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Sunnyvale, California is the location of the U.S.’s first corporate campus-based solar power system, where Applied Materials has had installed two SunPower technology-based facilities totalling 2.1MW. The two systems comprise a 950KW SunPower PowerGuard installation and a 1.2MW SunPower Tracker installation. SunPower in turn uses Applied Materials’ Baccini Technology in its cell manufacturing process.

The facility’s first phase of installation took place in November 2007, since which date a total of 1,413 megawatt hours of power has been generated, according to the company. Applied also welcomed the support of the government in its investment in the project via the proposed extension of the ITC, which encourages and supports deployment of renewable energy systems throughout the U.S.

"More companies are realizing the wisdom of integrating solar as a non-intrusive, clean, silent form of energy generation into our businesses and communities,” said Mike Splinter, President and CEO of Applied Materials. “We've converted our parking lots to power plants and we encourage others to join us in making solar power a meaningful part of the energy supply."

Tom Werner, SunPower CEO, commented, "Congratulations to the leadership in the U.S. Senate for their efforts to forge a bipartisan agreement on a long-term extension of the ITC. According to a new study from Navigant Consulting, an eight-year extension of the ITC would result in the creation of more than 1.2 million job opportunities and $232 billion in investment in the solar energy sector."

By Síle Mc Mahon