsection 76.03(3) of SIMA, the finding is deemed to have been rescinded as of the expiry of the five years.

On April 1, 2020, the CITT initiated the preliminary stage of the expiry review regarding the above finding. The expiry review was concluded on March 25, 2021. The CITT determined to continue its aforementioned finding. As a result, the Canadian Solar-specific subsidies rate of RMB0.014 per Watt remains unchanged. Such subsidies rate does not have a material negative effect upon the Company’s results of operations because it has module manufacturing capacity in Ontario and does not rely on Chinese solar modules to serve its Canadian business.

Please refer to “Item 8. Financial Information—A. Consolidated Statements and Other Financial Information—Legal and Administrative Proceedings” in the Company’s Form 20-F for detailed information on antidumping and countervailing duties.

SEGMENT INFORMATION

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SEGMENT INFORMATION

SEGMENT INFORMATION

22. SEGMENT INFORMATION

The Company uses the management approach to determine operating segments. The management approach considers the internal organization and reporting used by the Company’s chief operating decision maker (“CODM”) for making decisions, allocating resources and assessing performance. The Company’s CODM has been identified as the Chief Executive Officer of the Company, since he reviews consolidated and segment results when making decisions about allocating resources and assessing performance of the Company.

From 2016 through the third quarter of 2020, the Company had been operating in two principal businesses: MSS and Energy. The MSS business comprised primarily the design, development, manufacture and sale of solar modules, other solar power products and solar system kits. The MSS business also provided engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services. The Energy business comprised primarily the development and sale of solar projects, operating solar power projects, the sale of electricity and operating and maintenance (O&M) services. The module sales from the Company’s MSS business to its Energy business were on terms and conditions similar to sales to third parties.

22. SEGMENT INFORMATION (Continued)

In July 2020, the Company reached a strategic decision to pursue a listing of its subsidiary, CSI Solar Co, in China. To align with the objective of ASC 280, Segment Reporting (“Topic 280”) and present the Company’s disaggregated financial information consistent with the management approach, beginning from the fourth quarter of 2020, the Company reports its financial performance, including revenue, gross profit and income from operations, based on the following two reportable segments:

●

CSI Solar, which includes solar modules, solar system kits, battery energy storage solutions, China energy (including solar projects, EPC services and electricity revenue in China), and other materials, components and services (including EPC); and

●

Global Energy, which includes global solar and energy storage power projects (excludes China), O&M and asset management services, global electricity revenue (excludes China), as well as other development services.

The module sales from the Company’s CSI Solar business to its Global Energy business are on terms and conditions similar to sales to third parties. Comparative period financial information for 2018 and 2019 by reportable segment has been recast to conform to current presentation.

The Company continually monitors and reviews its segment reporting structure in accordance with Topic 280 to determine whether any changes have occurred that would impact its reportable segments.

The Company’s CODM reviews net revenue and gross profit and does not review balance sheet information by segment.

The following table summarizes the Company’s revenues, gross profit and income from operations generated from each segment:


	Years Ended December 31, 2020
			Elimination
			and
			unallocated
	CSI Solar	Global Energy	items ⁽¹⁾	Total
	$	$	$	$
Net revenues	3,105,044	726,167	(354,716)	3,476,495
Cost of revenues	2,496,153	577,052	(286,624)	2,786,581
Gross profit	608,891	149,115	(68,092)	689,914
Income from operations	253,105	53,414	(86,089)	220,430

22. SEGMENT INFORMATION (Continued)


	Years Ended December 31, 2019
			Elimination
			and
			unallocated
	CSI Solar	Global Energy	items ⁽¹⁾	Total
	$	$	$	$
Net revenues	2,591,154	718,735	(109,306)	3,200,583
Cost of revenues	1,977,502	604,856	(100,272)	2,482,086
Gross profit	613,652	113,879	(9,034)	718,497
Income from operations	267,642	18,795	(27,558)	258,879


	Years Ended December 31, 2018
			Elimination
			and
			unallocated
	CSI Solar	Global Energy	items ⁽¹⁾	Total
	$	$	$	$
Net revenues	2,448,057	1,427,245	(130,790)	3,744,512
Cost of revenues	1,941,539	1,184,724	(156,833)	2,969,430
Gross profit	506,518	242,521	26,043	775,082
Income from operations	182,488	171,876	10,293	364,657

(1)

Includes inter-segment elimination, and unallocated corporate costs not considered part of management’s evaluation of reportable segment operating performance.

Income from operations is estimated based on the Company’s management accounts as some services are shared by two segments.

22. SEGMENT INFORMATION (Continued)

The following table summarizes the Company’s net revenues generated from different geographic locations. The information presented below is based on the location of customers’ headquarters:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Europe and other regions:
—Australia	232,409	313,167	120,403
—Germany	95,514	109,119	119,035
—Spain	58,811	78,228	138,972
—Netherlands	83,475	68,770	96,372
—South Africa	53,739	93,911	49,375
—United Kingdom	101,479	33,158	8,842
—Czech	17,411	17,717	16,144
—Others	55,730	66,389	85,407
	698,568	780,459	634,550
The Americas:
—United States	999,144	852,231	696,101
—Brazil	339,964	395,303	284,478
—Mexico	50,004	94,446	118,846
—Canada	57,478	30,330	100,284
—Others	28,067	29,731	21,396
	1,474,657	1,402,041	1,221,105
Asia:
—Japan	483,041	372,687	560,701
—PRC	620,520	317,077	504,656
—Vietnam	4,216	39,268	289,621
—Korea	46,697	72,552	25,896
—India	145,873	70,893	61,141
—United Arab Emirates	104,467	43,311	53,981
—Thailand	23,511	12,753	6,108
—Others	142,962	89,542	118,736
	1,571,287	1,018,083	1,620,840
Total net revenues	3,744,512	3,200,583	3,476,495

22. SEGMENT INFORMATION (Continued)

The following table summarizes the Company’s long-lived assets, including property, plant and equipment, non-current project assets, solar power systems, prepaid land use rights and intangible assets at December 31, 2019 and 2020 by geographic region, based on the physical location of the assets:


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
PRC	835,991	1,002,409
Thailand	331,931	295,240
Japan	259,197	204,515
Australia	63,143	76,330
United States	60,177	64,009
Canada	14,718	8,898
Others	100,513	139,137
Total long-lived assets	1,665,670	1,790,538

The following table summarizes the Company’s revenues generated from each product or service:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
CSI Solar:
Solar modules	1,847,305	2,012,059	2,348,724
Solar system kits	93,253	116,449	157,656
Battery storage solutions	—	—	7,899
China energy (includes electricity sales)	245,321	58,096	175,388
Others	131,388	295,244	60,661
Global Energy:
Solar power projects	1,319,021	652,050	654,827
O&M and asset management services	13,271	19,750	26,386
Others	94,953	46,935	44,954
Total net revenues	3,744,512	3,200,583	3,476,495

- Definition

The entire disclosure for reporting segments including data and tables. Reportable segments include those that meet any of the following quantitative thresholds a) it's reported revenue, including sales to external customers and intersegment sales or transfers is 10 percent or more of the combined revenue, internal and external, of all operating segments b) the absolute amount of its reported profit or loss is 10 percent or more of the greater, in absolute amount of 1) the combined reported profit of all operating segments that did not report a loss or 2) the combined reported loss of all operating segments that did report a loss c) its assets are 10 percent or more of the combined assets of all operating segments.

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+ Details

MAJOR CUSTOMERS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

MAJOR CUSTOMERS

MAJOR CUSTOMERS

23. MAJOR CUSTOMERS

Details of customers accounting for 10% or more of total net revenues are as follows:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019		2020
	$	$		$
Company A	718,341	—	⁽¹⁾	—	⁽¹⁾

(1)Not a 10% or more customer in 2019 and 2020.

The accounts receivable from three customers with the largest receivable balances represents 7%, 3% and 3% of the balance of the account at December 31, 2020, and 17%, 5% and 4% of the balance of the account at December 31, 2019, respectively. The balance from the customer with the largest receivable balance is $74,376 and $27,014 as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

24. EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS

Employees of the Company located in the PRC are covered by the retirement schemes defined by local practice and regulations, which are essentially defined contribution schemes. The calculation of contributions for eligible employees is based on 16% of the applicable payroll cost in 2019. The expense incurred by the Company to these defined contributions schemes was $12,544, $11,738 and $8,064 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

In addition, in 2019, the Company is required by PRC law to contribute approximately 6-8.5%, 8%, 0.5-0.7% and 0.9-2.5% of applicable salaries for medical insurance benefits, housing funds, unemployment and other statutory benefits, respectively. The PRC government is directly responsible for the payment of the benefits to these employees. The amounts contributed for these benefit schemes were $11,211, $11,409 and $11,486 for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for retirement benefits.

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+ Details

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

25. SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

In March 2006, the Company adopted a share incentive plan, or the Plan. The purpose of the Plan is to promote the success and enhance the value of the Company by linking the personal interests of the directors, employees and consultants to those of the shareholders and providing the directors, employees and consultants with an incentive for outstanding performance to generate superior returns to the shareholders. The Plan is also intended to motivate, attract and retain the services of the directors, employees and consultants upon whose judgment, interest and effort the successful conduct of the Company’s operations is largely dependent. In September 2010, the shareholders approved an amendment to the Plan to increase the maximum number of common shares which may be issued pursuant to all awards of options, restricted shares and RSUs under the Plan to the sum of (i) 2,330,000 plus (ii) the sum of (a) 1% of the number of outstanding common shares of the Company on the first day of each of 2007, 2008 and 2009 and (b) 2.5% of the number of outstanding common shares of the Company outstanding on the first day of each calendar year after 2009. In June 2020, the shareholders approved an amendment to the Plan to extend the term of the Plan for a further ten years period. As a result, the Plan will expire on, and no awards may be granted after, June 30, 2029. Under the terms of the Plan, options are generally granted with an exercise price equal to the fair market value of the Company’s ordinary shares and expire ten years from the date of grant.

Options Activities

During the year ended December 31, 2020, 93,488 options were exercised with a weighted average exercise price of $11.39. The total intrinsic value of options exercised during the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020 was $256, $1,422 and $893, respectively. As of December 31, 2020, there were 26,291 options outstanding with a weighted average exercise price of $9.33 and weighted average remaining contract terms of 0.4 year. The intrinsic value of outstanding options as of December 31, 2020 was $1,102. No compensation cost on options was recognized in the year ended December 31, 2020.

25. SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION (Continued)

RSUs Activities

The Company granted 759,702, 706,637 and 1,105,640 RSUs in 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively. The RSUs entitle the holders to receive the Company’s common shares upon vesting. The RSUs were granted for free and generally vest over periods from one to four years based on the specific terms of the grants. The fair market value of the Company’s ordinary shares at the date of grant resulted in total compensation cost of approximately $10,225, $12,179 and $24,918 that will be recognized ratably over the vesting period for the RSUs granted in 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively. In the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020, the Company recognized $10,258, $10,682 and $12,350 in compensation expense associated with these awards, respectively.

As of December 31, 2020, there was $31,116 of total unrecognized share-based compensation related to unvested RSUs, which is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 2.81 years.

A summary of the RSU activity is as follows:


		Weighted Average
	Number of	Grant-Date
	Shares	Fair Value
		$
Unvested at January 1, 2020	1,659,767	15.26
Granted	1,105,640	22.80
Vested	(736,542)	14.85
Forfeited	(140,112)	16.07
Unvested at December 31, 2020	1,888,753	19.78

The total fair value of RSUs vested during the years ended December 31, 2018, 2019 and 2020 was $10,242, $10,733 and $14,420, respectively.

SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

26. SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

In February 2021, the Company, partnering with a business unit of the Macquarie Group as a minority investor, closed the Japan Green Infrastructure Fund and raised a total of JPY22 billion (approximately $208 million) committed capital to develop new projects in Japan.

Additional Information - Financial Statement Schedule I

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Additional Information - Financial Statement Schedule I

Additional Information - Financial Statement Schedule I

Additional Information — Financial Statement Schedule I

Canadian Solar Inc.

Schedule I has been provided pursuant to the requirements of Rule 12-04(a) and 4-08(e)(3) of Regulation S-X, which require condensed financial information as to financial position, cash flows and results of operations of a parent company as of the same dates and for the same periods for which audited consolidated financial statements have been presented as the restricted net assets of Canadian Solar Inc.’s consolidated and unconsolidated subsidiaries not available for distribution to Canadian Solar Inc. as of December 31, 2020 of $568,931, exceeded the 25% threshold.

The condensed financial information has been prepared using the same accounting policies as set out in the consolidated financial statements, except that the equity method has been used to account for investments in subsidiaries.

FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF PARENT COMPANY

BALANCE SHEETS


	December 31,	December 31,
	2019	2020

	(In Thousands of U.S. Dollars, except
	share data)
ASSETS
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	1,362	33,709
Restricted cash	950	1,316
Amounts due from subsidiaries	341,557	288,226
Derivative assets	—	1,111
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	9,846	22,672
Total current assets	353,715	347,034
Investment in subsidiaries	1,383,935	1,525,951
Investments in affiliates	2,483	5,322
Deferred tax assets	23,657	21,358
Other non-current assets	69,070	40,456
TOTAL ASSETS	1,832,860	1,940,121
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Short-term borrowings	—	80,000
Amounts due to related parties	340,502	—
Derivative liabilities	4,713	—
Other current liabilities	8,534	32,969
Total current liabilities	353,749	112,969
Convertible notes	—	223,214
Long-term borrowings	50,000	—
Deferred tax liabilities	22,936	20,169
Liability for uncertain tax positions	13,041	13,347
TOTAL LIABILITIES	439,726	369,699
Equity:
Common shares — no par value: unlimited authorized shares, 59,371,684 and 59,820,384 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively	703,806	687,033
Treasury stock, at cost, 609,516 and nil common shares as of December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively	(11,845)	—
Additional paid-in capital	17,179	(28,236)
Retained earnings	793,601	940,304
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(109,607)	(28,679)
TOTAL EQUITY	1,393,134	1,570,422
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY	1,832,860	1,940,121

FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF PARENT COMPANY

STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020

	(In Thousands of U.S. Dollars)
Net revenues	86,755	4,351	2,170
Cost of revenues	53,926	4,188	—
Gross profit	32,829	163	2,170
Operating expenses:
Selling and distribution expenses	2,518	1,727	2,174
General and administrative expenses	18,970	29,093	49,688
Research and development expenses	795	462	692
Other operating loss, net	77	—	—
Total operating expenses	22,360	31,282	52,554
Income (loss) from operations	10,469	(31,119)	(50,384)
Other income (expenses):
Interest expense	(9,170)	(3,005)	(9,628)
Interest income	32,370	25,272	30,536
Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives, net	(2,671)	(5,193)	25,341
Foreign exchange gain (loss)	22,255	(11,318)	13,768
Investment loss	—	(116,879)	—
Other income (expenses), net:	42,784	(111,123)	60,017
Income (loss) before income taxes and equity in earnings of subsidiaries	53,253	(142,242)	9,633
Income tax benefit (expense)	(12,133)	5,230	(34,223)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries	195,950	308,597	171,293
Net income	237,070	171,585	146,703

FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF PARENT COMPANY

STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020

	(In Thousands of U.S. Dollars)
Net income	237,070	171,585	146,703
Other comprehensive income (loss) (net of tax of nil)	(56,115)	542	80,928
Comprehensive income	180,955	172,127	227,631

FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF PARENT COMPANY

STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020

	(In Thousands of U.S. Dollars)
Operating activities:
Net income	237,070	171,585	146,703
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	21	154	156
Accretion of convertible notes	—	—	388
Loss on disposal of subsidiaries	—	116,879	—
Loss (gain) on change in fair value of derivatives	2,671	5,193	(25,341)
Allowance for credit losses	(212)	(83)	357
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries	(195,950)	(308,597)	(171,293)
Share-based compensation	10,259	10,682	12,350
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Amounts due from subsidiaries	(184,755)	(43,630)	287,865
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	(7,778)	17,012	(13,183)
Other non-current assets	(149)	(1,158)	28,459
Amounts due to related parties	15,598	183,675	(340,502)
Other current liabilities	(22,058)	(2,707)	31,809
Liability for uncertain tax positions	6,008	408	306
Net deferred tax assets	9,230	(1,292)	(468)
Net settlement of derivatives	21,450	(11,125)	19,517
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities	(108,595)	136,996	(22,877)
Investing activities:
Investments in subsidiaries	(1,051)	(36,146)	(126,487)
Investments in affiliates	—	(2,483)	(2,766)
Funding of loans to subsidiaries	(94,000)	(40,600)	(264,848)
Repayment of loans from subsidiaries	375,635	12,809	20,485
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	280,584	(66,420)	(373,616)
Financing activities:
Proceeds from (repayment of) short-term borrowings	(151,000)	—	30,000
Proceeds from long-term borrowings	—	50,000	—
Proceeds from changes in ownership interests in subsidiaries without change of control	—	—	224,553
Net proceeds from issuance of convertible notes	—	—	222,826
Payments for repurchase of convertible notes	—	(127,500)	—
Payments for repurchase of common shares	—	(11,845)	(5,963)
Proceeds from exercise of stock options	769	875	1,035
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities	(150,231)	(88,470)	472,451

Effect of exchange rate changes	(29,618)	11,110	(43,246)

Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	(7,860)	(6,784)	32,712

Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year	16,957	9,097	2,313
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year	9,097	2,313	35,025

Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Interest paid (net of amounts capitalized)	10,154	4,644	7,966

Appendix 1 - Major Subsidiaries of CSI

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Appendix 1 - Major Subsidiaries of CSI

APPENDIX 1 - Major Subsidiaries of CSI

Appendix 1

Major Subsidiaries of CSI

The following table sets forth information concerning CSI’s major subsidiaries:


	Place and	Attributable
	Date	Equity
Subsidiary	of Incorporation	Interest Held		Principal Activity
Canadian Solar Solutions Inc.	Canada	100	%	Developing solar power project and manufacture of solar modules
	June 22, 2009
Canadian Solar (Australia) Pty Limited	Australia	100	%	Developing solar power projects
	February 3, 2011
Canadian Solar O and M (Ontario) Inc.	Canada	100	%	Solar farm operating and maintenance services
	May 10, 2011
Canadian Solar Projects K.K.	Japan	100	%	Developing solar power projects
	May 20, 2014
Canadian Solar UK Projects Ltd.	United Kingdom	100	%	Developing solar power projects
	August 29, 2014
Recurrent Energy, LLC	USA	100	%	Developing solar power projects
	March 31, 2015
Canadian Solar Energy Singapore Pte. Ltd.	Singapore	100	%	Development & ownership of solar PV projects
	October 29, 2015
Canadian Solar Netherlands Cooperative U.A.	Netherlands	100	%	Project holding and financing
	November 8, 2016
Canadian Solar Construction (Australia) Pty Ltd	Australia	100	%	Providing engineering, procurement and construction services
	July 04, 2017
CSUK Energy Systems Construction and Generation JSC	Turkey	100	%	Project development and management services
	October 30, 2017
Canadian Solar Argentina Investment Holding Ltd.	United Kingdom	100	%	Developing solar power projects
	January 23, 2018
Canadian Solar New Energy Holding Company Limited	Hong Kong	100	%	Project investment, financing, trading of solar modules
	March 20, 2019
Canadian Solar Energy Holding Singapore Pte. Ltd.	Singapore	100	%	Development & ownership of solar PV projects
	April 22, 2019
CSI Solar Co., Ltd. (formerly known as “CSI Solar Power Group Co., Ltd.”)	PRC	79.59	%	Investment holding and trading
	July 7, 2009
Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Luoyang) Inc.	PRC	100	%*	Manufacture of solar modules, ingots and wafers
	February 24, 2006
Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Changshu) Inc.	PRC	100	%*	Production of solar modules
	August 1, 2006
CSI Cells Co., Ltd.	PRC	100	%*	Manufacture of solar cells
	August 23, 2006
Canadian Solar (USA) Inc.	USA	100	%*	Sales and marketing of modules
	June 8, 2007
Canadian Solar Japan K.K.	Japan	100	%*	Sales and marketing of modules
	June 21, 2009
Canadian Solar EMEA GmbH	Germany	100	%*	Sales and marketing of modules
	August 21, 2009
Canadian Solar International Limited	Hong Kong	100	%*	Sales and marketing of modules
	March 25, 2011
Suzhou Sanysolar Materials Technology Co., Ltd.	PRC	100	%*	Production of solar module materials
	August 17, 2011
Canadian Solar South East Asia Pte. Ltd.	Singapore	100	%*	Sales and marketing of modules
	September 19, 2011
Canadian Solar Brazil Commerce, Import and Export of Solar Panels Ltd.	Brazil	100	%*	Sales and marketing of solar modules, and providing solar energy solution
	November 14, 2012
Canadian Solar Construction (USA) LLC	USA	100	%*	Solar farm operating and maintenance services
	May 20, 2014
CSI Solar Manufacturing (Funing) Co., Ltd. (formerly known as “CSI&GCL Solar Manufacturing (Yancheng) Inc.”)	PRC May 29, 2014	100	%*	Research and development, manufacture and sales of solar cells, and solar power project development

Changshu Tegu New Material Technology Co., Ltd.	PRC	100	%*	EVA solar packaging film research and development, production and sales
	September 2, 2014
Changshu Tlian Co., Ltd.	PRC	100	%*	Junction box and connector research, development, production and sales
	December 26, 2014
Canadian Solar Manufacturing Vietnam Co., Ltd.	Vietnam	100	%*	Production of solar modules
	June 25, 2015
Canadian Solar Energy Private Limited	India	100	%*	Sales and marketing of modules
	May 06, 2015
Canadian Solar MSS (Australia) Pty Ltd.	Australia	100	%*	Sales and marketing of modules
	August 03, 2015
Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Thailand) Co., Ltd.	Thailand	99.99992	%*	Cells and module production
	November 20, 2015
Canadian Solar Sunenergy (Baotou) Co., Ltd.	PRC	100	%*	Production of solar modules, ingots and wafers
	August 18, 2016
Canadian Solar Middle East DMCC	United Arab Emirates	100	%*	Sales and marketing of modules
	March 28, 2017
CSI Investment Management (Suzhou) Co., Ltd.	PRC	100	%*	Investment management & asset management
	May 5, 2017
CSI New Energy Development (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. (formerly known as “Suzhou Gaochuangte New Energy Development Co., Ltd.”)	PRC	90	%*	Design, engineering construction and management of solar power projects
	June 12, 2017
CSI Cells (Yancheng) Co., Ltd.	PRC	70	%*	Production of solar cells
	May 18, 2017
CSI Modules (Jiaxing) Co., Ltd.	PRC	100	%*	Production of solar modules
	November 3, 2017
CSI Wafer (Luoyang) Co., Ltd.	PRC	100	%*	Production of solar cells and wafers
	November 27, 2017
Canadian Solar SSES (Canada) Inc.	Canada	100	%*	System solution and energy storage
	Nov 27, 2019
Canadian Solar SSES (UK) Ltd	United Kingdom	100	%*	Intellectual property holding
	December 18, 2019

* Major subsidiaries within the scope of CSI Solar are held through CSI Solar Co., Ltd. of which CSI holds 79.59% equity rights of CSI Solar Co., Ltd.

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Basis of presentation

(a) Basis of presentation

The consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”).

Basis of consolidation

(b) Basis of consolidation

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(b) Basis of consolidation (Continued)

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

Use of estimates

Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash

(d) Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash

Accounts receivable, unbilled

(e) Accounts receivable, unbilled

Allowance for credit losses

(f) Allowance for credit losses

Advances to suppliers

(g) Advances to suppliers

Inventories

(h) Inventories

Adjustments are recorded to write down the cost of obsolete and excess inventories to the estimated net realizable value based on historical and forecast demand.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

Project assets

(i) Project assets

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

Business combination

(j) Business combination

Assets acquisition

(k) Assets acquisition

Property, plant and equipment

(l) Property, plant and equipment

Depreciation is computed on a straight-line basis over the following estimated useful lives:


Buildings		20 years
Leasehold improvements		Over the shorter of the lease term or their estimated useful lives
Machinery		5-10 years
Furniture, fixtures and equipment		5 years
Motor vehicles		5 years

Solar power systems

(m) Solar power systems

Intangible assets

(n) Intangible assets


Technical know-how		10 years
Computer software		1-10 years

Prepaid land use rights

(o) Prepaid land use rights

Investments in affiliates

(p) Investments in affiliates

Impairment of long-lived assets

(q) Impairment of long-lived assets

Interest capitalization

(r) Interest capitalization

Assets retirement obligation

(s) Assets retirement obligation

Leases

(t) Leases

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(t) Leases (Continued)

Contingencies

(u) Contingencies

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

Income taxes

(v) Income taxes

Revenue recognition

(w) Revenue recognition

The Company recognizes revenue when it satisfies a performance obligation by transferring a promised good or service to a customer.

Solar power products and materials

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(w) Revenue recognition (Continued)

O&M and asset management services

Battery storage solutions, EPC and development services

Solar power and energy storage projects

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(w) Revenue recognition (Continued)

Electricity revenue

Disaggregation of Revenue


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018		2019		2020
CSI Solar Segment:
Revenue recognized at a point in time	$	2,232,424	$	2,210,459	$	2,704,332
Revenue recognized over time		84,843		271,389		45,996

Global Energy Segment:
Revenue recognized at a point in time		1,406,196		696,326		687,759
Revenue recognized over time		21,049		22,409		38,408
		3,744,512		3,200,583		3,476,495

The Company’s contract assets and liabilities are as follow:


		At December 31,		At December 31,
	2019		2020
Contract Assets
Accounts receivable, unbilled	$	15,256	$	28,461

Contract Liabilities
Advances from customers		134,806		189,470
Other current liabilities		20,917		35,012
		155,723		224,482

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(w) Revenue recognition (Continued)

Shipping and handling costs

(x) Shipping and handling costs

Research and development

(y) Research and development

Other operating income, net

(z) Other operating income, net

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(z) Other operating income, net (Continued)

The following table summarizes the Company’s other operating income, net:


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Net gain on disposal of solar power system	(36,098)	(1,666)	—
Net (gain) loss on disposal of property, plant and equipment	2,565	1,227	(253)
Government grants	(11,013)	(10,097)	(24,245)
Business interruption insurance compensation	—	—	(1,025)
	(44,546)	(10,536)	(25,523)

Warranty cost

(aa) Warranty cost

The Company has lengthened the warranty against decline in performance for its bifacial module and double glass module products to 30 years.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(aa) Warranty cost (Continued)

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(aa) Warranty cost (Continued)

Foreign currency translation

(ab) Foreign currency translation

Comprehensive income

(ac) Comprehensive income

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

Foreign currency risk

(ad) Foreign currency risk

Concentration of credit risk

(ae) Concentration of credit risk

All of the Company’s cash and cash equivalents are held with financial institutions that Company management believes to have high credit quality.


	Years Ended December 31,
	2019		2020
	$		$
Supplier A	—	⁽¹⁾	43,821

(1)No individual supplier is in excess of 10% of total advances to suppliers in 2019.

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

Fair value of financial instruments

(af) Fair value of financial instruments

Derivatives instruments and hedging activity

(ag) Derivatives instruments and hedging activity

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

Earnings (loss) per share

(ah) Earnings per share

Share-based compensation

(ai) Share-based compensation

Risks and uncertainties related to the COVID-19 pandemic

(aj) Risks and uncertainties related to the COVID-19 pandemic

Recently issued accounting pronouncements

(ak) Recently issued accounting pronouncements

2. SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Continued)

(ak) Recently issued accounting pronouncements (Continued)

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Schedule of expected useful lives of property and equipment


Buildings		20 years
Leasehold improvements		Over the shorter of the lease term or their estimated useful lives
Machinery		5-10 years
Furniture, fixtures and equipment		5 years
Motor vehicles		5 years

Schedule of useful life intangible assets


Technical know-how		10 years
Computer software		1-10 years

Schedule of disaggregation of revenue


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018		2019		2020
CSI Solar Segment:
Revenue recognized at a point in time	$	2,232,424	$	2,210,459	$	2,704,332
Revenue recognized over time		84,843		271,389		45,996

Global Energy Segment:
Revenue recognized at a point in time		1,406,196		696,326		687,759
Revenue recognized over time		21,049		22,409		38,408
		3,744,512		3,200,583		3,476,495

Schedule of contract assets and contract liabilities


		At December 31,		At December 31,
	2019		2020
Contract Assets
Accounts receivable, unbilled	$	15,256	$	28,461

Contract Liabilities
Advances from customers		134,806		189,470
Other current liabilities		20,917		35,012
		155,723		224,482

Summary of the Company's other operating income, net


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Net gain on disposal of solar power system	(36,098)	(1,666)	—
Net (gain) loss on disposal of property, plant and equipment	2,565	1,227	(253)
Government grants	(11,013)	(10,097)	(24,245)
Business interruption insurance compensation	—	—	(1,025)
	(44,546)	(10,536)	(25,523)

Schedule of gross prepayments made to individual suppliers in excess of 10% of total advances to suppliers


	Years Ended December 31,
	2019		2020
	$		$
Supplier A	—	⁽¹⁾	43,821

(1)No individual supplier is in excess of 10% of total advances to suppliers in 2019.

ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]

Schedule of allowances for credit losses


		Advances to
	Accounts Receivable	Suppliers and
	Trade	Other Receivable
	$	$
Balance as of December 31, 2017	32,941	29,111
Allowances made during the year, net	869	2,112
Accounts written-off against allowances	(297)	—
Foreign exchange effect	(780)	(593)
Balance as of December 31, 2018	32,733	30,630
Allowances made (reversed) during the year, net	(1,386)	2,657
Accounts written-off against allowances	(309)	(1,452)
Foreign exchange effect	(1,493)	(123)
Balance as of December 31, 2019	29,545	31,712
Cumulative-effect adjustment for the adoption of ASU 2016-13	—	—
Provision for credit losses, net	11,387	2,280
Writeoffs	(639)	(5,490)
Balance as of December 31, 2020	40,293	28,502

Allowances for accounts receivable, trade

Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]

Schedule of allowances


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Accounts receivable trade, gross	466,360	449,251
Allowance for credit losses	(29,545)	(40,293)
Accounts receivable trade, net	436,815	408,958

Allowances for advances to suppliers

Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]

Schedule of allowances


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Advances to suppliers, gross	109,156	299,019
Allowance for credit losses	(20,281)	(19,700)
Advances to suppliers, net	88,875	279,319

Allowances for other receivables

Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]

Schedule of allowances

	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Other receivable, gross	181,524	238,779
Allowance for credit losses	(11,431)	(8,802)
Other receivable, net	170,093	229,977

INVENTORIES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

INVENTORIES

Schedule of inventories


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Raw materials	75,722	90,308
Work-in-process	74,105	69,132
Finished goods	404,243	536,541
	554,070	695,981

PROJECT ASSETS (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

PROJECT ASSETS

Schedule of project assets


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Project assets — Acquisition cost	55,158	44,549
Project assets — EPC and other cost	1,031,976	1,092,917
	1,087,134	1,137,466
Current portion	604,083	747,764
Non-current portion	483,051	389,702

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET

Schedule of property, plant and equipment, net


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Buildings	453,712	533,647
Leasehold improvements	14,225	14,804
Machinery	1,074,460	1,191,780
Furniture, fixtures and equipment	64,117	75,656
Motor vehicles	6,351	7,643
Land	20,451	20,231
	1,633,316	1,843,761
Accumulated depreciation	(598,297)	(827,601)
Impairment	(45,437)	(52,149)
Subtotal	989,582	964,011
Construction in process	56,453	193,720
Property, plant and equipment, net	1,046,035	1,157,731

SOLAR POWER SYSTEMS, NET (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SOLAR POWER SYSTEMS, NET

Schedule of solar power systems, net


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Solar power systems in operation	70,449	182,232
Solar power systems under construction	4,830	6,565
Accumulated depreciation	(22,322)	(30,535)
Solar power systems, net	52,957	158,262

INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET

Schedule of intangible assets


	Gross
	Carrying	Accumulated
At December 31, 2020	Amount	Amortization	Net
	$	$	$
Technical know-how	1,543	(1,525)	18
Computer software	41,085	(18,674)	22,411
Total intangible assets, net	42,628	(20,199)	22,429


	Gross
	Carrying	Accumulated
At December 31, 2019	Amount	Amortization	Net
	$	$	$
Technical know-how	1,428	(1,425)	3
Computer software	38,205	(15,417)	22,788
Total intangible assets, net	39,633	(16,842)	22,791

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT

Schedule of fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets


	Fair Value of Derivative Assets
	At December 31, 2019		At December 31, 2020
	Balance Sheet Location	Fair Value	Balance Sheet Location	Fair Value
		$		$
Foreign exchange forward contracts	Derivative assets — current	5,097	Derivative assets — current	22,178
Foreign exchange option contracts	Derivative assets — current	450	Derivative assets — current	1,173
	Total	5,547	Total	23,351


	Fair Value of Derivative Liabilities
	At December 31, 2019		At December 31, 2020
	Balance Sheet Location	Fair Value	Balance Sheet Location	Fair Value
		$		$
Foreign exchange forward contracts	Derivative liabilities — current	10,127	Derivative liabilities — current	10,753
Foreign exchange option contracts	Derivative liabilities — current	25	Derivative liabilities — current	2
Interest rate swap	Derivative liabilities — current	329	Derivative liabilities — current	—
Interest rate swap	Derivative liabilities — non-current	1,841	Derivative liabilities — non-current	—
	Total	12,322	Total	10,755

Schedule of effect of derivative instruments on consolidated statements of operations


		Amount of Gain (Loss)
		Recognized in Statements
	Location of	of Operations
	Gain (Loss) Recognized	Years Ended December 31
	in Statements of Operations	2018	2019	2020
		$	$	$
Foreign exchange forward contracts	Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives	(16,414)	(20,249)	49,807
Foreign exchange option contracts	Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives	(2,023)	(1,022)	1,376
Interest rate swap	Loss on change in fair value of derivatives	(793)	(947)	(1,182)
	Total	(19,230)	(22,218)	50,001

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES

Schedule of carrying amounts and classifications of consolidated VIE's assets and liabilities, excluding intercompany balances


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Cash	14,011	42,064
Project assets	197,366	337,836
Other assets	12,091	79,580
Total assets	223,468	459,480

Short-term borrowings	139,708	180,773
Long-term borrowings	—	52,408
Other liabilities	66,569	60,845
Total liabilities	206,277	294,026

- Definition

Tabular disclosure of the significant judgments and assumptions made in determining whether a variable interest (as defined) held by the entity requires the variable interest entity (VIE) (as defined) to be consolidated and (or) disclose information about its involvement with the VIE, individually or in aggregate (as applicable); the nature of restrictions, if any, on the consolidated VIE's assets and on the settlement of its liabilities reported by an entity in its statement of financial position, including the carrying amounts of such assets and liabilities; the nature of, and changes in, the risks associated with involvement in the VIE; how involvement with the VIE affects the entity's financial position, financial performance, and cash flows; the lack of recourse if creditors (or beneficial interest holders) of the consolidated VIE have no recourse to the general credit of the primary beneficiary (if applicable); the terms of arrangements, giving consideration to both explicit arrangements and implicit variable interests, if any, that could require the entity to provide financial support to the VIE, including events or circumstances that could expose the entity to a loss; the methodology used by the entity for determining whether or not it is the primary beneficiary of the variable interest entity; the significant factors considered and judgments made in determining that the power to direct the activities of a VIE that most significantly impact the VIE's economic performance are shared (as defined); the carrying amounts and classification of assets and liabilities of the VIE included in the statement of financial position; the entity's maximum exposure to loss, if any, as a result of its involvement with the VIE, including how the maximum exposure is determined and significant sources of the entity's exposure to the VIE; a comparison of the carrying amounts of the assets and liabilities and the entity's maximum exposure to loss; information about any liquidity arrangements, guarantees, and (or) other commitments by third parties that may affect the fair value or risk of the entity's variable interest in the VIE; whether or not the entity has provided financial support or other support (explicitly or implicitly) to the VIE that it was not previously contractually required to provide or whether the entity intends to provide that support, including the type and amount of the support and the primary reasons for providing the support; and supplemental information the entity determines necessary to provide.

+ References + Details

INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES

Schedule of investments in affiliates


	At December 31,
	2019		2020
	Carrying	Ownership	Carrying	Ownership
	Value	Percentage	Value	Percentage
	$	(%)	$	(%)
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc.	19,162	14.66	19,980	14.66
Suzhou Financial Leasing Co., Ltd.	16,050	6	23,969	6
RE Roserock Holdings LLC (“Roserock”)	83,034	49	—	—
Others	34,582	15-49	34,342	15-49
Total	152,828		78,291

LEASE (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

LEASE

Schedule of leases


	Year ended	Year ended
	December 31, 2019	December 31, 2020
	$	$
Finance lease cost:
Amortization of right-of-use assets	18,900	8,036
Interest on lease liabilities	3,213	1,497
Operating fixed lease cost	17,619	19,630
Short-term lease cost	8,920	850
Total lease cost	48,652	30,013

Schedule of other supplemental information:


	Year ended	Year ended
	December 31, 2019	December 31, 2020
	$	$
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities
Operating cash outflows from finance lease	(3,213)	(1,497)
Operating cash outflows from operating lease	(15,866)	(20,589)
Financing cash outflows from finance lease	(33,614)	(19,163)
ROU assets obtained in exchange of new finance lease liabilities in non-cash transaction	7,300	10,666
ROU assets obtained in exchange of new operating lease liabilities in non-cash transaction	18,222	14,892
ROU assets disposed through early termination of operating leases in non-cash transaction	—	(6,572)


	At December 31,		At December 31,
	2019		2020
Weighted average of remaining operating lease term - finance leases (in years)	1.41		0.90
Weighted average of remaining operating lease term - operating leases (in years)	3.03		3.07

Weighted average of operating lease discount rate - finance lease	5.82	%	5.54	%
Weighted average of operating lease discount rate - operating lease	4.36	%	4.18	%

Schedule of lease maturities

As of December 31, 2020, maturities of operating and finance lease liabilities were as follows:


	Operating Lease	Finance Lease	Total Lease
	Payment	Payment	Payment
	$	$	$
Year Ending December 31:
2021	14,374	22,706	37,080
2022	7,427	2,514	9,941
2023	3,632	—	3,632
2024	1,242	—	1,242
2025	369	—	369
Thereafter	1,859	—	1,859
Total future minimum lease payments	28,903	25,220	54,123
Less: imputed interest	467	963	1,430
NPV for future minimum lease payments	28,436	24,257	52,693

Analysis as:
Short-term	15,204	21,887	37,091
Long-term	13,232	2,370	15,602
Total lease liabilities	28,436	24,257	52,693

As of December 31, 2019, maturities of operating and finance lease liabilities were as follows:


	Operating Lease	Finance Lease	Total Lease
	Payment	Payment	Payment
	$	$	$
Year Ending December 31:
2020	18,953	27,439	46,392
2021	12,980	13,087	26,067
2022	4,666	604	5,270
2023	2,541	—	2,541
2024	1,077	—	1,077
Thereafter	1,504	—	1,504
Total future minimum lease payments	41,721	41,130	82,851
Less: imputed interest	2,236	2,056	4,292
NPV for future minimum lease payments	39,485	39,074	78,559

Analysis as:
Short-term	18,767	25,998	44,765
Long-term	20,718	13,076	33,794
Total lease liabilities	39,485	39,074	78,559

BORROWINGS (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

BORROWINGS

Schedule of bank borrowings


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Short-term borrowings	819,031	912,549
Long-term borrowings, current portion	114,089	289,736
Subtotal for short-term borrowings	933,120	1,202,285
Long-term borrowings on project assets — current⁽¹⁾	286,173	198,794
Long-term borrowings	619,477	446,090
Total	1,838,770	1,847,169

(1)	Certain long-term borrowings were classified as current liabilities because these borrowings are associated with certain solar power projects that are expected to be sold within one year.

Schedule of future principal repayments on the long-term borrowings


2021	$	488,530
2022		275,985
2023		71,563
2024		18,785
2025		2,912
Thereafter		76,845
Total		934,620
Less: future principal repayment related to long-term borrowings, current portion		(488,530)
Total long-term portion	$	446,090

Schedule of average effective interest rates on borrowings


	At December 31,		At December 31,
	2019		2020
Short-term borrowings	4.86	%	3.26	%
Long-term borrowings on project assets – current	3.65	%	3.63	%
Long-term borrowings	5.43	%	4.37	%

Schedule of interest incurred


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Interest capitalized — project assets	15,462	10,794	10,197
Interest capitalized — property, plant and equipment	1,182	2,620	154
Interest expense	106,032	81,326	71,874
Total interest incurred	122,676	94,740	82,225

ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS

Summary of the Company's warranty activity


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Beginning balance	55,659	50,605	55,878
Warranty provision	13,188	28,044	26,931
Warranty costs incurred	(16,732)	(23,282)	(46,067)
Foreign exchange effect	(1,510)	511	990
Ending balance	50,605	55,878	37,732

INCOME TAXES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

INCOME TAXES

Schedule of provision for income taxes


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Income (loss) before income taxes
Canada	10,570	(61,880)	(31,896)
United States	61,377	8,319	(113,262)
PRC including Hong Kong and Taiwan	178,050	204,632	189,398
Japan	27,555	29,335	50,642
Other	26,848	28,215	50,381
	304,400	208,621	145,263
Current tax expense (benefit)
Canada	(1,846)	(3,420)	36,226
United States	(14,786)	(4,803)	(71,421)
PRC including Hong Kong and Taiwan	27,285	44,622	30,276
Japan	5,325	13,229	18,941
Other	2,397	7,057	8,233
	18,375	56,685	22,255
Deferred tax expense (benefit)
Canada	12,117	(6,558)	(10,792)
United States	32,696	(2,412)	23,173
PRC including Hong Kong and Taiwan	2,653	(5,333)	(17,998)
Japan	(3,381)	(2,953)	(10,571)
Other	(491)	2,637	(8,050)
	43,594	(14,619)	(24,238)
Total income tax expense (benefit)
Canada	10,271	(9,978)	25,434
United States	17,910	(7,215)	(48,248)
PRC including Hong Kong and Taiwan	29,938	39,289	12,278
Japan	1,944	10,276	8,370
Other	1,906	9,694	183
	61,969	42,066	(1,983)

Schedule of movement and balance of the Company's liability for uncertain tax positions (excluding interest and penalties)


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Beginning balance	6,181	15,730	10,557
Addition for tax positions related to the current year	9,806	11	—
Reductions for tax positions from prior years/Statute of limitations expirations	—	(5,720)	(1,011)
Foreign exchange effect	(257)	536	82
Ending balance	15,730	10,557	9,628

