Mount Diablo Unified School District Awards Largest Solar School Contract to SunPower

11.2 Megawatt Contract is the Largest Issued by a School District in the U.S.; $192 Million in Savings Expected Over 30 Years

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SunPower Corp.

Dec 02, 2010, 08:00 ET

SAN JOSE, Calif., Dec. 2, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Mount Diablo Unified School District and SunPower Corp. (Nasdaq: SPWRA, SPWRB) today announced an award to SunPower for the design, installation and maintenance of solar power systems at 51 schools, totaling 11.2 megawatts of solar capacity. Resulting from a rigorous selection process, the agreement is the largest contract issued to install solar by a school district in the U.S., and is expected to save the district $192 million over the 30-year life of the systems.

"Motivated by the promise of significant cost savings, the Mount Diablo Unified School District began investigating solar energy over 18 months ago," says School Board Vice President Gary Eberhart. "We are very excited to team with SunPower to bring the largest K-12 solar project in the country to fruition. We are delivering substantial savings to our general fund, which will preserve financial resources and help our schools maintain an emphasis on academic performance. Saving our schools' money, while reducing emissions, is the right thing to do for our students and the environment."

"The Mount Diablo Unified School District is capturing a great opportunity to reduce its utility costs while helping the state meet its renewable energy goals," said Jim Pape, president of SunPower's residential and commercial business group. "It is especially rewarding to see the high efficiency solar technology developed here in California by SunPower, now being deployed to deliver tremendous benefits to California schools. SunPower's technology, experience and service capabilities will serve to ensure Mount Diablo Unified achieves impressive long term savings."

The solar systems by SunPower, to be completed in phases through early 2012, will be shade structures installed in school parking lots and hard court areas. The systems will be financed through Clean Renewable Energy Bonds (CREBs) secured by the district under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. CREBs are beneficial to school districts because most of the interest is paid by the federal government. The interest-rate paid by the district is about 1.7 percent.

SunPower has more than 550 large scale solar power systems in operation or under contract globally. In the last year in California, educational customers have included the Los Angeles Unified School District, San Ramon Valley Unified School District, University of California, Merced, Bakersfield College and Mendocino College.

About Mount Diablo Unified School District

Nestled at the base of Mt. Diablo in the suburban East San Francisco Bay Area, the Mt. Diablo Unified School District can be characterized as a representative California microcosm. Mt. Diablo is one of the largest school districts in the state of California, with over 56 school sites and programs. The district's statistics for ethnic/racial diversity, average class size, test scores, numbers of Limited English Proficient (LEP) students and the primary languages they represent, mirror those for the State of California as a whole.

About SunPower

Founded in 1985, SunPower Corp. (Nasdaq: SPWRA, SPWRB) designs, manufactures and delivers the planet's most powerful solar technology broadly available today. Residential, business, government and utility customers rely on the company's experience and proven results to maximize return on investment. With headquarters in San Jose, Calif., SunPower has offices in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia. For more information, visit www.sunpowercorp.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are statements that do not represent historical facts and may be based on underlying assumptions. The company uses words and phrases such as "award to," "expected," "to be completed" and "will" to identify forward-looking statements in this press release, including forward-looking statements regarding (a) design, installation and maintenance of solar power plants totaling 11.2 megawatts by SunPower and (b) the expected completion date in early 2012. Such forward-looking statements are based on information available to the company as of the date of this release and involve a number of risks and uncertainties, some beyond the company's control, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by these forward-looking statements, including risks and uncertainties such as: (i) construction difficulties or potential delays in the project implementation process; (ii) unanticipated delays or difficulties securing necessary permits, licenses or other governmental approvals; (iii) the risk of continuation of supply of products and components from suppliers; (iv) unanticipated problems with deploying the system on the site; and (v) other risks described in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 3, 2010 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended October 3, 2010, and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the company's views as of any subsequent date, and the company is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any responsibility to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SunPower is a registered trademark of SunPower Corp. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE SunPower Corp.