Thursday, January 1, 2009

Solar Energy Field, Solar Cell Category

Debra Poneman, Emcee

We honor SunPower for their industry leadership in crystalline silicon solar PV technology, pushing the bar on PV performance to regions many experts thought would be unachievable.

SunPower has recently announced average cell efficiencies off their new commercial line in the 23.4% regime—the highest for any crystalline Si product anywhere. They lead the industry in this technology indicator.

SunPower has also had the first confirmed Si commercial module exceeding 20% efficiency — regarded as a major benchmark toward high-performance electricity generation. They have accomplished this with an integration of excellent science, cell engineering and innovation, and the implementation of quality controls that are models for the industry.