Mr. Nick Blitterswyk reports

UGE ANNOUNCES Q3 2023 MILESTONES AND BUSINESS UPDATES

UGE International Ltd. has provided milestones and business updates for the third quarter ending Sept. 30, 2023.

UGE's largest rooftop community solar project reaches NTP, appraised at $3.9-million (U.S.)

During the quarter, UGE achieved the notice to proceed (NTP) milestone for a rooftop community solar project in New York totalling 1.4 megawatts, the company's largest rooftop project to reach NTP since it transitioned to an independent power producer (IPP) model. The NTP milestone indicates that financing for the project has closed and all necessary permits and interconnection approvals for the project are in place.

An independent third party appraised the project at a value of $2.82 (U.S.) per watt, for a total project value of $3.9-million (U.S.). UGE will receive a grant through New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)'s Clean Energy Communities program which is designed to help incentivize, among other clean energy priorities, the development of community solar programs and specifically those which serve low-to-moderate-income (LMI) communities. UGE's grant is expected to total $1.7-million (U.S.).

The project will join UGE's LMI program, meaning that at least 30 per cent of the energy generated by the project will be reserved for LMI households. Strengthening renewable energy equity is one of UGE's guiding goals; the company's stated target is for more than 25 per cent of the offtake from its operational portfolio to serve LMI households by 2026.

On Oct. 10, soon after the close of the third quarter, the company achieved NTP for a 3.5 MW community solar project in Oregon. The project marks UGE's first in Oregon and is the company's largest project to reach the NTP milestone since transitioning to the IPP model. The project is scheduled to reach commercial operation in June, 2024.

With the Oregon project, UGE has reached NTP on 18.1 MW of projects so far in 2023.

Three rooftop projects near completion, appraised at $5.1-million (U.S.)

Three rooftop community solar projects totalling 1.8 MW are in the late stages of construction and are currently anticipated to reach commercial operation before the end of this year. The first of these three projects, a one MW installation atop a school fieldhouse, is set to become Maine's largest rooftop community solar project when it goes live at the end of October.

The other two projects, both located in the greater New York area, will offset energy costs and carbon emissions for wireless provider T-Mobile as part of a continuing partnership announced in November, 2021. UGE will reserve 50 per cent of the projects' energy output for LMI subscribers, allowing these households and businesses to save 10 per cent on their electricity costs.

UGE had all three projects appraised by an independent third party, for a cumulative total value of $5.1-million (U.S.). The two New York projects will receive NYSERDA Clean Energy Communities grants, which are expected to total $413,500 (U.S.).

Backlog risk management strengthened

In the third quarter, UGE devoted its origination efforts to further strengthening and formalizing the risk management standards a project must meet before officially entering the company's backlog. While this process resulted in some projects moving out of the backlog for further review, these exercises will ultimately lead to faster development timelines and higher returns for UGE's portfolio of projects as a whole. On Sept. 30, 2023, the company's backlog totalled 343 MW.

UGE's stage 3.0 development pipeline, which represents projects with site control secured but yet to receive investment committee approval, grew by 16 MW in Q3 to now total 621 MW. As of Sept. 30, 2023, the company has a predevelopment pipeline (stages 1 and 2) of over two gigawatts, as well.

On Aug. 24, UGE closed an overnight marketed offering of debentures (green bonds) for aggregate gross proceeds of $5,749,655 (U.S.). The offering was conducted by a syndicate of underwriters led by Canaccord Genuity Corp. On Oct. 10, the company announced another such marketed offering of up to $5-million (U.S.) in project development green bonds, also led by Canaccord Genuity. The offering is expected to close on or about Oct. 30.

Additionally, during the third quarter, UGE closed on construction, term and tax equity financing for six projects located across the country, including New York, Texas and Oregon.

About UGE International Ltd.

UGE develops, owns and operates commercial and community solar and battery storage projects. Its distributed energy solutions deliver cheaper, cleaner energy to businesses and consumers with no upfront cost. With over 500 MW of global experience, UGE works daily to power a more sustainable world.

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