SunPower Celebrates 30 Years as a Solar Industry Leader

“When I started SunPower with a handful of colleagues 30 years ago, most people did not believe solar power could be a realistic replacement for fossil fuel-generated electricity. Yet today solar is cost-effective, reliable, and in strong demand - and I’m proud of the role SunPower has played to drive that dramatic transformation,” said SunPower Founder Dr. Richard Swanson, a former professor of electrical engineering at Stanford University. “With 7,000 employees, SunPower is innovating relentlessly to ensure that solar is an easily accessible option for residential, commercial and utility customers worldwide.” 

Silicon Valley-based SunPower has celebrated a number of major achievements throughout its history, some of which recently include:

• Collaborating with the world’s most well-respected brands such as Apple, which is investing in 130 megawatts of SunPower systems at eight locations in the U.S. and China
• Installing 98 megawatts of solar that are powering 60 school districts in the U.S. and higher learning institutions like Stanford, where solar power will meet more than half of the university’s total electricity needs
• Producing the only solar panels in the world to be Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Silver -  manufactured in Mexicali, Mexico - reflecting the company’s holistic approach to sustainability
• Securing more than 450 patents, with several receiving the U.S Patent and Trademark Office’s Patents for Humanity award, which recognizes the use of patented technology for social good
• Constructing the world’s largest solar photovoltaic power plant, the 579-megawatt Solar Star Projects in Southern California, with expected completion in 2015
• Delivering one of the world’s largest merchant solar power plants with co-developer and majority owner Total, which is selling unsubsidized renewable electricity on the spot market in Chile

“SunPower is applying our years of experience to continue innovating for the future, giving customers choice and empowering them to take more control of their energy costs,” said Tom Werner, SunPower president and CEO. “We’re proud of our evolution from a solar cell company in an unknown sector to a global industry leader, providing proven energy services and solutions.”

Always looking ahead, SunPower is evolving its business to offer Smart Energy solutions that allow end customers to customize their solar electricity production and consumption profiles through new technologies like battery storage and energy management. The company is also working with utilities to integrate solar and these new technologies to build a stronger, more resilient grid infrastructure.

Learn more about the history of SunPower at http://us.sunpower.com/company/history/.

About SunPower Corporation
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 SunPower’s 30 years 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 and South America, Europe, Australia, Africa and Asia. For more information, visit www.sunpower.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements regarding our plans and objectives for existing and future project development and construction.  These forward-looking statements are based on our current assumptions, expectations and beliefs and involve substantial risks and uncertainties that may cause results, performance or achievement to materially differ from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to: (1) competition in the industry and downward pressure on average selling prices; (2) our liquidity, substantial indebtedness, and our ability to obtain additional financing for our projects and our customers; (3) our ability to meet our cost reduction targets; (4) regulatory changes and the availability of economic incentives promoting use of solar energy; (5) challenges inherent in constructing and maintaining certain of our large projects, such as the Solar Star projects; (6) the success of our ongoing research and development efforts and commercialization of new products and services; (7) fluctuations in our operating results; (8) manufacturing difficulties that could arise; and (9) challenges managing our joint ventures. A detailed discussion of these factors and other risks that affect our business is included in filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from time to time, including our most recent reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q, particularly under the heading “Risk Factors.” Copies of these filings are available online from the SEC or on the SEC Filings section of our Investor Relations website at investors.sunpowercorp.com. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information currently available to us, and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in light of new information or future events.

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