Dec. 17, 2013 - SunPower Corporation today announced that it has signed multiple supply agreements with Ecomax Japan Inc. to purchase SunPower Corporation's E20/327 solar panels totaling 20-megawatts (MW). In 2014, Ecomax plans to install the solar panels at several locations in Central and Northern Japan.

Acting as EPC (engineering, procurement and construction), Ecomax will construct multiple mega solar power plants in Gunma, totaling 13MW for its customer, Farmdo, a company dedicated to assisting farmers and supporting agriculture in Japan. With the remaining 7MW, Ecomax will build and operate solar installations and plans to sell the energy to local utility companies. It will also own 3MW as an IPP (Independent Power Producer).

"We are pleased to partner with SunPower Corporation to install its high efficiency E20/327 solar panels, the most reliable on the market today," said Tadanaga Komori, President for Ecomax Japan Inc. "Our environmentally conscious customers such as Farmdo will benefit from clean energy generated by these solar systems."

Ecomax has signed an extension to the existing solar panel purchase agreement with SunPower Corporation and will continue to buy the E20/327 solar panels for its future installations.

"SunPower Corporation is pleased to partner with Ecomax, extending our presence in Japan's mega solar power plant and commercial rooftop generation markets," said Howard Wenger, SunPower Corporation president, regions. "Our high efficiency solar panels and systems are a strong fit for Japan given the country's buildable land constraints and high grid interconnection costs."

Solar products by SunPower Corporation are branded under the Maxeon® Solar name in Japan. The capacity of mega solar power plants in this release is described in approximate megawatts on a direct current (dc) basis unless otherwise noted.