San Jose, Calif., Oct. 28, 2013 – SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR), a Silicon Valley-based leading solar technology and energy services company, and its manufacturing partner, Flextronics (NASDAQ: FLEX), today celebrated the production milestone of the 500,000 solar panel manufactured at the Flextronics facility in Milpitas, California.
Dedicated in April 2011, the plant employs more than 100 people and produces between 80 and 90 megawatts (MW) annually, depending on the size of the solar panel being produced. Manufactured at this facility is the high efficiency, most reliable SunPower E-Series Solar Panel produced in two configurations: 128 cells for solar power plants, and 96 cells for the commercial and residential markets.
“With this U.S. manufacturing facility, and others like it around the globe, SunPower delivers our high efficiency, most reliable solar panels close to growing markets,” said Marty Neese, SunPower COO. “From the start, the Flextronics team quickly brought this plant on-line, with full production less than four months after the first panel was produced. The integrity that these workers continually demonstrate has created a quality workforce that delivers SunPower’s premium product.”
In addition to high demand for SunPower panels for the residential market, some of the utility and commercial sites with California-made panels include:
- California Valley Solar Ranch in San Luis Obispo is one of the world’s largest solar power plants and is expected to be completed by the end of the year. It is already providing power into the grid through PG&E.
- San Ramon Valley Unified School District with 3.3 MW over five schools, covers172,240 square feet. Over the systems’ 25-year life, the District is expected to save more than $20 million in electricity costs that can be directed back into its general fund.
- Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority is supplying 2.1 MW to three San Jose bus stations and is expected to save $2.7 million in electricity costs over the next 20 years
“Today’s milestone is a great accomplishment for both companies,” said Jeannine Sargent, Flextronics President, Energy. “Flextronics is extremely proud to help SunPower in its goal to manufacture clean, renewable solar energy for local customers in Silicon Valley, surrounding communities and throughout the U.S.”
About SunPower
SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) designs, manufactures and delivers the highest efficiency, highest reliability solar panels and systems available today. Residential, business, government and utility customers rely on the company's quarter century of experience and guaranteed performance to provide maximum return on investment throughout the life of the solar system. Headquartered in San Jose, Calif., SunPower has offices in North America, Europe, Australia, Africa and Asia. For more information, visit www.sunpower.com.
About Flextronics
Flextronics International Ltd. (Company Registration No. 199002645H) is a leading end-to-end supply chain solutions company that delivers design, engineering, manufacturing and logistics services to a range of industries and end-markets, including data networking, telecom, enterprise computing and storage, industrial, capital equipment, appliances, automation, medical, automotive, aerospace and defense, energy, mobile, computing and other electronic product categories. Flextronics is an industry leader with $24 billion in sales, generated from helping its customers design, build, ship, and service their products through an unparalleled network of facilities in more than 30 countries and across four continents. Flextronics’ service offerings and vertically integrated component technologies optimize customer supply chains by lowering costs, increasing flexibility, and reducing time-to-market. For more information, visit www.flextronics.com or follow us on Twitter @flextronics.
SunPower is a registered trademark of SunPower Corp. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Contacts:
Helen Kendrick, SunPower
helen.kendrick@sunpower.com
(408) 240-5585
Renee Brotherton-Flextronics
Corporate Communications
(408) 576-7189
renee.brotherton@flextronics.com
Kevin Kessel-Flextronics
Investor Relations
(408) 576-7985
kevin.kessel@flextronics.com