Premier Power 20MW project in Southern Italy underway, country set for global ranking upgrade

Premier Power Renewable Energy has made progress on the first phase of its 20MW solar pipeline in located in the Puglia region of southern Italy. This is the first in a series of projects valued in excess of US$100 million that are being developed as a result of Premier Power's acquisition of Arco Energy in July this year.

The project will use crystalline modules provided by Canadian Solar and inverters from Power One. The Puglia installations will utilize environmentally friendly racking, ensuring minimal disruption to the land and surrounding environment.

"Italy is no doubt the hottest market in the world today and we are excited to be in the center of the action and perfectly positioned for outstanding growth over the next 12 to 24 months," said Miguel De Anguin, COO of Premier Power. "Premier Power has moved a number of its senior managers from the US to Italy in order to assist the local Italian team in meeting the growing demand."

Gestore dei Servizi Elettrici (GSE), the state-run Italian power management agency, expects total installed PV power in Italy will reach 900MW by the end of 2009, representing 100% growth compared to 2008 and a potential market size of over €4 billion. GSE expects the Italian market to grow to 1500MW in 2010. The €0.35-0.49/kWh feed-in tariff rate in Italy will be a significant incentive for the uptake of solar PV in the country, providing a platform for Italy to move into second spot in the market globally, behind Germany.

"We are very excited to have broken ground on our first solar project in Italy as Premier Power," said Marco Pulitano, CEO of Premier Power Italy, and formerly CEO of Arco Energy. "Italy is expected to experience tremendous growth over the next several years and we are poised to benefit from that growth. Premier Power's expertise in the design, engineering and construction of commercial and utility scale solar systems, coupled with Arco Energy's portfolio of permitted projects in Italy, positions Premier Power to capitalize on these opportunities and become a leader in this fast-growing market."

The Company expects the first fixed ground mount solar installation to be completed by October.