SunPower expands production capacity to 50 MW

In the second half of 2005, US-headquartered SunPower Corporation will increase its solar cell production capacity to 50 MW. 

The new line will be built inside the 21,000 m² factory of the company's subsidiary, SunPower Manufacturing Ltd., located near the Philippine capital of Manila (see PI 5/2004, p. 62). The first line, which has been in operation since mid-2004, has been ramped up to a nominal capacity of 25 MW, reports SunPower's European sales manager Jörn Jürgens. The building is designed to accommodate further expansion of up to 100 MW: »No definite date is yet set, but further expansion steps will be taken in the near future,« says Jürgens. Last year, SunPower produced 1 MW of cells (see article, p. 66)

The new line will exclusively produce SunPower's proprietary A-300 cells, which have an efficiency of 21.5 percent, making it the world's most efficient solar cell manufactured in mass production.

Anne Kreutzmann
© PHOTON International, March 2005