Longi Solar, a subsidiary of Longi Green Energy Technology Co, Ltd, has recorded its highest-ever bankability rating in the recently released Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) Solar Module & Inverter Bankability 2019 ratings.
BNEF surveyed banks, funds, developers, engineering, procurement and construction service providers and technical due diligence firms to discover which brands of the 48 module manufacturers examined it considered bankable – reliable for use in solar projects with non-recourse debt.
In the 2019 results, Longi rose significantly to 91%, its highest bankability rating ever and a clear indication of Longi’s maturity as an established brand in the industry.
Longi also received a “star”, indicating it is a “top performer” in terms of the PV Evolution Labs (PVEL) 2019 PV Module Reliability Scorecard.
Longi modules earned “top performer” status across all four PVEL test categories – for damp heat, thermal cycling, mechanical load and potential induced degradation (PID).
BNEF also named the “top 15 PV module brands used in term-loan financed projects” since July 1,2017. The leading three brands supplied almost 5 GW of term financed deals. Longi was the second most used brand, with 1,447 MW worth of deals financed.
Longi was also ranked most creditworthy module manufacturer.
BNEF uses the AltmanZ score – a combination of financial ratios – to assess the creditworthiness of manufacturers. It is an indicator of the risk of a company filing for bankruptcy in the subsequent two years.
Longi was assessed with a score of 3.1, which indicates strong financial health and that bankruptcy would be highly unlikely. Longi’s Altman-Z score was the highest among pure play module manufacturers.
In addition to Longi’s bankability and reliability, the firm is also operating at scale as one of the largest solar manufacturers both in terms of existing and planned production capacity. According to PV Tech’s ongoing analysis of global capacity expansion announcements, LONGi Solar’s total nameplate module assembly capacity should exceed 13 GW in 2019 and will become the world’s largest module manufacturer with its latest expansion.
