SunPower CEO Claims China To Be Company’s “Fastest-Growing Region”
The CEO of American solar PV manufacturer SunPower has claimed that China will be the company’s “fastest-growing region in the next five years” thanks at least in part to a partnership with Apple.
Speaking to Bloomberg Radio on Friday, SunPower’s CEO Tom Werner commented on his company’s recent agreement to build two solar farms with Apple. The two company’s announced earlier this month their plans to build two solar power projects totalling 40 MW in ABA Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefectures, Sichuan Province, China.
But this seems just the tip for SunPower, according to Werner.
“We’ll get a lot of business in China,” Werner said, speaking to Bloomberg Radio. “It will be our fastest-growing region in the next five years, by far. The challenge is how you do that profitably. That code hasn’t been broken by many Western companies.”
SunPower’s partnership with Apple is more than just a foot in the door in the region, however. Apple has publicly announced that it intends to see all of its facilities running “on 100 percent clean and renewable energy.” With this in mind, and with Apple’s cachet, SunPower is expecting big things.
“When we go to finance our projects in China, having Apple co-own those projects is such a strong credibility boost that it allows us then to get the rest of the financing in a very economical way,” Werner said. “It’s a stamp of approval from the most respected brand on the planet.”
Speaking at the time of the announcement, Werner similarly lauded all involved in the partnership, including the local energy companies:
“This is a tremendous groundbreaking collaboration, bringing together a diverse group of experienced partners from different parts of the globe to build renewable solar energy ventures that contribute to the local economy and the environment. Our unique, existing partnerships in China allowed for these projects to come to fruition quickly.”
Have a tip for CleanTechnica? Want to advertise? Want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast? Contact us here.
Latest CleanTechnica.TV Video
CleanTechnica uses affiliate links. See our policy here.
