This week’s post is the second installment of our utility-scale solar blog series featuring Matt Campbell, Director of Utility Products and Market Development at SunPower.

In this installment, Campbell discusses the advantages of the Oasis Power Plant solution for utilities, solar power plant developers and investors. He describes how Oasis streamlines the utility-scale power plant construction and development process by providing pre-engineered modules for quicker installation.

According to Campbell, “The first [way that Oasis streamlines the construction process] is, by having a pre-engineered block. What that means is, when you have a new piece of land, it becomes a very simple matter to overlay the pre-engineered power blocks over the terrain… So again, a standard kit of designs that enable a very fast preliminary design development process.”

He goes on to discuss the benefits of pre-qualification by investors, and highlights how SunPower’s Oasis technology enhances energy production at its peak:

“The Oasis system has been designed from the bottom up to optimize production when the utility is used the most, which is at peak demand. Now if you look at a place like California, the peak demand for energy is the summer in the afternoon, when on a hot day, most people have their air conditioning systems running, which creates an enormous strain on the grid and on their power plants. So what Oasis does is by using an optimized tracking system design, it’s producing up to forty percent more power during that summer afternoon peak period, which in the southwest of the United States is the peak of demand.”

Stay tuned - in two weeks, Matt Campbell will discuss Levelized Cost of Energy, or LCOE, a way to compare the cost of generation over the life of the system for differing generation technologies.

Check out the video below to learn more about SunPower Oasis advantages, and please join the discussion on our Facebook community at www.facebook.com/sunpower or follow us on Twitter (@SunPower) for the latest solar PV technology updates.

Today we’re profiling one of our favorite customers, the Blackwood family of New Jersey (see video above). Many SunPower customers have two drivers for making the switch to solar: it makes financial sense and helps the environment. The Blackwoods fully embody this line of thinking. They computed that the return on investment for ownership of their solar system over its lifetime would outperform the S&P 500 with average monthly savings of $200. They also invested in an electric-MINI Cooper to cut down on their carbon output, which combined with their SunPower solar system will enable them to reduce their CO2 output by 30,000 pounds per year! We’re proud to work with such informed, forward-thinking customers.

We talked with Phil Blackwood about his decision to purchase solar, the purchase process and what’s next in his ongoing quest towards energy efficiency:

SP: Why did you go solar?
PB: I have always been fascinated by solar power. When I talked to some people [with solar panels] I could see how happy they were with their systems, especially when the systems had already paid for themselves. I did some financial calculations and decided it was not only good for the environment but also a good investment. After we had our system installed I continued reading about the environmental benefits and found they are incredible.

SP: How was the solar the purchase process?
PB: The purchase process was simple. I visited our local dealer, really liked the people I met there, and pretty much decided on the spot to go ahead and get the system. After discussing it with my wife, we put down a deposit to get the panels ordered!

SP: How effective has your SunPower system been in reducing your monthly energy bills?
PB: My panels are producing exactly the amount of power I was expecting. My lowest electric bill has been $2. Typically I am saving more than $200 a month. The amount of power produced held up well as the days got shorter in the fall. They produce the most power in the summer - right when we need it to air condition the house.

SP: You’re obviously an eco-conscious consumer. Now that you’re armed with solar panels and an electric vehicle, what’s next?
PB: I held a big celebration to inaugurate my system, and later in the evening I started thinking, “Now what? Maybe I can paint my roof white!” I studied that and decided a better option was to install a radiant barrier on the lower side of the roof (inside the attic). It’s the same idea as white paint, but it’s on the inside instead of the outside. We had our radiant barrier installed in January. I’m also changing out all our light bulbs with LED and ESL bulbs. Since we have already done a lot of other energy efficiency work on the house, the one big thing remaining is to switch out our natural gas heating with a heat pump that runs off the electricity from our roof. And maybe expand our system. And maybe see if we can go from one electric car and one gas-powered car, to two all-electrics.

SP: What advice would you provide to a homeowner who is considering a solar system purchase?
PB: Go for it!

