Intersolar North America Announces 2014 AWARD Finalists

SAN FRANCISCO, May 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Intersolar North America, the most attended industry exhibition and conference in North America for solar professionals to exchange information and develop business opportunities, unveiled the finalists for the Intersolar AWARD for Solar Projects in North America: Eaton, Princeton Power Systems, Inc., Solaire Generation, Inc., Trina Solar, and First Solar, Inc. The Solar Projects in North America AWARD winners will be announced during a special ceremony on-site at Intersolar North America's exhibition hall, Moscone Center West, on July 8.

The Intersolar AWARD, now in its seventh year, promotes the industry's power to innovate. The Solar Projects in North America category recognizes landmark projects that exemplify a high degree of technological innovation, uniqueness, economic feasibility and benefit to the environment and society. Winners are selected by an independent committee of industry experts and are announced each July in San Francisco.

The 2014 Solar Projects in North America AWARD finalists include:

• Eaton's Hyder II Solar Power Plant (Yuma County, Ariz.): For this 200 MWp utility-scale
  project, Eaton used a direct-coupled throat connection between the PV modules and inverters. The project reduced cable losses and saved on construction costs by avoiding the need to dig trenches.
• Princeton Power Systems Alcatraz Project (San Francisco): To install an independent power system on the landmark Alcatraz Island in the San Francisco Bay, developers had to design the system so it could not be spotted from the mainland. They also needed to carefully integrate battery-storage and fuel back-up systems. Once completed, the PV system eliminated more than 80 percent of the fossil fuels previously used to power the island and now educates visitors on the benefits of solar power.
• Solaire Generation's Whole Food Market Solar Carport (Brooklyn, N.Y.): Part of a sustainable roofing system, PV modules are combined with a partial glass roof to utilize the sun for heat and power. Visitors of the store can see first hand the benefits of solar energy.
• Trina Solar's Oshman Family Jewish Community Center Project (Palo Alto, Calif.): This project exemplifies unique project financing – the project tapped private funds for a power purchase agreement rather than a lending structure typical of smaller distributed projects. The Oshman Family project now provides the community center with solar energy for $0.04 a kWh, the lowest cost of solar on public record in California.
• First Solar's Agua Caliente Solar Project (Yuma County, Ariz.): Located 65 miles east of Yuma in Arizona on neglected arable land, this project is one of the world's largest, producing 290 MW. The project comprises nearly five million thin-film solar modules and includes a unique power plant instrumentation and control system.

Visitors interested in attending the Intersolar AWARD ceremony can find more information on the Intersolar website. The ceremony will take place on-site at Intersolar North America; the time and location on the exhibition floor will be announced in the coming weeks. In the afternoon preceding the AWARD ceremony, finalists will give short presentations about their outstanding projects.

Presentation of the Intersolar AWARD categories Photovoltaics, Solar Projects in Europe, as well as the winners of the electrical energy storage (ees) AWARD will take place at Intersolar Europe in Munich on Wednesday June 4^th at 4:30 p.m. at the Innovation Exchange (Hall A3, booth A3.550). Information on all the finalists can be found online.

Intersolar exhibitors and ees exhibitors can register for individual Intersolar AWARD categories and the electrical energy storage (ees) AWARD year round by visiting www.intersolarglobal.com/award. Applications for the Solar Projects in India category may be submitted from July 1 to September 12, 2014.

About Intersolar North America
With events spanning four continents, Intersolar is the world's leading exhibition series for the solar industry and its partners. It unites people and companies from around the world with the aim of increasing the share of solar power in our energy supply.

Since its establishment in 2008, Intersolar North America has become the most attended solar event and the premier networking platform for the North American solar industry. Co-located with SEMICON West, it takes place annually at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California, the United States' pioneering solar market.

The event's exhibition and conference both focus on the areas of photovoltaics, PV production
technologies, energy storage and solar thermal technologies. Since being founded, Intersolar has
become the most important industry platform for manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, service
providers and partners of the solar industry.

A total of 576 exhibitors and 17,163 trade visitors participated in Intersolar North America in 2013. The conference featured more than 50 sessions with more than 200 speakers and approximately 1,600 attendees.

With more than 20 years of experience, Intersolar has the unique ability to bring together members of the solar industry from across the world's most influential markets. Intersolar exhibitions and
conferences are held in Munich, San Francisco, Mumbai, Beijing and Sao Paulo. Starting in 2014, these global events will be complemented by the Intersolar Summits, which will take place in emerging and growing markets worldwide.

For more information on Intersolar North America, please visit: www.intersolar.us

Organizers: Intersolar North America is organized by Solar Promotion International GmbH, Pforzheim and Freiburg Management and Marketing International GmbH (FMMI).

SOURCE Intersolar North America