JinkoSolar has unveiled plans to issue global depository receipts (GDRs) on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange to raise €580 million ($627.6 million).
The board of JinkoSolar has approved a proposal to issue GDRs on the Frankfurt stock exchange. The GDR, backed by newly issued A shares in China, mark an important step in the company’s overseas expansion.
The funds, capped at CNY4.5 billion, will support various projects. JinkoSolar plans to invest CNY500 million in a 1 GW advanced solar panel manufacturing facility in Florida. It will use an additional CNY2.74 billion to finance the second phase of its 56 GW integrated manufacturing project in Shanxi Province, China, which includes a 14 GW module manufacturing plant. The remaining CNY 1.26 billion will go to working capital and debt repayment.
The Shanxi project, announced in May 2023, will be the world’s largest integrated solar energy manufacturing base, with a capacity of 56 GW and a total investment of CNY 56 billion. It will combine the production of wafers, cells and modules, with a focus on n-type solar technology.
GDR’s issuance plan has been approved by JinkoSolar’s board, but still needs approval from shareholders, the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) and German regulators, including the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin).
JinkoSolar said the new A-shares represented by the GDR will not exceed 10% of the total share capital before the issuance. The company also warned that the issuance could dilute earnings per share and return on equity in the near term.
If successful, JinkoSolar will be the first Chinese solar company to be listed on the stock exchanges of China, the United States and Germany, setting a new precedent in the global solar industry.
This announcement follows a similar move by Sungrow, a Chinese solar inverter manufacturer, which plans to issue GDRs in Frankfurt to raise CNY4.88 billion to support its energy storage business and inverter manufacturing.
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