SunPower to Build 100-Megawatt Solar Power Plant for NV Energy

SAN JOSE, Calif., July 23, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- SunPower (Nasdaq: SPWR) announced today that it has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with NV Energy to build a 100-megawatt solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant planned for construction in the Eldorado Valley of Boulder City, Nevada.

"Today, power generated from solar plants is cost-competitive with power from traditional, fossil fuel burning plants – and becoming more cost-competitive every day," said Tom Werner, SunPower CEO and president. "Increasingly, utilities are adding solar to their energy mix to ensure their customers are taking advantage of the reliable and emission-free power of the sun. We are pleased to partner again with NV Energy to enable more Nevada homes and businesses to take advantage of the state's abundant solar resource."

The project, called Boulder Solar, is expected to create approximately 200 jobs during construction, which is anticipated to commence before the end of 2015, with commercial operation planned in 2016. Once it is operational, the project is expected to generate enough electricity to serve the needs of more than 15,000 homes, based on estimates provided by the Solar Energy Industries Association.

SunPower acquired the project from KOMIPO America, Inc. earlier this year. KOMIPO America is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Korea Midland Power Co., Ltd and was the original lead developer for the Boulder Solar project. KOMIPO America will participate in the construction and operation of the project. The power purchase agreement with NV Energy is subject to approval from Nevada's Public Utilities Commission. SunPower expects to offer the Boulder Solar project for sale to 8point3 Energy Partners LP (Nasdaq: CAFD), the YieldCo joint venture formed by SunPower and First Solar.

At the site, SunPower plans to design and build a SunPower® Oasis® Power Plant system. Oasis is SunPower's fully integrated, modular solar power block solution for utility-scale solar projects that is designed to optimize land use and engineered for rapid, cost-effective installation.

According to estimates provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the completed plant can be expected to offset nearly 192,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, which is the equivalent of removing more than 740,000 cars from Nevada's roads over the next 20 years.

SunPower has two solar power plants under construction currently in Nevada, bringing jobs and economic opportunity to the state. They include a 15-megawatt plant at Nellis Air Force Base and a 19.9-megawatt plant in Lyon County. A 13.2-megawatt SunPower power plant has been operational at Nellis Air Force Base since 2007.

The capacity of power plants described in this release is in approximate megawatts on an alternating current (ac) basis.

About SunPower Corp.

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.

© 2015 SunPower Corporation.  All rights reserved.  SUNPOWER and the SUNPOWER logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of SunPower Corporation in the U.S. and other countries as well.

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 our plans, expectations, objectives and timelines for existing and future project development, construction and outcomes. 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) our liquidity, substantial indebtedness, and our ability to obtain additional financing for our projects and our customers; (2) our ability to meet our cost reduction targets; (3) regulatory developments, including the availability of economic incentives promoting use of solar energy, and regulatory approvals; (4) challenges inherent in constructing and maintaining certain of our large projects; and (5) manufacturing difficulties that could arise; and. 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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SOURCE SunPower Corp.

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