Schedule of components of the deferred tax assets and liabilities


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
Deferred tax assets:
Accrued warranty costs	8,326	8,699
Bad debt allowance	10,324	3,218
Inventory write-down	1,128	3,121
Future deductible expenses	20,731	24,454
Depreciation and impairment difference of property, plant and equipment and solar power systems	23,380	30,138
Accrued liabilities related to antidumping, countervailing and other duty costs and true-up charges	496	406
Government subsidies	8,927	16,461
Net operating losses carry-forward	112,710	85,850
Unrealized foreign exchange loss and capital loss	7,064	1,221
Interest limitation	2,767	1,956
Others	26,415	30,958
Total deferred tax assets, gross	222,268	206,482
Valuation allowance	(70,627)	(50,118)
Total deferred tax assets, net of valuation allowance	151,641	156,364

Deferred tax liabilities:
Derivative assets	217	996
Depreciation difference of property, plant and equipment	18,789	17,027
Insurance recoverable	15,771	785
Unrealized foreign exchange gain	10,984	10,746
Others	8,380	5,234
Total deferred tax liabilities	54,141	34,788
Net deferred tax assets	97,500	121,576
Analysis as:
Deferred tax assets	153,963	170,656
Deferred tax liabilities	(56,463)	(49,080)
Net deferred tax assets	97,500	121,576

Schedule of movement of the valuation allowance


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Beginning balance	65,399	76,522	70,627
Additions (reversals)	11,051	(6,156)	(21,585)
Foreign exchange effect	72	261	1,076
Ending balance	76,522	70,627	50,118

Schedule of reconciliation between the provision for income tax computed by applying Canadian federal and provincial statutory tax rates to income before income taxes and the actual provision and benefit for income taxes


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018		2019		2020
Combined federal and provincial income tax rate	27	%	27	%	27	%
Effect of permanent difference	(11)	%	(1)	%	4	%
Effect of different tax rate on earnings in other jurisdictions	—	%	3	%	(6)	%
Effect of tax holiday	(1)	%	(4)	%	(1)	%
Unrecognized tax provision	4	%	(3)	%	(13)	%
Change in valuation allowance	7	%	(3)	%	(14)	%
Effect of change in tax rate	(3)	%	(1)	%	2	%
Others	(3)	%	2	%	—	%
	20	%	20	%	(1)	%

Schedule of aggregate amount and per share effect of the tax holiday


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020

	(In Thousands of U.S. Dollars, except per share data)
The aggregate amount	3,089	7,956	1,287
Per share — basic	0.05	0.13	0.02
Per share — diluted	0.05	0.13	0.02

EARNINGS PER SHARE (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

EARNINGS PER SHARE

Schedule of computation of basic and diluted earnings per share


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018		2019		2020

	(In Thousands of U.S. Dollars, except share and per share data)
Numerator:
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc. — basic	$	237,070	$	171,585	$	146,703
Dilutive effect of interest expense of convertible notes		4,683		975		1,518
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc. — diluted	$	241,753	$	172,560	$	148,221
Denominator:
Denominator for basic calculation — weighted average number of common shares — basic		58,914,540		59,633,855		59,575,898
Diluted effects of share number from share options and RSUs		543,797		794,526		897,258
Dilutive effects of share number from convertible notes		2,833,333		349,315		1,833,663
Denominator for diluted calculation — weighted average number of common shares — diluted		62,291,670		60,777,696		62,306,819
Basic earnings per share	$	4.02	$	2.88	$	2.46
Diluted earnings per share	$	3.88	$	2.83	$	2.38

Schedule of anti-dilutive shares excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Property, plant and equipment

Schedule of payment for commitments


Year Ending December 31:		$
2021		174,509
2022		84,795
2023		45,408
Total		304,712

SEGMENT INFORMATION (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SEGMENT INFORMATION

Summary of Company's revenues and gross profit and income from operations generated from each segment


	Years Ended December 31, 2020
			Elimination
			and
			unallocated
	CSI Solar	Global Energy	items ⁽¹⁾	Total
	$	$	$	$
Net revenues	3,105,044	726,167	(354,716)	3,476,495
Cost of revenues	2,496,153	577,052	(286,624)	2,786,581
Gross profit	608,891	149,115	(68,092)	689,914
Income from operations	253,105	53,414	(86,089)	220,430

22. SEGMENT INFORMATION (Continued)


	Years Ended December 31, 2019
			Elimination
			and
			unallocated
	CSI Solar	Global Energy	items ⁽¹⁾	Total
	$	$	$	$
Net revenues	2,591,154	718,735	(109,306)	3,200,583
Cost of revenues	1,977,502	604,856	(100,272)	2,482,086
Gross profit	613,652	113,879	(9,034)	718,497
Income from operations	267,642	18,795	(27,558)	258,879


	Years Ended December 31, 2018
			Elimination
			and
			unallocated
	CSI Solar	Global Energy	items ⁽¹⁾	Total
	$	$	$	$
Net revenues	2,448,057	1,427,245	(130,790)	3,744,512
Cost of revenues	1,941,539	1,184,724	(156,833)	2,969,430
Gross profit	506,518	242,521	26,043	775,082
Income from operations	182,488	171,876	10,293	364,657

Summary of the Company's net revenues generated from different geographic locations


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
Europe and other regions:
—Australia	232,409	313,167	120,403
—Germany	95,514	109,119	119,035
—Spain	58,811	78,228	138,972
—Netherlands	83,475	68,770	96,372
—South Africa	53,739	93,911	49,375
—United Kingdom	101,479	33,158	8,842
—Czech	17,411	17,717	16,144
—Others	55,730	66,389	85,407
	698,568	780,459	634,550
The Americas:
—United States	999,144	852,231	696,101
—Brazil	339,964	395,303	284,478
—Mexico	50,004	94,446	118,846
—Canada	57,478	30,330	100,284
—Others	28,067	29,731	21,396
	1,474,657	1,402,041	1,221,105
Asia:
—Japan	483,041	372,687	560,701
—PRC	620,520	317,077	504,656
—Vietnam	4,216	39,268	289,621
—Korea	46,697	72,552	25,896
—India	145,873	70,893	61,141
—United Arab Emirates	104,467	43,311	53,981
—Thailand	23,511	12,753	6,108
—Others	142,962	89,542	118,736
	1,571,287	1,018,083	1,620,840
Total net revenues	3,744,512	3,200,583	3,476,495

Schedule of long-lived assets, including property, plant and equipment, non-current project assets, solar power systems, prepaid land use rights and intangible assets by geographic region


	At December 31,	At December 31,
	2019	2020
	$	$
PRC	835,991	1,002,409
Thailand	331,931	295,240
Japan	259,197	204,515
Australia	63,143	76,330
United States	60,177	64,009
Canada	14,718	8,898
Others	100,513	139,137
Total long-lived assets	1,665,670	1,790,538

Summary of the Company's revenues generated from each product or service


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019	2020
	$	$	$
CSI Solar:
Solar modules	1,847,305	2,012,059	2,348,724
Solar system kits	93,253	116,449	157,656
Battery storage solutions	—	—	7,899
China energy (includes electricity sales)	245,321	58,096	175,388
Others	131,388	295,244	60,661
Global Energy:
Solar power projects	1,319,021	652,050	654,827
O&M and asset management services	13,271	19,750	26,386
Others	94,953	46,935	44,954
Total net revenues	3,744,512	3,200,583	3,476,495

MAJOR CUSTOMERS (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

MAJOR CUSTOMERS

Schedule of details of customers accounting for 10% or more of total net revenues


	Years Ended December 31,
	2018	2019		2020
	$	$		$
Company A	718,341	—	⁽¹⁾	—	⁽¹⁾

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

Schedule of the RSU activity


		Weighted Average
	Number of	Grant-Date
	Shares	Fair Value
		$
Unvested at January 1, 2020	1,659,767	15.26
Granted	1,105,640	22.80
Vested	(736,542)	14.85
Forfeited	(140,112)	16.07
Unvested at December 31, 2020	1,888,753	19.78

ORGANIZATION AND PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES (Narrative) (Details) $ in Thousands, ¥ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2020 CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2020 CNY (¥)
Proceeds from issuance of common stock	$ 224,553
Transfer of equity interest in subsidiaries to non-controlling shareholders	224,553			$ 10,470
Proceeds from Noncontrolling Interests	$ 261,332		$ 11,488	$ 10,470
Percentage of discount on Issue of Shares	30.00%	30.00%
Premium (Discount) on Issue of Shares	$ 768,000	¥ 5,250
Proceeds from Subscription Advances	36,342
Other Payables [Member]
Proceeds from Subscription Advances	36,342
Canadian Solar Employees
Business Combination, Consideration Transferred, Equity Interests Issued and Issuable	$ 4,500	¥ 31
Canadian Solar
Ownership Percentage by Noncontrolling Owners	20.40%	20.40%
Canadian Solar \| Third-Party Investors
Stock Issued During Period, Value, Employee Stock Ownership Plan	$ 36,342	¥ 248
CSI Solar Co
Capital Raising Announced					$ 261,332	¥ 1,780
Business Combination, Consideration Transferred	219,000	1,500
Business Combination, Consideration Transferred, Equity Interests Issued and Issuable	$ 1,100,000	¥ 7,500

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Allowance for doubtful receivables (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Principal accounting policies:
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	$ 353,781	$ 253,542
Accounts Receivable, Allowance for Credit Loss	9,874	1,250	$ 2,812
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
Principal accounting policies:
Accounts Receivable, Allowance for Credit Loss	$ 386	$ 166

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Property, plant and equipment (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020
Buildings
Property, plant and equipment
Estimated useful lives	20 years
Machinery \| Minimum
Property, plant and equipment
Estimated useful lives	5 years
Machinery \| Maximum
Property, plant and equipment
Estimated useful lives	10 years
Furniture, fixtures and equipment
Property, plant and equipment
Estimated useful lives	5 years
Motor vehicles
Property, plant and equipment
Estimated useful lives	5 years
Solar power systems \| Minimum
Property, plant and equipment
Estimated useful lives	20 years
Solar power systems \| Maximum
Property, plant and equipment
Estimated useful lives	25 years

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Intangible assets and Prepaid land use rights (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020
Technical know-how
Intangible assets
Amortization period	10 years
Computer software \| Minimum
Intangible assets
Amortization period	1 year
Computer software \| Maximum
Intangible assets
Amortization period	10 years
Land use rights \| Minimum
Intangible assets
Amortization period	20 years
Land use rights \| Maximum
Intangible assets
Amortization period	50 years

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Investments in affiliates, Impairment of long-lived assets, Asset retirement obligation (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Impairment loss of investment	$ 24,060	$ 0	$ 5,738
Impairment loss of property, plant and equipment	11,854	21,866	$ 30,968
Asset retirement obligation	$ 0	$ 0

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Revenue recognition (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Revenue recognition:
Inventories	$ 695,981	$ 554,070
Net revenues	3,476,495	3,200,583	$ 3,744,512
Electricity
Revenue recognition:
Net revenues	6,628	3,915	$ 4,688
Uncollectable Revenue
Revenue recognition:
Inventories	$ 9,548,000	$ 7,701,000

- Definition

Amount, including tax collected from customer, of revenue from satisfaction of performance obligation by transferring promised good or service to customer. Tax collected from customer is tax assessed by governmental authority that is both imposed on and concurrent with specific revenue-producing transaction, including, but not limited to, sales, use, value-added and excise.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 41
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e9038-108599

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 5
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=121604090&loc=SL49130545-203045

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8933-108599

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8933-108599

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 30
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8906-108599

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 22
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8736-108599

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 22
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8736-108599

Reference 8: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 606
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 4
-Subparagraph (a)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=121604090&loc=SL49130543-203045

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 42
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e9054-108599

Reference 10: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 40
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e9031-108599

Reference 11: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 924
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SAB Topic 11.L)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6472922&loc=d3e499488-122856

+ Details

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Revenue recognition - Disaggregation of Revenue (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Revenue recognition:
Net revenues	$ 3,476,495	$ 3,200,583	$ 3,744,512
Recognized at a point in time \| CSI Solar Segment
Revenue recognition:
Net revenues	2,704,332	2,210,459	2,232,424
Recognized at a point in time \| Global Energy Segment
Revenue recognition:
Net revenues	687,759	696,326	1,406,196
Recognized over time \| CSI Solar Segment
Revenue recognition:
Net revenues	45,996	271,389	84,843
Recognized over time \| Global Energy Segment
Revenue recognition:
Net revenues	$ 38,408	$ 22,409	$ 21,049

- Definition

+ References

+ Details

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Revenue recognition - Contract assets and liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Contract Assets
Accounts receivables, unbilled	$ 28,461	$ 15,256
Contract Liabilities
Advances from customers	189,470	134,806
Other current liabilities	35,012	20,917
Contract liability	224,482	$ 155,723
Revenue recognized from beginning balance of contract liabilities	139,387
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2021-01-01
Contract Liabilities
Contract liabilities expected to be recognized	$ 224,482
Period for contract liabilities expected to be realized	1 year

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Shipping and handling costs, Research and development (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Research and development expenses	$ 45,167	$ 47,045	$ 44,193
Shipping and Handling
Selling and distribution expenses	$ 134,248	$ 88,079	$ 69,855

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Other operating income, net (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Revenue recognition:
Gain on disposal of solar power systems		$ (1,666)	$ (36,098)
Net (gain) loss on disposal of property, plant and equipment	$ (253)	1,227	2,565
Business interruption insurance compensation	(1,025)
Other operating income, net	(25,523)	(10,536)	(44,546)
Government grants
Revenue recognition:
Other operating income, net	$ (24,245)	$ (10,097)	$ (11,013)

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Warranty cost (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		1 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	May 31, 2009	Aug. 31, 2011	Jun. 30, 2009	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Warranty cost
Warranty accrual rate for sales of solar modules as a percentage of revenue				1.00%
Term of insurance policy over which the insurance premium will be amortized				1 year
Unamortized carrying amount of insurance premium				$ 1,728	$ 1,486
Insurance receivable				82,532	79,888
Warranty adjustment				243
Downward adjustment of other non-current assets				642
Warranty costs (net effect of adjustment) included in cost of revenues				$ 26,931	$ 28,044	$ 13,188
80% initial power capacity
Warranty cost
Warranty accrual rate for sales of solar modules as a percentage of revenue				80.70%
Standard solar modules
Warranty cost
Term of insurance policy over which the insurance premium will be amortized				25 years
Guarantee of solar modules for defects in materials and engineering design, installation and construction	2 years
Warranty period of solar modules and products against decline of more than 10% of initial power generation capacity	10 years
Warranty period of solar modules and products against decline of more than 20% of initial power generation capacity	25 years
Minimum percentage of decline in initial minimum power generation capacity for 10 years	10.00%
Minimum percentage of decline in initial minimum power generation capacity for 25 years	20.00%
Standard solar modules \| Material and workmanship
Warranty cost
Term of insurance policy over which the insurance premium will be amortized		10 years	6 years	12 years
Standard solar modules \| 97 % initial power capacity
Warranty cost
Warranty accrual rate for sales of solar modules as a percentage of revenue				97.50%
Standard solar modules \| 93% initial power capacity
Warranty cost
Warranty accrual rate for sales of solar modules as a percentage of revenue				0.70%
Solar Power Project
Warranty cost
Guarantee of solar modules for defects in materials and engineering design, installation and construction				10 years
Bifacial module and double glass module
Warranty cost
Warranty period of solar modules and products against decline of more than 10% of initial power generation capacity				30 years
Minimum
Warranty cost
Term of insurance policy over which the insurance premium will be amortized				25 years
Maximum
Warranty cost
Term of insurance policy over which the insurance premium will be amortized				30 years

