SunPower Corporation has won a contract to provide 200 megawatts of solar power systems to Southern California Edison.

The utility plans to install, own and operate 250MW of solar generating capacity over the next five years, and the deal with SunPower Corp will provide 80% of the program.

SCE, part of Edison International, is aiming to develop most of the new solar capacity on otherwise unused warehouse rooftops, it said yesterday.

The SCE program reflects the growing value of advanced solar panel technology as a reliable, cost-effective energy resource” - Howard Wenger, SunPower Corp

Individual arrays of between 1MW and 2MW will be developed on leased rooftops, to connect directly into neighbourhood distribution circuits.

SCE President John R. Fielder said: “The anticipated benefits of this agreement with SunPower include panel costs that will allow us to meet our commitment to increasing our customers’ supply of renewable energy while reducing the cost of installed solar photovoltaic power in California.”

T5 Solar Roof

SunPower Corp will provide its T5 Solar Roof Tile product to SCE, a product that includes a solar panel, frame and roof-mounting system in a single unit in order to reduce installation time and costs.

SCE said it had selected the SunPower product because it would allow a better rate of generation per installation than other options.

SunPower hailed SCE’s plans as an “unprecedented” commitment to rooftop solar development.

Howard Wenger, president of SunPower’s utilities and power plant business group, said: “The SCE program reflects the growing value of advanced solar panel technology as a reliable, cost-effective energy resource that can be installed quickly, anywhere and at any scale.”

SCE grid engineers will be studying the electrical effects of a high penetration of photovoltaics on its distribution circuits and adapting circuits as its large solar installations are brought online.

The company said it would share information gained with the rest of the power industry.

Back in January, California’s Public Utilities Commission cleared the way for SCE to develop a further 250MW of solar generating capacity. The company said it will issue a call for proposals later this month.