SunPower Breaks Ground on 9.5-Megawatt Solar Project for California Department of Water Resources

SAN JOSE, Calif., May 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- SunPower (Nasdaq: SPWR) announced today that construction has started on a 9.5-megawatt (AC) solar power plant in Los Angeles County, Calif., which will generate power for use by the California Department of Water Resources (DWR). Located on DWR's property adjacent to its Pearblossom Pumping Plant, southeast of Palmdale, the project is expected to be operational by the end of this year.

"This is an important project that will help us achieve our 2050 goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent below 1990 levels," said Veronica Hicks, chief of the State Water Project Power and Risk Office of DWR.

"Solar is cost-competitive with traditional energy sources today, and is helping fiscally responsible public agencies reduce electricity costs to better serve their constituencies," said Howard Wenger, SunPower president, business units. "We commend DWR for managing its significant energy demand by relying on abundant, renewable solar power. The high performance SunPower technology we are installing for the agency will maximize the clean, renewable solar power generated over the long term."

DWR will purchase the power generated by the plant under a power purchase agreement (PPA) with SunPower. The PPA provides DWR with competitive electricity rates. DWR is retaining the renewable energy credits associated with the system.

SunPower designed and is installing a SunPower® Oasis® Power Plant system at the site. Oasis is a fully-integrated, modular solar power block that is engineered for rapid and cost-effective deployment of utility-scale solar projects while optimizing land use. The technology includes robotic solar panel cleaning capability that uses 75 percent less water than traditional cleaning methods and can help improve system performance by up to 15 percent.

SunPower calculates the annual output from the power plant will be equal to the electricity needed to power approximately 8,500 electric vehicles for 30 years. The plant is expected to offset the equivalent amount of annual carbon emissions as 157 acres of preserved U.S. forests can neutralize in one year, according to estimates provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

About SunPower

As one of the world's most innovative and sustainable energy companies, SunPower (Nasdaq: SPWR) provides a diverse group of customers with complete solar solutions and services. Residential customers, businesses, governments, schools and utilities around the globe rely on SunPower's more than 30 years of proven experience. From the first flip of the switch, SunPower delivers maximum value and superb performance throughout the long life of every solar system. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, SunPower has dedicated, customer-focused employees in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South America. For more information about how SunPower is changing the way our world is powered, visit www.sunpower.com.

SunPower's 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 expected project timelines, projected energy output, and expected cost savings. 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: regulatory changes and the availability of economic incentives promoting use of solar energy, challenges inherent in constructing and maintaining certain of our large projects, and fluctuations or declines in the performance of our solar panels and other products and solutions. 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 report on Form 10-K, 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.

©2016 SunPower Corporation.  All Rights Reserved.  SUNPOWER, the SUNPOWER logo, and OASIS are registered trademarks of SunPower Corporation in the U.S. and other countries as well.

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SOURCE SunPower Corp.

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