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Concentration of credit risk (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Concentration of credit risk
Advances to suppliers	$ 182,146	$ 47,978
Supplier A
Concentration of credit risk
Advances to suppliers	$ 43,821

SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES - Recently issued accounting pronouncements (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
SUMMARY OF PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES
Right-of-use assets	$ 26,793	$ 37,733
Lease liabilities	$ 28,436	$ 39,485

ALLOWANCE FOR CREDIT LOSSES (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]
Allowance for credit losses	$ (40,293)	$ (29,545)		$ (40,293)	$ (29,545)
Receivable, Net				408,958	436,815
Movement of allowances
Beginning of the year	29,545
Closing balance	40,293	29,545
Allowances for accounts receivable, trade
Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]
Receviable, gross				449,251	466,360
Allowance for credit losses	(40,293)	(32,733)	$ (32,733)	(40,293)	(29,545)
Receivable, Net				408,958	436,815
Movement of allowances
Beginning of the year	29,545	32,733	32,941
Allowances made (reversed) during the year, net	11,387	(1,386)	869
Accounts written-off against allowances	(639)	(309)	(297)
Foreign exchange effect		(1,493)	(780)
Closing balance	40,293	29,545	32,733
Allowances for advances to suppliers
Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]
Receviable, gross				299,019	109,156
Allowance for credit losses	(19,700)	(20,281)		(19,700)	(20,281)
Receivable, Net				279,319	88,875
Movement of allowances
Beginning of the year	20,281
Closing balance	19,700	20,281
Allowances for other receivables
Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]
Receviable, gross				238,779	181,524
Allowance for credit losses	(8,802)	(11,431)		(8,802)	(11,431)
Receivable, Net				229,977	170,093
Movement of allowances
Beginning of the year	11,431
Closing balance	8,802	11,431
Advances to Suppliers and Other Receivable [Member]
Accounts, Notes, Loans and Financing Receivable [Line Items]
Allowance for credit losses	(28,502)	(31,712)	(30,630)	$ (28,502)	$ (31,712)
Movement of allowances
Beginning of the year	31,712	30,630	29,111
Allowances made (reversed) during the year, net	2,280	2,657	2,112
Accounts written-off against allowances	(5,490)	(1,452)
Foreign exchange effect		(123)	(593)
Closing balance	$ 28,502	$ 31,712	$ 30,630

INVENTORIES (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
INVENTORIES (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
INVENTORIES
Raw materials	$ 90,308	$ 75,722
Work-in-process	69,132	74,105
Finished goods	536,541	404,243
Inventories	695,981	554,070
Amount of finished goods includes modules	$ 181,012	84,202
Federal Investment Tax Credit (as a percentage)	5.00%
Inventory written down	$ 42,907	$ 19,447	$ 14,646

PROJECT ASSETS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
PROJECT ASSETS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
PROJECT ASSETS
Project assets - Acquisition cost	$ 44,549	$ 55,158
Project assets - EPC and other cost	1,092,917	1,031,976
Total project assets	1,137,466	1,087,134
Current portion	747,764	604,083
Non-current portion	389,702	483,051
Impairment loss of project assets	$ 369	$ 20,194	$ 9,016

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET
Property, plant and equipment, gross	$ 1,843,761	$ 1,633,316
Accumulated depreciation	(827,601)	(598,297)
Impairment	(52,149)	(45,437)
Property, plant and equipment, excluding construction in process, net	964,011	989,582
Construction in process	193,720	56,453
Property, plant and equipment, net	1,157,731	1,046,035
Depreciation expense	197,600	148,034	$ 120,834
Buildings
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET
Property, plant and equipment, gross	533,647	453,712
Leasehold improvements
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET
Property, plant and equipment, gross	14,804	14,225
Machinery
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET
Property, plant and equipment, gross	1,191,780	1,074,460
Furniture, fixtures and equipment
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET
Property, plant and equipment, gross	75,656	64,117
Motor vehicles
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET
Property, plant and equipment, gross	7,643	6,351
Land
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET
Property, plant and equipment, gross	$ 20,231	$ 20,451

SOLAR POWER SYSTEMS, NET (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
SOLAR POWER SYSTEMS, NET (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Property, plant and equipment
Accumulated depreciation	$ (30,535)	$ (22,322)
Solar power systems, net	158,262	52,957
Depreciation expense	197,600	148,034	$ 120,834
Solar power systems
Property, plant and equipment
Solar power systems, net	182,232	70,449
Depreciation expense	6,396	6,379	$ 3,756
Solar power sysetems under construction
Property, plant and equipment
Solar power systems, net	$ 6,565	$ 4,830

INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET
Gross Carrying Amount	$ 42,628	$ 39,633
Accumulated Amortization	(20,199)	(16,842)
Total intangible assets, net	22,429	22,791
Amortization expense	5,122	5,310	$ 4,666
Expected amortization expense of intangible assets
2021	4,443
2022	3,662
2023	3,035
2024	2,503
2025	2,034
2025 and thereafter	6,752
Technical know-how
INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET
Gross Carrying Amount	1,543	1,428
Accumulated Amortization	(1,525)	(1,425)
Total intangible assets, net	18	3
Computer software
INTANGIBLE ASSETS, NET
Gross Carrying Amount	41,085	38,205
Accumulated Amortization	(18,674)	(15,417)
Total intangible assets, net	$ 22,411	$ 22,788

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT (Details) - Interest rate swap - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2016
Fair value measurements of the entity's assets or liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis
Notional amount	$ 47,439,000
Derivative liabilities	$ 2,170,000
Designated as hedging instruments \| Cash flow hedge
Fair value measurements of the entity's assets or liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis
Total notional		$ 399,000,000,000

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT - Interest rate swap (Details) - Not designated as hedging instruments - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Effect of fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets
Total derivatives asset	$ 23,351	$ 5,547
Total derivatives liability	10,755	12,322
Derivative assets - current \| Foreign exchange forward contracts
Effect of fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets
Total derivatives asset	22,178	5,097
Derivative assets - current \| Foreign exchange option contracts
Effect of fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets
Total derivatives asset	1,173	450
Derivative liabilities - current \| Foreign exchange forward contracts
Effect of fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets
Total derivatives liability	10,753	10,127
Derivative liabilities - current \| Foreign exchange option contracts
Effect of fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets
Total derivatives liability	$ 2	25
Derivative liabilities - current \| Interest rate swap
Effect of fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets
Total derivatives liability		329
Derivative liabilities - non-current \| Interest rate swap
Effect of fair value of derivative instruments on the consolidated balance sheets
Total derivatives liability		$ 1,841

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT - Gain (Loss) Recognized in Statements of Operation (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Effect of derivative instruments on consolidated statements of operations
Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives	$ 50,001	$ (22,218)	$ (19,230)
Foreign exchange forward contracts
Effect of derivative instruments on consolidated statements of operations
Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives	49,807	(20,249)	(16,414)
Foreign exchange option contracts
Effect of derivative instruments on consolidated statements of operations
Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives	1,376	(1,022)	(2,023)
Interest rate swap
Effect of derivative instruments on consolidated statements of operations
Gain (loss) on change in fair value of derivatives	$ (1,182)	$ (947)	$ (793)

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT - Carrying value (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENT
Impairment charges for property, plant and equipment	$ 11,854	$ 21,866	$ 30,968
Carrying value of long-term borrowings	446,090	619,477
Convertible notes	$ 223,214	$ 0

VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES
TOTAL ASSETS	$ 6,536,854	$ 5,467,207
Short-term borrowings	1,202,285	933,120
Long-term borrowings	934,620
TOTAL LIABILITIES	4,644,069	4,042,149
Variable Interest Entity
VARIABLE INTEREST ENTITIES
Cash	42,064	14,011
Project assets	337,836	197,366
Other assets	79,580	12,091
TOTAL ASSETS	459,480	223,468
Short-term borrowings	180,773	139,708
Long-term borrowings	52,408
Other liabilities	60,845	66,569
TOTAL LIABILITIES	$ 294,026	$ 206,277

INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Other investments
Investments in affiliates	$ 78,291	$ 152,828
RE Roserock Holdings LLC ("Roserock")
Other investments
Investments in affiliates		$ 83,034
Ownership percentage		49.00%
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc
Other investments
Investments in affiliates	$ 19,980	$ 19,162
Ownership percentage	14.66%	14.66%
Suzhou Financial Leasing Co., Ltd.
Other investments
Investments in affiliates	$ 23,969	$ 16,050
Ownership percentage	6.00%	6.00%
Others
Other investments
Investments in affiliates	$ 34,342	$ 34,582
Others \| Minimum
Other investments
Ownership percentage	15.00%
Others \| Maximum
Other investments
Ownership percentage	49.00%	49.00%

INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES - Tax equity transactions (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Jul. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Tax equity transactions
Gain on disposal of investment in affiliates			$ 13,936	$ 1,928	$ 47,102
Class B membership interests
Tax equity transactions
Net assets derecognized	$ 18,486
Value wrote down		$ 4,995
RE Roserock Holdings LLC ("Roserock")
Tax equity transactions
Ownership percentage				49.00%

INVESTMENTS IN AFFILIATES - Other investments (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Sep. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Other investments
Cash consideration for acquisition of the entity			$ 17,758	$ 7,684	$ 11,036
Equity in earnings (loss) of unconsolidated investees			10,779	28,948	5,908
Impairment loss of investment			$ 24,060	$ 0	$ 5,738
Gain or loss on sale of equity investments	$ 13,140
Suzhou Financial Leasing Co., Ltd.
Other investments
Ownership percentage	6.00%		6.00%	6.00%
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc
Other investments
Ownership percentage	14.66%		14.66%	14.66%
Now, Inc.
Other investments
Ownership percentage		10.00%
Impairment loss of investment		$ 700

LEASE - Lease expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
LEASE - Lease expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Finance lease cost:
Amortization of right-of-use assets	$ 8,036	$ 18,900
Interest on lease liabilities	1,497	3,213
Operating lease cost	19,630	17,619
Short term lease cost	850	8,920
Total lease cost	$ 30,013	$ 48,652
Operating lease expenses			$ 20,905
Finance lease expenses			$ 24,696

LEASE - Cash flow (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
LEASE - Cash flow (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
LEASE
Operating cash outflows from finance leases	$ 1,497	$ 3,213
Operating cash outflows from operating leases	20,589	15,866
Financing cash outflows from finance lease	(19,163)	(33,614)
ROU assets obtained in exchange of new finance lease liabilities	10,666	7,300
ROU assets obtained in exchange of new operating leases	14,892	$ 18,222
ROU assets disposed through early termination of operating leases in non-cash transaction	$ (6,572)

LEASE - Additional information (Details)	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
LEASE
Weighted average term - finance leases	10 months 24 days	1 year 4 months 28 days
Weighted average term - operating lease	3 years 25 days	3 years 10 days
Weighted average discount rate - finance lease	5.54%	5.82%
Weighted average discount rate - operating lease	4.18%	4.36%

LEASE - Operating leases - Maturities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Maturities of operating leases
2021	$ 14,374
2022	7,427
2023	3,632
2024	1,242
2025	369
Thereafter	1,859
Total future minimum lease payments	$ 28,903
Year Ending December 31:
2021		$ 18,953
2022		12,980
2022		4,666
2022		2,541
2023		1,077
Thereafter		1,504
Total future minimum lease payments		$ 41,721

LEASE - Operating leases - Gross difference (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Operating leases, gross difference
Total future minimum lease payments	$ 28,903
Less: imputed interest	467	$ 2,236
NPV for future minimum lease payments	$ 28,436	$ 39,485

LEASE - Finance leases - Maturities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Maturities of finance leases
2021	$ 22,706
2022	2,514
Total future minimum lease payments	$ 25,220
Year Ending December 31:
2019		$ 27,439
2020		13,087
2021		604
Total future minimum lease payments		$ 41,130

LEASE - Finance leases - Gross difference (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Finance leases, gross difference
Total future minimum lease payments	$ 25,220
Less: imputed interest	963
NPV for future minimum lease payments	$ 24,257	$ 39,074
Total future minimum lease payments		41,130
Less: imputed interest		2,056
NPV for future minimum lease payments		$ 39,074

LEASE - Total leases - Maturities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
LEASE
2020	$ 37,080
2021	9,941
2022	3,632
2023	1,242
2024	369
Thereafter	1,859
Total future minimum lease payments	$ 54,123
2019		$ 46,392
2020		26,067
2021		5,270
2022		2,541
2023		1,077
Thereafter		1,504
Total future minimum lease payments		$ 82,851

LEASE - Total leases - Gross difference (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
LEASE
Total future minimum lease payments	$ 54,123
Less: imputed interest	1,430
NPV for future minimum lease payments	$ 52,693	$ 78,559
Total future minimum lease payments		82,851
Less: imputed interest		4,292
NPV for future minimum lease payments		$ 78,559

LEASE - Total leases - Summary (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Leases
Short-term	$ 37,091	$ 44,765
Long-term	15,602	33,794
Total lease liabilities	52,693	78,559
Operating lease liabilities, current	15,204	18,767
Operating lease liabilities, noncurrent	13,232	20,718
Total operating lease liabilities	28,436	39,485
Finance lease liabilities, current	21,887	25,998
Finance lease liabilities, noncurrent	2,370	13,076
Total Finance lease liabilities	$ 24,257	$ 39,074

