SunPower announced yesterday it had secured a contract to provide its solar panel technology for generating up to 200 megawatts, or 80 percent, of the solar power capacity needed for Southern California Edison’s (SCE) major solar photovoltaic installation program.
Over the next five years, SCE plans to install, own and operate 250 megawatts of solar generating capacity, most of it on otherwise unused large warehouse rooftops. Each system will be connected to neighbourhood grids.
SCE is purchasing the SunPower T5 Solar Roof Tile product. This combines SunPower solar panels with frame and mounting system manufactured from glass-filled polymer that is nonreactive, eliminating need for electrical grounding of array. The tiles interlock for wind resistance and to secure installation. System design is adaptable to any flat or low-slope rooftop and features smooth-edged, lightweight polymer material that protects the roof on which it is installed.
In addition, the SunPower product was selected because it will allow SCE to produce more power per installation.
Earlier this week, SunPower and Italy’s K6 S.a.S. announced an agreement under which the companies are building two 1-megawatt photovoltaic (PV) solar farms in the Puglia region, Italy. SunPower solar panels will be used in conjunction with proprietary SunPower(R) T20 Tracker technology. The tracking system follows the sun during the day and SunPower says the systems deliver up to 30 percent more energy than fixed-tilt systems, requiring only half the land area to produce the same amount of energy as conventional dual-axis trackers. The two plants will be complete by August 2010.
SunPower says it now has more than 200 megawatts of solar power plants operating globally today, including Italy’s largest solar power plant, the 24-megawatt plant in Montalto di Castro. In February, SunPower signed an agreement to acquire SunRay Renewable Energy and upon closing the transaction, the company will acquire a project pipeline of solar PV projects totalling more than 1,200 megawatts (MW) in Italy, France, Israel, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Greece.