Many commenters on Facebook, Twitter and this blog have asked for an update on the 'Make an Impact' campaign from summer 2010, so today we’re providing news on the SunPower Foundation’s work with Winrock International and the AMORE program in the Philippines.

As part of SunPower’s initial Facebook kick-off on Earth Day 2010, we conducted the "Make an Impact" campaign in which SunPower donated $1 to the SunPower Foundation on behalf of each new Facebook user that liked SunPower. Over the final two weeks of the campaign in November 2010, SunPower upped the donation to $10 for each new "like." In turn, the SunPower Foundation would contribute that money to one of three non-profit organizations aligned with our environmental and community improvement goals. Thanks to fan enthusiasm in spreading the word and joining with SunPower. By the end of the campaign, 3,570 new fans were responsible for an $8,500 donation!



The SunPower Foundation directed a portion of this money to AMORE, a rural electrification program that leverages renewable technologies such as solar installations to deliver lighting services and electricity to remote, off-grid areas on the Philippines island of Mindanao. AMORE, which stands for Alliance for Mindanao and Multi-Regional Rural/Renewable Off-Grid Renewable Energy, is a partnership between the SunPower Foundation, Winrock International, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the Philippines Department of Energy and the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).



SunPower joined AMORE in the early phases and expanded our contributions significantly for Phase 3. A major tenet of AMORE Phase 3 is providing electricity to rural schools to improve the educational experience and enable distance learning. Over the life of the AMORE program, 224 schools have already been energized (including 119 with SunPower panels), providing educational improvements to roughly 44,000 local students. In Phase 3, 150 new schools will be added benefiting at least 35,000 students. In 2010 alone, 20 schools were solarized.



These installations provide enormous benefits to the Mindanao communities, many of which are racked by poverty, years of local conflict and a lack of infrastructure. Beyond the educational improvements and what that represents for the economic productivity of future generations, there are significant environmental and health benefits associated with cutting down CO2 output and removing the need to burn wood and other fuels. AMORE solar projects also provide economic opportunities such as job creation and workforce training. All of this leads to an improve standard of living for local residents.



To all of our followers who made this donation possible, thank you for joining with SunPower and the SunPower Foundation. If you’re interested in learning more about the mission of the SunPower Foundation, projects it’s funding or how to get involved, please visit the SunPower Foundation web site. If you have any questions or comments regarding current projects, please share below.

Last September, the world’s largest solar-powered boat set sail from Monaco with the goal to travel around the world using only solar energy. The MS Tûranor PlanetSolar uses 537 square-meters of SunPower solar cells to power its engines, achieving an average speed of 7.5 knots. Nearly four months after the start of the solar boat exhibition, the crew on Tûranor PlanetSolar is now getting ready to start their crossing of the Pacific Ocean.



After successfully passing through the Panama Canal, the boat anchored in the Galápagos Islands for a week. The visit was coordinated with the WWF and demonstrated how renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic cells can co-exist with natural environments.

For the remainder of its around-the-world tour, the solar boat will follow an updated itinerary featuring major stopovers in Australia, Philippines (Manila), Singapore, Malaysia, India and Abu Dhabi. While in Southeast Asia, the boat will host local SunPower employees at its scheduled stops.



The world’s largest solar powered yacht is 31 meters long and 15 meters wide. A total of 38,000 SunPower high-efficiency photovoltaic cells provide the boat’s only fuel.



The MS Tûranor PlanetSolar began its journey when it disembarked from Monaco on September 27th 2010. The aims of the project include:

• Demonstrating the potential for renewable technologies such as SunPower solar cells
• Showing that the technology required for sustainability exists today
• Advancing scientific research and technological development associated with renewable energy
• Alerting the public to the importance of renewable energy
• Demonstrating that renewable technology solutions can integrate with local environments (including marine environments)

You can track PlanetSolar’s progress by liking SunPower on Facebook or following SunPower on Twitter. If you’re interested in more information on the project, please visit the PlanetSolar website http://www.planetsolar.org/be-part-of-it-logbook.en.php.

In the meantime, let us know what other transportation sources could use a renewable makeover. How would you change the way we get around?