BORROWINGS (Details)	12 Months Ended
BORROWINGS (Details)	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($) item	Aug. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Jul. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2020 USD ($)
BANK BORROWINGS
Subtotal for short-term borrowings	$ 1,202,285,000	$ 933,120,000
Long-term borrowings on project assets - current	198,794,000	286,173,000
Long-term borrowings	446,090,000	$ 619,477,000
Secured short-term borrowings	628,519,000
Amount drawn of bank credit facilities granted	177,214,000
Long-term borrowings, current	258,978,000
Secured long-term borrowings, Current	198,794,000
Secured long-term borrowings	351,431,000
Future principal repayment of long-term borrowings on project assets - current	198,794,000
Carrying value of property, plant and equipment that serve as collateral for short-term and long-term borrowings	224,893,000
Carrying value of inventories that serve as collateral for short-term and long-term borrowings	243,124,000
Carrying value of prepaid land use rights that serve as collateral for short-term and long-term borrowings	9,509,000
Carrying value of restricted cash that serve as collateral for short-term and long-term borrowings	107,598,000
Carrying value of accounts receivable that serve as collateral for short-term and long-term borrowings	15,882,000
Carrying value of equity that serve as collateral for short-term and long-term borrowings	529,431,000
Carrying value of project assets and solar power systems that serve as collateral for short-term and long-term borrowings	696,955,000
Canadian Solar New Energy Holding Company Limited [Member]
BANK BORROWINGS
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity					$ 30,000,000
Recurrent Energy, LLC
BANK BORROWINGS
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity				$ 282,000,000
Amount drawn of bank credit facilities granted	203,747,000
Number of credit facilities \| item		2
Credit facility
BANK BORROWINGS
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity	2,618,761,000
Available amount of credit facilities	707,174,000
Credit facility \| Recurrent Energy, LLC
BANK BORROWINGS
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity			$ 75,000,000,000
Credit facility One \| Recurrent Energy, LLC
BANK BORROWINGS
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity		$ 123,708,000
Credit facility Two \| Recurrent Energy, LLC
BANK BORROWINGS
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity		$ 60,000,000
Working Capital Facility \| Canadian Solar New Energy Holding Company Limited [Member]
BANK BORROWINGS
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity			$ 50,000,000,000
Non-binding bank credit facilities
BANK BORROWINGS
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity	966,270,000
Nonrecourse [Member]
BANK BORROWINGS
Amount drawn of bank credit facilities granted	$ 433,628,000

BORROWINGS - Short term (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
BORROWINGS
Short-term borrowings	$ 1,202,285	$ 933,120

BORROWINGS - Long term (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
BORROWINGS - Long term (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
BORROWINGS
Long-term borrowings on project assets - current	$ 198,794	$ 286,173
Long-term borrowings	446,090	619,477
Future principal repayment on the long-term borrowings loans
2021	488,530
2022	275,985
2023	71,563
2024	18,785
2025	2,912
Thereafter	76,845
Total	934,620
Less: future principal repayment related to long-term borrowings, current portion	(488,530)
Total long-term portion	$ 446,090	$ 619,477
Minimum
BORROWINGS
Average interest rate on long-term borrowings (as a percent)	1.70%
Maximum
BORROWINGS
Average interest rate on long-term borrowings (as a percent)	6.50%

BORROWINGS - Long term narrative and interest expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
BORROWINGS
Outstanding balance	$ 177,214
Floating interest rate (as a percent)	4.37%	5.43%
Interest expense
Interest capitalized - project assets	$ 10,197	$ 10,794	$ 15,462
Interest capitalized - property, plant, and equipment	154	2,620	1,182
Interest expense	71,874	81,326	106,032
Total interest incurred	82,225	$ 94,740	$ 122,676
Credit facility
BORROWINGS
Maximum borrowing capacity	$ 2,618,761
Unsecured
BORROWINGS
Floating interest rate (as a percent)	3.26%	4.86%
Secured by project assets and solar power systems
BORROWINGS
Floating interest rate (as a percent)	3.63%	3.65%

SHORT-TERM NOTES PAYABLE (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
SHORT-TERM NOTES PAYABLE
Short-term notes payable	$ 710,636	$ 544,991

ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
ACCRUED WARRANTY COSTS
Beginning balance	$ 55,878	$ 50,605	$ 55,659
Warranty provision	26,931	28,044	13,188
Warranty costs incurred	(46,067)	(23,282)	(16,732)
Foreign exchange effect	990	511	(1,510)
Ending balance	$ 37,732	$ 55,878	$ 50,605

RESTRICTED NET ASSETS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
RESTRICTED NET ASSETS
Minimum percentage of the profit after tax to be appropriated to the general reserve	10.00%
Restricted net assets	$ 568,931	$ 568,931,000

CONVERTIBLE NOTES (Details) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
	Sep. 16, 2020 USD ($) item D $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)
CONVERTIBLE NOTES
Amortization of financing costs		$ 388
Interest expense		1,677
2020 Notes
CONVERTIBLE NOTES
Proceeds from initial issuance of convertible notes	$ 200,000
Period of option for additional issuance	30 days
Proceeds from additional issuance of convertible notes	$ 30,000
Interest rate (as a percent)	2.50%
Conversion rate	27.2707
Conversion rate initial principal amount	$ 1,000
Conversion price (in dollars per share) \| $ / shares	$ 36.67
Sales price of common stock as percentage of conversion price for redemption at Company's option	130.00%
Number of trading days that threshold percentage exceeds stock price for trigger of redemption at Company's option \| item	20
Period of consecutive trading days that the threshold of trading days must fall within for trigger of redemption at Company's option \| D	30
Redemption prices as percentage of outstanding principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest following occurrence of certain tax related events	100.00%
Carrying value of convertible notes		223,214
Unamortized issuance costs		$ 6,786
Effective interest rate (as a percent)		3.18%

INCOME TAXES - Provision for income taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Income before income taxes
Income (loss) before income taxes	$ 145,263	$ 208,621	$ 304,400
Current tax
Current tax expense (benefit)	22,255	56,685	18,375
Deferred tax
Deferred tax expense (benefit)	(24,238)	(14,619)	43,594
Total income tax expense
Total income tax expense (benefit)	(1,983)	42,066	61,969
Canada
Income before income taxes
Income (loss) before income taxes	(31,896)	(61,880)	10,570
Current tax
Current tax expense (benefit)	36,226	(3,420)	(1,846)
Deferred tax
Deferred tax expense (benefit)	(10,792)	(6,558)	12,117
Total income tax expense
Total income tax expense (benefit)	25,434	(9,978)	10,271
United States
Income before income taxes
Income (loss) before income taxes	(113,262)	8,319	61,377
Current tax
Current tax expense (benefit)	(71,421)	(4,803)	(14,786)
Deferred tax
Deferred tax expense (benefit)	23,173	(2,412)	32,696
Total income tax expense
Total income tax expense (benefit)	(48,248)	(7,215)	17,910
PRC
Income before income taxes
Income (loss) before income taxes	189,398	204,632	178,050
Current tax
Current tax expense (benefit)	30,276	44,622	27,285
Deferred tax
Deferred tax expense (benefit)	(17,998)	(5,333)	2,653
Total income tax expense
Total income tax expense (benefit)	12,278	39,289	29,938
Japan
Income before income taxes
Income (loss) before income taxes	50,642	29,335	27,555
Current tax
Current tax expense (benefit)	18,941	13,229	5,325
Deferred tax
Deferred tax expense (benefit)	(10,571)	(2,953)	(3,381)
Total income tax expense
Total income tax expense (benefit)	8,370	10,276	1,944
Others
Income before income taxes
Income (loss) before income taxes	50,381	28,215	26,848
Current tax
Current tax expense (benefit)	8,233	7,057	2,397
Deferred tax
Deferred tax expense (benefit)	(8,050)	2,637	(491)
Total income tax expense
Total income tax expense (benefit)	$ 183	$ 9,694	$ 1,906

INCOME TAXES - Domestic federal statutory tax rates (Details) $ in Thousands	6 Months Ended		12 Months Ended				36 Months Ended	48 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($) item	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)
Income taxes:
Federal and provincial income tax rate (as a percent)			27.00%	27.00%	27.00%
Amount of interest and penalties accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits	$ 5,101		$ 5,101	$ 4,795			$ 5,101	$ 4,795
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation at Federal and Provincial Income Tax Rate			27.00%	27.00%	27.00%
Tax refund, CARES Act	62,699		$ 62,699				62,699
Changes to the company's liabilities for uncertain tax positions
Beginning balance		$ 10,557	10,557	$ 15,730	$ 6,181		6,181
Addition for tax positions related to the current year				11	9,806
Reductions for tax positions from prior years/Statute of limitations expirations			(1,011)
Statue of limitations expirations				(5,720)
Foreign exchange effect			82	536
Foreign exchange effect					(257)
Ending balance	$ 9,628		$ 9,628	$ 10,557	$ 15,730	$ 6,181	$ 9,628	$ 10,557
Canada
Income taxes:
Federal and provincial income tax rate (as a percent)	26.50%	26.50%		26.50%	26.50%
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation at Federal and Provincial Income Tax Rate	26.50%	26.50%		26.50%	26.50%
Canada \| Canadian Solar Solutions Inc.
Income taxes:
Federal and provincial income tax rate (as a percent)			25.00%	25.00%	25.00%
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation at Federal and Provincial Income Tax Rate			25.00%	25.00%	25.00%
United States \| Canadian Solar (USA) Inc.
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)			22.20%	22.90%	24.80%
United States \| Canadian Solar Energy Acquisition Co.
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)			26.10%	27.90%	25.30%
Japan \| Canadian Solar Japan K.K.
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)			31.80%	31.80%	32.00%
Germany \| Canadian Solar EMEA GmbH
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)			33.00%	33.00%	33.00%
Vietnam \| Canadian Solar Manufacturing Vietnam Co., Ltd
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)								10.00%
Reduced income tax rate from 2020 to 2028 (as a percent)			5.00%
Thailand \| Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)						20.00%
Number of Board of Investment certificates for tax exemption \| item			2
Hong Kong \| HKSI
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)			16.50%	16.50%	16.50%
PRC \| CSI Solartronics (Changshu) Co., Ltd
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)							25.00%
PRC \| CSI Solar Technologies Inc.
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)							25.00%
PRC \| Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Luoyang) Inc.
Income taxes:
Income tax rate (as a percent)							25.00%

INCOME TAXES - Deferred tax assets and liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Deferred tax assets:
Accrued warranty costs	$ 8,699	$ 8,326
Bad debt allowance	3,218	10,324
Inventory write-down	3,121	1,128
Future deductible expenses	24,454	20,731
Depreciation and impairment difference of property, plant and equipment and solar power systems	30,138	23,380
Accrued liabilities related to antidumping, countervailing and other duty costs and true-up charges	406	496
Government subsidies	16,461	8,927
Net operating losses carry-forward	85,850	112,710
Unrealized foreign exchange loss and capital loss	1,221	7,064
Interest limitation	1,956	2,767
Others	30,958	26,415
Total deferred tax assets, gross	206,482	222,268
Valuation allowance	(50,118)	(70,627)
Total deferred tax assets, net of valuation allowance	156,364	151,641
Deferred tax liabilities:
Derivative assets	996	217
Depreciation difference of property, plant and equipment	17,027	18,789
Insurance recoverable	785	15,771
Unrealized foreign exchange gain	10,746	10,984
Others	5,234	8,380
Total deferred tax liabilities	34,788	54,141
Analysis as:
Deferred tax assets	170,656	153,963
Deferred tax liabilities	(49,080)	(56,463)
Net deferred tax assets	121,576	97,500
Accumulated net operating losses	567,049
Accumulated net operating losses subject to expiration between 2021 and 2040	466,507
Tax effect of valuation allowance on net operating losses, CARES Act	15,227
Allowance
Deferred tax assets:
Valuation allowance	$ (50,118)	$ (70,627)	$ (76,522)	$ (65,399)

INCOME TAXES - Reconciliation (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
INCOME TAXES - Reconciliation (Details) - USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Reconciliation between the provision for income tax computed by applying Canadian federal and provincial statutory tax rates to income before income taxes and the actual provision and benefit for income taxes
Combined federal and provincial income tax rate (as a percent)	27.00%	27.00%	27.00%
Effect of permanent difference (as a percent)	4.00%	(1.00%)	(11.00%)
Effect of different tax rate on earnings in other jurisdictions (as a percent)	(6.00%)	3.00%
Effect of tax holiday (as a percent)	(1.00%)	(4.00%)	(1.00%)
Unrecognized tax provision (as a percent)	(13.00%)	(3.00%)	4.00%
Change in valuation allowance (as a percent)	(14.00%)	(3.00%)	7.00%
Effect of tax credit (as a percent)	(5.00%)
Effect of change in tax rate	2.00%	(1.00%)	(3.00%)
Others (as a percent)		2.00%	(3.00%)
Actual income tax rate (as a percent)	(1.00%)	20.00%	20.00%
Additional disclosure
Withholding income tax rate on dividends distributed by foreign invested enterprises (as a percent)	10.00%
Undistributed earnings of subsidiaries and affiliates considered to be permanently reinvested		$ 381,716,000
Provision for withholding income tax on dividend		0
Preferential withholding tax rate (as a percent)	5.00%
Aggregate amount and per share effect of the tax holiday
The aggregate amount (in dollars)	$ 1,287,000	$ 7,956,000	$ 3,089,000
Per share effect - basic (in dollars per share)	$ 0.02	$ 0.13	$ 0.05
Per share effect - diluted (in dollars per share)	$ 0.02	$ 0.13	$ 0.05
Minimum
Additional disclosure
Unrecognized deferred tax liabilities	$ 19,086,000
Withholding tax rate (as a percent)	5.00%
Maximum
Additional disclosure
Unrecognized deferred tax liabilities	$ 38,172,000
Withholding tax rate (as a percent)	10.00%

INCOME TAXES - Movement of the valuation allowance (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Movement of allowances
Beginning of the year	$ 70,627
End of the year	50,118	$ 70,627
Allowance
Movement of allowances
Beginning of the year	70,627	76,522	$ 65,399
Additions (Reversals)	(21,585)	(6,156)	11,051
Foreign exchange effect	1,076	261	72
End of the year	$ 50,118	$ 70,627	$ 76,522

EARNINGS PER SHARE (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Computation of basic and diluted gain (loss) per share
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc. - basic	$ 146,703	$ 171,585	$ 237,070
Dilutive effect of interest expense of convertible notes	1,518	975	4,683
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc. - diluted	$ 148,221	$ 172,560	$ 241,753
Denominator for basic calculation - weighted average number of common shares - basic	59,575,898	59,633,855	58,914,540
Diluted effects of share number from share options and RSUs	897,258	794,526	543,797
Dilutive effects of share number from convertible notes	1,833,663	349,315	2,833,333
Denominator for diluted calculation - weighted average number of common shares - diluted	62,306,819	60,777,696	62,291,670
Basic earnings per share	$ 2.46	$ 2.88	$ 4.02
Diluted earnings per share	$ 2.38	$ 2.83	$ 3.88
Share options and RSUs
Computation of basic and diluted gain (loss) per share
Anti-dilutive shares excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share, total	187,083	41,950	276,618

RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS (Details) ¥ in Thousands, ¥ in Thousands, R$ in Thousands, R in Thousands, $ in Thousands	6 Months Ended		11 Months Ended		12 Months Ended											24 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2020 CNY (¥)	Nov. 30, 2020 USD ($)	Nov. 30, 2020 CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($) item shares	Dec. 31, 2020 CNY (¥) item shares	Dec. 31, 2020 JPY (¥) item shares	Dec. 31, 2020 BRL (R$) item shares	Dec. 31, 2019 ZAR (R) item shares	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($) item shares	Dec. 31, 2019 CNY (¥) item shares	Dec. 31, 2019 JPY (¥) item shares	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($) item shares	Dec. 31, 2018 CNY (¥) item shares	Dec. 31, 2018 JPY (¥) item shares	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2020 CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2019 CNY (¥)	Dec. 31, 2018 CNY (¥)
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Amount due from related party					$ 5,834					$ 31,232						$ 31,232
Amounts due to related parties					314					10,077						$ 10,077
Amounts drawn down					177,214
Revenue from sale of solar products					$ 62,726					$ 99,470			$ 119,825
RSUs
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Granted (in shares) \| shares					1,105,640	1,105,640	1,105,640	1,105,640	706,637	706,637	706,637	706,637	759,702	759,702	759,702
Pilipinas Newton Energy Corp
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Cash funding from affiliate					$ 16
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage					40.00%												40.00%
Salgueiro I Renewable Energy S.A
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Trade receivable from affiliate					$ 3,364
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage					20.00%												20.00%
Revenue from sale of solar products					$ 11,636
Percentage of ownership after sale transaction					20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%
Salgueiro II Renewable Energy S.A.
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Trade receivable from affiliate					$ 195
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage					20.00%												20.00%
Revenue from sale of solar products					$ 9,996
Percentage of ownership after sale transaction					20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%
Jaba 4 Energias Renovveis S.A.
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Trade receivable from affiliate					$ 2,123
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage					20.00%												20.00%
Revenue from sale of solar products					$ 3,696
Percentage of ownership after sale transaction					20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%
Salgueiro III Renewable Energy S.A.
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage					20.00%												20.00%
Trade payable to affiliate					$ 104
Revenue from sale of solar products					$ 9,403
Percentage of ownership after sale transaction					20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%
Jaiba 3 Renewable Energy S.A.
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Revenue from sale of solar products					$ 5,971
Percentage of ownership after sale transaction					20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%
Jaiba 9 Renewable Energy S.A.
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Revenue from sale of solar products					$ 1,372
Percentage of ownership after sale transaction					20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%
ET Solutions South Africa 1 Pty
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Revenue from sale of solar products									R 586,832	$ 40,970			$ 6,859	¥ 45,407
Percentage of ownership after sale transaction																49.00%
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Number of solar power plants sold \| item					2	2	2	2	3	3	3	3	5	5	5
Percent of units purchased					14.66%	14.66%	14.66%	14.66%	14.66%	14.66%	14.66%	14.66%	14.66%	14.66%	14.66%
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc \| Asset management service
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Trade payable to affiliate					$ 136
Revenue from providing development services					3,723		¥ 394,506			$ 2,573		¥ 281,094	$ 2,210		¥ 247,341
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc \| O & M Service
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Revenue from providing development services					7,564		805,021			2,052		223,598	1,105		122,529
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc \| Revenue
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Revenue from sale of solar products					$ 8,392		¥ 888,000			$ 53,874		¥ 5,889,000	109,597		12,276,404
Canadian Solar Infrastructure Fund, Inc \| Other operating income or expense
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Revenue from sale of solar products													$ 836		¥ 89,238
Suzhou iSilver Materials Co
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Percent of units purchased									14.63%	14.63%	14.63%	14.63%	14.63%	14.63%	14.63%
Purchase from related party			$ 24,301	¥ 168,032						$ 50,359	¥ 350,590		$ 74,490	¥ 512,154
Suzhou Kzone Equipment Technology Co., Ltd
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Percent of units purchased									32.00%	32.00%	32.00%	32.00%	32.00%	32.00%	32.00%
Purchase from related party	$ 1,048	¥ 7,381								$ 8,787	¥ 61,174		$ 6,056	¥ 41,635
Dr. Shawn Qu \| RSUs
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Granted (in shares) \| shares					26,073	26,073	26,073	26,073	26,691	26,691	26,691	26,691	83,805	83,805	83,805
Dr. Shawn Qu \| Chinese Commercial Banks
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Maximum borrowing capacity					$ 20,648					$ 203,549			$ 185,045			$ 203,549	¥ 135,000	¥ 1,420,000	¥ 1,270,000
Amounts drawn down					$ 0					$ 82,937			$ 155,956			$ 82,937
Luoyang Jiwa New Material Technology Co., Ltd [Member]
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage					20.00%												20.00%
Trade payable to affiliate					$ 210
Percent of units purchased					20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%	20.00%
Purchase from related party					$ 4,545	¥ 31,388				$ 2,584	¥ 18,124
Lavras Solar Holding S.A
RELATED PARTY BALANCES AND TRANSACTIONS
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage					20.00%												20.00%
Purchase from related party					$ 974
Purchase cost incurred from related party \| R$								R$ 5,061

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES - Commitments (Details) - Property, plant and equipment $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)
Purchase Commitment, Excluding Long-term Commitment [Line Items]
Commitments	$ 304,712
2021	174,509
2022	84,795
2023	45,408
Total	$ 304,712

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES - Contingencies (Details) - item			1 Months Ended																						12 Months Ended
	Jan. 21, 2015	Nov. 30, 2012	Mar. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020	Aug. 31, 2020	Jul. 31, 2020	May 31, 2020	Apr. 30, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Aug. 31, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Feb. 28, 2019	Oct. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jul. 31, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Oct. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jul. 31, 2017	Jul. 31, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	May 31, 2016	Jul. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2010
Solar 1
Contingencies
Cash deposit rate for anti-dumping duty on CSPV cells imported from China (as a percent)		13.94%		95.50%			3.19%	4.12%		4.06%				13.07%		13.07%		13.07%	8.52%		3.96%	8.52%	9.67%	9.67%
Cash deposit rate for countervailing duty on CSPV cells imported from China (as a percent)		15.24%	11.97%	12.67%	7.36%	18.16%			9.70%	9.70%				11.59%	18.16%			18.16%	20.94%		20.94%			20.94%	5.02%
Solar 2
Contingencies
Period of sunset reviews																									5 years
Cash deposit rate for anti-dumping duty on CSPV cells imported from China (as a percent)	30.06%							30.06%	30.06%		30.06%						30.06%			30.06%
Cash deposit rate for countervailing duty on CSPV cells imported from China (as a percent)	38.43%							33.58%	33.58%		33.58%	33.58%	38.43%				33.58%			33.58%
Duty rate for anti-dumping duty on CSPV cells imported from Taiwan (as a percent)									2.57%		4.39%						1.33%
Solar 2 \| Minimum
Contingencies
Cash deposit rate for anti-dumping duty on CSPV cells imported from China (as a percent)																				3.56%
Duty rate for anti-dumping duty on CSPV cells imported from Taiwan (as a percent)											1.52%
Solar 2 \| Maximum
Contingencies
Duty rate for anti-dumping duty on CSPV cells imported from Taiwan (as a percent)											3.78%									4.20%
Class Action Lawsuits Filed in New York
Contingencies
Number of subpoenas																										2
Number of lawsuits filed																										6

SEGMENT INFORMATION (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
SEGMENT INFORMATION (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Revenues and gross profit generated from each segment
Net revenues	$ 3,476,495	$ 3,200,583	$ 3,744,512
Cost of revenues	2,786,581	2,482,086	2,969,430
Gross profit	689,914	718,497	775,082
Income from operations	220,430	258,879	364,657
Operating segment \| CSI Solar Segment
Revenues and gross profit generated from each segment
Net revenues	3,105,044	2,591,154	2,448,057
Cost of revenues	2,496,153	1,977,502	1,941,539
Gross profit	608,891	613,652	506,518
Income from operations	253,105	267,642	182,488
Operating segment \| Global Energy Segment
Revenues and gross profit generated from each segment
Net revenues	726,167	718,735	1,427,245
Cost of revenues	577,052	604,856	1,184,724
Gross profit	149,115	113,879	242,521
Income from operations	53,414	18,795	171,876
Elimination and unallocated items
Revenues and gross profit generated from each segment
Net revenues	(354,716)	(109,306)	(130,790)
Cost of revenues	(286,624)	(100,272)	(156,833)
Gross profit	(68,092)	(9,034)	26,043
Income from operations	$ (86,089)	$ (27,558)	$ 10,293

- Definition

Aggregate revenue less cost of goods and services sold or operating expenses directly attributable to the revenue generation activity.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 323
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 3
-Subparagraph (c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=114001798&loc=d3e33918-111571

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/exampleRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 31
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8924-108599

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 30
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8906-108599

Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 235
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.4-08(g)(1)(ii))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120395691&loc=d3e23780-122690

Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 22
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8736-108599

Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 825
-SubTopic 10
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-Subparagraph (f)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=75031198&loc=d3e14064-108612

Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
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-Subparagraph (f)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8933-108599

Reference 8: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 220
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (SX 210.5-03.1,2)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120395209&loc=SL114868664-224227

Reference 9: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 280
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 32
-Subparagraph (c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120311839&loc=d3e8933-108599

SEGMENT INFORMATION - Different geographic locations (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	$ 3,476,495	$ 3,200,583	$ 3,744,512
Total long-lived assets	1,790,538	1,665,670
Europe
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	634,550	780,459	698,568
Australia
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	120,403	313,167	232,409
Total long-lived assets	76,330	63,143
Germany
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	119,035	109,119	95,514
South Africa
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	49,375	93,911	53,739
Spain
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	138,972	78,228	58,811
Netherlands
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	96,372	68,770	83,475
United Kingdom
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	8,842	33,158	101,479
Czech
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	16,144	17,717	17,411
Others
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	85,407	66,389	55,730
The Americas
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	1,221,105	1,402,041	1,474,657
United States
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	696,101	852,231	999,144
Total long-lived assets	64,009	60,177
BRAZIL
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	284,478	395,303	339,964
Canada
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	100,284	30,330	57,478
Total long-lived assets	8,898	14,718
Mexico
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	118,846	94,446	50,004
Others
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	21,396	29,731	28,067
Asia
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	1,620,840	1,018,083	1,571,287
Japan
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	560,701	372,687	483,041
Total long-lived assets	204,515	259,197
PRC
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	504,656	317,077	620,520
Total long-lived assets	1,002,409	835,991
Korea
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	25,896	72,552	46,697
India
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	61,141	70,893	145,873
U.A.E
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	53,981	43,311	104,467
Vietnam
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	289,621	39,268	4,216
Thailand
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	6,108	12,753	23,511
Total long-lived assets	295,240	331,931
Others
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Net revenues	118,736	89,542	$ 142,962
Others
Revenues generated by geographic location of customers' headquarter
Total long-lived assets	$ 139,137	$ 100,513

SEGMENT INFORMATION - Each product or service (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	$ 3,476,495	$ 3,200,583	$ 3,744,512
CSI Solar Segment \| Solar modules
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	2,348,724	2,012,059	1,847,305
CSI Solar Segment \| Solar system kits
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	157,656	116,449	93,253
CSI Solar Segment \| Battery storage solutions
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	7,899
CSI Solar Segment \| China energy (includes electricity sales)
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	175,388	58,096	245,321
CSI Solar Segment \| Others
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	60,661	295,244	131,388
Global Energy Segment \| Solar power projects
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	654,827	652,050	1,319,021
Global Energy Segment \| O&M and asset management services
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	26,386	19,750	13,271
Global Energy Segment \| Others
Revenues generated from each product
Total net revenues	$ 44,954	$ 46,935	$ 94,953

MAJOR CUSTOMERS (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
MAJOR CUSTOMERS (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($) item	Dec. 31, 2019 USD ($) item	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($)
Major Customers
Number of customers with the largest receivable balances \| item	3	3
Net revenue \| Customer concentration risk \| Company A
Major Customers
Total net revenues			$ 718,341
Accounts receivable \| Accounts receivable balances \| Customer one
Major Customers
Concentration risk (as a percent)	7.00%	17.00%
Accounts receivable	$ 27,014	$ 74,376
Accounts receivable \| Accounts receivable balances \| Customer two
Major Customers
Concentration risk (as a percent)	3.00%	5.00%
Accounts receivable \| Accounts receivable balances \| Customer three
Major Customers
Concentration risk (as a percent)	3.00%	4.00%

EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Employer's contribution (as a percent)	16.00%
Defined contributions schemes expense	$ 8,064	$ 11,738	$ 12,544
Percentage of applicable salaries contributed by the employer for housing funds	8.00%
Amount of contribution by the employer for medical insurance benefits, housing funds, unemployment and other statutory benefits	$ 11,486	$ 11,409	$ 11,211
Minimum
Percentage of applicable salaries contributed by the employer for medical insurance benefits	6.00%
Percentage of applicable salaries contributed by the employer for unemployment benefits	0.50%
Percentage of applicable salaries contributed by the employer for other statutory benefits	0.90%
Maximum
Percentage of applicable salaries contributed by the employer for medical insurance benefits	8.50%
Percentage of applicable salaries contributed by the employer for unemployment benefits	0.70%
Percentage of applicable salaries contributed by the employer for other statutory benefits	2.50%

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION - Options to Employees (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2010	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2020
SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION
Maximum aggregate number of shares to be issued	2,330,000
Annual percentage increase in authorized shares on the first day of each of 2007, 2008 and 2009 prior to the year of amendment for awards other than incentive option shares	1.00%
Annual percentage increase in authorized shares on the first day of each calendar year from the year of amendment for awards other than incentive option shares	2.50%
Number of shares to be granted after expiration		0
Expiry term of share options		10 years
Compensation cost		$ 0
Options \| Employees
SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION
Option exercised		93,488
Weighted average exercise price of shares exercised (in dollars per share)		$ 11.39
Total intrinsic value of options exercised (in dollars)		$ 893	$ 1,422	$ 256
Options outstanding		26,291			26,291
Weighted average exercise price of options outstanding (in dollars per share)		$ 9.33			$ 9.33
Weighted average remaining contract terms of options outstanding (in years)		4 months 24 days
Intrinsic value of outstanding options (in dollars)					$ 1,102
Number of Options
Exercised (in shares)		(93,488)
Options outstanding at the end of the period (in shares)		26,291
Weighted Average Exercise Price
Exercised (in dollars per share)		$ 11.39
Options outstanding at the end of the period (in dollars per share)		$ 9.33
Weighted Average Remaining Contract Terms
Options outstanding at the end of the period		4 months 24 days
Aggregate Intrinsic Value
Options outstanding at the end of the period					$ 1,102
Total intrinsic value of options exercised		$ 893	$ 1,422	$ 256

