CALGARY, Alberta, Dec. 09, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Canadian Premium Sand Inc. (“CPS” or the “Company”) (TSXV: CPS) is pleased to announce that it has chosen the City of Selkirk, Manitoba as the preferred location for its solar glass manufacturing facility. The decision follows an extensive evaluation of possible options in Canada and the United States. Selkirk provides logistical, operational efficiency and environmental advantages over alternatives and meets the following key selection criteria:
- Proximity to CPS’s high grade silica sand quarry operation. The quarry is located near Hollow Water First Nation and the community of Seymourville, approximately 160 kilometers north of Selkirk;
- Access to abundant and cost-efficient supplies of natural gas, renewable hydroelectricity and industrial grade water;
- Access to end markets through rail and highway infrastructure with direct connection to the major logistics hub in Winnipeg, Manitoba;
- Access to a sizeable labour pool encompassing management, engineering, technical, trades and semi-skilled personnel;
- Availability of industrial zoned land parcels of sufficient size to accommodate the initial manufacturing facility with room to accommodate CPS’s growth ambitions for future facilities; and
- Alignment with the community’s vision of sustainable and responsible commercial development for the next 30+ years.
The Company’s manufacturing facility will produce high specification patterned solar glass utilizing a rolled manufacturing process and will provide approximately 300 direct employment opportunities once in operation. CPS's products will predominately be used in the manufacture of solar panels in North America — a rapidly expanding industry driven by an objective to decarbonize the electrical grid with solar power’s proportional contribution increasing from 5% today to as much as 40% by 2035.
“It is difficult to imagine a better location than the City of Selkirk and the Province of Manitoba for our solar glass manufacturing facility based on the criteria we set. Collaborating with the City of Selkirk has been extremely positive, highly professional and I commend their drive to realize their community’s vision for sustainable economic development," stated Glenn Leroux, President and CEO of CPS.
Currently, there are no facilities in North America that produce this type of glass. All solar panels manufactured in North America using patterned solar glass are made with glass imported from China and other Asia Pacific countries. Locating a solar glass manufacturing facility in Selkirk will add significantly to the sustainability and supply chain security for CPS’s solar panel manufacturing clients. Additionally, CPS believes its glass manufacturing facility will be the anchor industry for an expanding centre of excellence, enabling other complementary businesses to locate in Manitoba.
"We are very pleased CPS has selected Selkirk to build and operate its solar glass facility," explains Tim Feduniw, the Director of Sustainable Economic Development at the City of Selkirk. "This initiative aligns with our commitment to sustainable development and will create significant economic benefits for our community. The City of Selkirk is committed to working with CPS in securing a suitable site within urban limits that supports and enables the successful launch of this initiative."
The Company’s solar glass project would not be possible without the support of its Participation Agreement partners; the Hollow Water First Nation and the incorporated community of Seymourville. These communities have a historic relationship with Selkirk and the supply of silica sand to industry from nearby Black Island dating back to the 1920s through to the 1980s.
“We have received encouragement, understanding and patience from leadership groups in both communities as we transitioned our business plan from a focus on fracture proppant to our future Selkirk-based solar glass manufacturing facility,” notes Mr. Leroux. “We will continue to work closely with the communities as we bring this project from planning into operation.”
About Canadian Premium Sand Inc.
The Company is developing manufacturing capacity for high-clarity solar glass through a Company-owned facility in Selkirk, Manitoba that utilizes the high-purity, low-iron silica sand from its wholly-owned Wanipigow quarry leases. The Company is a reporting issuer in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia. Its shares trade on the TSXV under the symbol "CPS".
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Canadian Premium Sand Inc.
Glenn Leroux
President and Chief Executive Officer
glenn.leroux@cpsmail.com
Investor Relations
IR@cpsmail.com
587.355.3714
Forward Looking Information
Certain statements contained in this press release constitute forward-looking statements relating to, without limitation, expectations, intentions, plans and beliefs, including information as to the future events, results of operations and the Company’s future performance (both operational and financial) and business prospects. In certain cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as “expects”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates”, “believes”, “plans”, “seeks”, “projects” or variations of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results “may” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved. Such forward-looking statements reflect the Company's beliefs, estimates and opinions regarding its future growth, results of operations, future performance (both operational and financial), and business prospects and opportunities at the time such statements are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or circumstances should change. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions made by the Company that are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. In particular, this press release contains forward-looking statements pertaining, but not limited, to: the anticipated logistical, operational efficiency, environmental advantages and other benefits of Selkirk as the location for the Company's solar glass manufacturing facility including proximity to CPS’s high grade silica sand quarry operation, access to abundant and cost-efficient supplies of natural gas, renewable hydroelectricity and industrial grade water, access to end markets through rail and highway infrastructure with direct connection to the major logistics hub in Winnipeg, Manitoba; access to a sizeable labour pool encompassing management, engineering, technical, trades and semi-skilled personnel, availability of industrial zoned land parcels of sufficient size to accommodate the initial manufacturing facility with room to accommodate CPS’s growth ambitions for future facilities and alignment with the community’s vision of sustainable and responsible commercial development; the ability to produce high specification patterned solar glass from the solar glass manufacturing facility; the number of employment opportunities once in operation; the markets in which CPS's products will be used; the characteristics of the solar glass industry and its objectives; the anticipated benefits to the sustainability and supply chain security for CPS’s solar panel manufacturing clients; the belief that CPS' glass manufacturing facility will be the anchor industry for an expanding centre of excellence, enabling other complementary businesses to locate in Manitoba; projections about the solar glass market; future development plans; industry activity levels; industry conditions pertaining to the solar glass manufacturing industry; the ability of and manner by which the Company expects to meet its capital needs; and the Company's objectives, strategies and competitive strengths.
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve numerous current assumptions, known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company and described in the forward-looking statements.
The forward-looking information and statements contained in this document speak only as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to publicly update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required pursuant to applicable laws.
Market, Independent Third Party and Industry Data
Certain market, independent third-party and industry data contained in this press release is based upon information from government or other independent industry publications and reports or based on estimates derived from such publications and reports. Government and industry publications and reports generally indicate that they have obtained their information from sources believed to be reliable, but the Company has not conducted its own independent verification of such information. This press release also includes certain data derived from public filings made by independent third parties. While the Company believes this data to be reliable, market and industry data is subject to variations and cannot be verified with complete certainty due to limits on the availability and reliability of raw data, the voluntary nature of the data gathering process and other limitations and uncertainties inherent in any statistical survey. The Company has not independently verified any of the data from independent third-party sources referred to in this press release or ascertained the underlying assumptions relied upon by such sources.