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION - RSUs to Employees (Details) - RSUs - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION
Shares granted to employees	1,105,640	706,637	759,702
Total compensation cost at the date of grant	$ 24,918,000	$ 12,179,000	$ 10,225,000
Total recognized compensation cost	12,350	$ 10,682	$ 10,258
Total unrecognized share-based compensation costs	$ 31,116
Weighted-average period of recognition of compensation expense	2 years 9 months 21 days
Number of Shares
Unvested at the beginning of the period (in shares)	1,659,767
Granted (in shares)	1,105,640	706,637	759,702
Vested (in shares)	(736,542)
Forfeited (in shares)	(140,112)
Unvested at the end of the period (in shares)	1,888,753	1,659,767
Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Unvested at the beginning of the period (in dollars per share)	$ 15.26
Granted (in dollars per share)	22.80
Vested (in dollars per share)	14.85
Forfeited (in dollars per share)	16.07
Unvested at the end of the period (in dollars per share)	$ 19.78	$ 15.26
Total fair value of shares vested	$ 14,420	$ 10,733	$ 10,242
Minimum
SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION
Vesting period	1 year
Maximum
SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION
Vesting period	4 years

SUBSEQUENT EVENTS (Details) - Feb. 28, 2021 $ in Millions, ¥ in Billions	USD ($)	JPY (¥)
Subsequent event \| Japan Green Infrastructure Fund [Member]
SUBSEQUENT EVENTS
Disposal Group, Including Discontinued Operation, Consideration	$ 208	¥ 22

Financial Statement Schedule I (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Additional Information - Financial Statement Schedule I
Restricted net assets of the entity's consolidated and unconsolidated subsidiaries not available for distribution	$ 568,931	$ 568,931,000
Threshold percentage of restricted net assets of the entity's consolidated and unconsolidated subsidiaries	25.00%

Financial Statement Schedule I - BALANCE SHEETS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 1,178,752	$ 668,770
Amounts due from subsidiaries	5,834	31,232
Derivative assets	23,351	5,547
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	353,781	253,542
Total current assets	4,185,822	3,252,936
Deferred tax assets	170,656	153,963
Other non-current assets	184,952	153,253
TOTAL ASSETS	6,536,854	5,467,207
Current liabilities:
Short-term borrowings	1,202,285	933,120
Amounts due to related parties	314	10,077
Derivative liabilities	10,755	10,481
Other current liabilities	237,316	121,527
Total current liabilities	3,588,355	3,091,997
Convertible notes	223,214
Long-term borrowings	446,090	619,477
Deferred tax liabilities	49,080	56,463
Liability for uncertain tax positions	14,729	15,353
TOTAL LIABILITIES	4,644,069	4,042,149
Equity:
Common shares - no par value: unlimited authorized shares, 59,371,684 and 59,820,384 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively	687,033	703,806
kTreasury stock, at cost, 609,516 and nil common shares as of		(11,845)
Additional paid-in capital	(28,236)	17,179
Retained earnings	940,304	793,601
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(28,679)	(109,607)
Total Canadian Solar Inc. shareholders' equity	1,570,422	1,393,134
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY	6,536,854	5,467,207
Parent Company \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	33,709	1,362
Restricted cash	1,316	950
Amounts due from subsidiaries	288,226	341,557
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	22,672	9,846
Total current assets	347,034	353,715
Investment in subsidiaries	1,525,951	1,383,935
Investments in affiliates	5,322	2,483
Deferred tax assets	21,358	23,657
Other non-current assets	40,456	69,070
TOTAL ASSETS	1,940,121	1,832,860
Current liabilities:
Short-term borrowings	80,000
Amounts due to related parties		340,502
Other current liabilities	32,969	8,534
Total current liabilities	112,969	353,749
Convertible notes	223,214
Long-term borrowings		50,000
Deferred tax liabilities	20,169	22,936
Liability for uncertain tax positions	13,347	13,041
TOTAL LIABILITIES	369,699	439,726
Equity:
Common shares - no par value: unlimited authorized shares, 59,371,684 and 59,820,384 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2019 and 2020, respectively	687,033	703,806
kTreasury stock, at cost, 609,516 and nil common shares as of		(11,845)
Additional paid-in capital	(28,236)	17,179
Retained earnings	940,304	793,601
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(28,679)	(109,607)
Total Canadian Solar Inc. shareholders' equity	1,570,422	1,393,134
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY	$ 1,940,121	$ 1,832,860

Financial Statement Schedule I - BALANCE SHEETS Additional Information (Details) - $ / shares	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019
Condensed Financial Statements
Common share, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 0	$ 0
Common shares, shares issued (in shares)	59,820,384	59,371,684
Common shares, shares outstanding (in shares)	59,820,384	59,371,684
Parent Company
Condensed Financial Statements
Treasury Stock, Common, Shares		609,516
Reportable Legal Entities [Member] \| Parent Company
Condensed Financial Statements
Common share, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 0
Common shares, shares issued (in shares)	59,820,384	59,371,684
Common shares, shares outstanding (in shares)	59,820,384	59,371,684
Treasury Stock, Common, Shares	0

Financial Statement Schedule I - STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Condensed Financial Statements
Net revenues	$ 3,476,495	$ 3,200,583	$ 3,744,512
Cost of revenues	2,786,581	2,482,086	2,969,430
Gross profit	689,914	718,497	775,082
Operating expenses:
General and administrative expenses	225,597	242,783	245,376
Research and development expenses	45,167	47,045	44,193
Other operating loss, net	(25,523)	(10,536)	(44,546)
Total operating expenses	469,484	459,618	410,425
Income (loss) from operations	220,430	258,879	364,657
Other income (expenses):
Interest expense	(71,874)	(81,326)	(106,032)
Interest income	9,306	12,039	11,207
(Loss) gain on change in fair value of derivatives, net	50,001	(22,218)	(19,230)
Foreign exchange gain (loss)	(64,820)	10,370	6,529
Investment (loss) gain	(8,559)	1,929	41,361
Other income (expenses), net:	(85,946)	(79,206)	(66,165)
Income (loss) before income taxes and equity in earnings (loss) of subsidiaries and unconsolidated investees	134,484	179,673	298,492
Income tax (expense) benefit	1,983	(42,066)	(61,969)
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc.	146,703	171,585	237,070
Reportable Legal Entities [Member] \| Parent Company
Condensed Financial Statements
Net revenues	2,170	4,351	86,755
Cost of revenues		4,188	53,926
Gross profit	2,170	163	32,829
Operating expenses:
Selling and distribution expenses	2,174	1,727	2,518
General and administrative expenses	49,688	29,093	18,970
Research and development expenses	692	462	795
Other operating loss, net			77
Total operating expenses	52,554	31,282	22,360
Income (loss) from operations	(50,384)	(31,119)	10,469
Other income (expenses):
Interest expense	(9,628)	(3,005)	(9,170)
Interest income	30,536	25,272	32,370
(Loss) gain on change in fair value of derivatives, net	25,341	(5,193)	(2,671)
Foreign exchange gain (loss)	13,768	(11,318)	22,255
Investment (loss) gain		(116,879)
Other income (expenses), net:	60,017	(111,123)	42,784
Income (loss) before income taxes and equity in earnings (loss) of subsidiaries and unconsolidated investees	9,633	(142,242)	53,253
Income tax (expense) benefit	(34,223)	5,230	(12,133)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries	171,293	308,597	195,950
Net income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc.	$ 146,703	$ 171,585	$ 237,070

Financial Statement Schedule I - STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Condensed Financial Statements
Net income	$ 147,246	$ 166,555	$ 242,431
Other comprehensive income (loss) (net of tax of nil)	76,188	319	(50,577)
Comprehensive income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc.	227,631	172,127	180,955
Reportable Legal Entities [Member] \| Parent Company
Condensed Financial Statements
Net income	146,703	171,585	237,070
Other comprehensive income (loss) (net of tax of nil)	80,928	542	(56,115)
Comprehensive income attributable to Canadian Solar Inc.	$ 227,631	$ 172,127	$ 180,955

- Definition

The consolidated profit or loss for the period, net of income taxes, including the portion attributable to the noncontrolling interest.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 235
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.4-08(g)(1)(ii))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120395691&loc=d3e23780-122690

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 220
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-Section 45
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Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
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Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
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-Topic 825
-SubTopic 10
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Reference 7: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
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+ Details

Financial Statement Schedule I - STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Operating activities:
Net income	$ 147,246	$ 166,555	$ 242,431
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	209,118	159,723	129,256
Accretion of convertible notes	388
Loss (gain) on change in fair value of derivatives	(50,001)	22,218	19,230
Share-based compensation	12,350	10,682	10,258
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable trade	65,379	51,670	(179,607)
Amounts due from related parties	26,828	(17,347)	9,237
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	(72,188)	33,283	(2,208)
Other non-current assets	(11,913)	(24,037)	9,387
Accounts payable	(89,180)	209,175	47,756
Amounts due to related parties	(9,773)	(5,798)	10,467
Liability for uncertain tax positions	(623)	(4,775)	10,863
Net deferred tax assets	(21,439)	(12,455)	37,591
Net settlement of derivatives	33,054	(27,012)	28,731
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities	(120,541)	600,111	216,280
Investing activities:
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	(319,662)	(294,102)	29,071
Financing activities:
Repayment of short-term borrowings	(1,561,597)	(1,649,721)	(2,368,967)
Proceeds from changes in ownership interests in subsidiaries without change of control	261,332	11,488	10,470
(Repayment of) proceeds from convertible notes		(127,500)
Proceeds from exercise of stock options	1,035	875	769
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities	823,501	(34,614)	(463,613)
Effect of exchange rate changes	50,997	(6,965)	(38,725)
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	434,295	264,430	(256,987)
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year	1,205,420	940,990	1,190,134
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year	1,639,715	1,205,420	940,990
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Interest paid (net of amounts capitalized)	78,747	85,362	103,236
Parent Company \| Reportable Legal Entities [Member]
Operating activities:
Net income	146,703	171,585	237,070
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	156	154	21
Accretion of convertible notes	388
Loss on disposal of subsidiaries		116,879
Loss (gain) on change in fair value of derivatives	(25,341)	5,193	2,671
Allowance for credit losses	357	(83)	(212)
Equity in earnings of subsidiaries	(171,293)	(308,597)	(195,950)
Share-based compensation	12,350	10,682	10,259
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Amounts due from related parties	287,865	(43,630)	(184,755)
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	(13,183)	17,012	(7,778)
Other non-current assets	28,459	(1,158)	(149)
Amounts due to related parties	(340,502)	183,675	15,598
Other current liabilities	31,809	(2,707)	(22,058)
Liability for uncertain tax positions	306	408	6,008
Net deferred tax assets	(468)	(1,292)	9,230
Net settlement of derivatives	19,517	(11,125)	21,450
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities	(22,877)	136,996	(108,595)
Investing activities:
Investment in subsidiaries	(126,487)	(36,146)	(1,051)
Investments in affiliates	(2,766)	(2,483)
Funding of loans to subsidiaries	(264,848)	(40,600)	(94,000)
Repayment of loans from subsidiaries	20,485	12,809	375,635
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	(373,616)	(66,420)	280,584
Financing activities:
Repayment of short-term borrowings	30,000		(151,000)
Proceeds from (repayment of) long-term borrowings		50,000
Proceeds from changes in ownership interests in subsidiaries without change of control	224,553
(Repayment of) proceeds from convertible notes	222,826
Payments of issuance costs on convertible notes		(127,500)
Payments for repurchase of treasury stock	(5,963)	(11,845)
Proceeds from exercise of stock options	1,035	875	769
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities	472,451	(88,470)	(150,231)
Effect of exchange rate changes	(43,246)	11,110	(29,618)
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	32,712	(6,784)	(7,860)
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year	2,313	9,097	16,957
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year	35,025	2,313	9,097
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Interest paid (net of amounts capitalized)	$ 7,966	$ 4,644	$ 10,154

Appendix 1 - Major Subsidiaries of CSI (Details)	12 Months Ended
Appendix 1 - Major Subsidiaries of CSI (Details)	Dec. 31, 2020
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
CSI Cells Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	79.59%
Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Luoyang) Inc.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Changshu) Inc.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
CSI Cells Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar (USA) Inc.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Japan K.K.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Solutions Inc.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar EMEA GmbH
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar (Australia) Pty Limited
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar International Limited
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar International Limited \| CSI Solar Power Group Co., Ltd. (formerly named/known as "CSI Solar Power (China) Inc.")
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	79.59%
Canadian Solar O and M (Ontario) Inc.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Suzhou Sanysolar Materials Technology Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar South East Asia Pte. Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Brazil Commerce, Import and Export of Solar Panels Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Construction (USA) LLC
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Project K.K.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar UK Projects Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Changsu Tegu New Material Technology Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Changshu Tlian Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Recurrent Energy, LLC
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Manufacturing Vietnam Co., Ltd
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Energy Private Limited
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar MSS (Australia) Pty Ltd (formerly named/known as "Canadian Solar Australia 1 Pty Ltd.")
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Manufacturing (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	99.99992%
Canadian Solar Sunenergy (Baotou) Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
CSI Solar New Energy (Suzhou) Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	90.00%
CSI Cells (Yanchang) Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	70.00%
Canadian Solar Middle East DMCC
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
CSI Investment Management (SuZhou) Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Construction (Australia) Pty Ltd
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
CSUK Energy Systems Construction and Generation JSC
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
CSI Modules (JiaXing) Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
CSI Wafer (LuoYang) Co., Ltd.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Argentina Investment Holding Ltd
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar New Energy Holding Company Limited [Member]
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Energy Holding Singapore Pte. Ltd. [Member]
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar Netherlands Cooperative U.A.
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%
Canadian Solar SSES (Canada) Inc. [Member]
Major Subsidiaries of CSI
Attributable Equity Interest Held (as a percent)	100.00%