SunPower's Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Silver Solar Panels Earn Top Product of the Year Award from Environmental Leader

June 29, 2016 /3BL Media/ -  Since 2014, SunPower has manufactured a portion of its direct current E-Series and X-Series solar panels to meet Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Silver standards and now 100 percent of SunPower® direct current panels hold this certification. This week, Environmental Leader – an energy, environmental and sustainability news source published by Business Sector Media LLC – named SunPower's Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Silver solar panels the 2016 Environmental Leader Product of the Year.

With rapid advancements and a continuous rate of change in the industry, it can be challenging for sustainability and energy professionals to know what products best help their companies increase energy, environmental, and sustainability performance. The Environmental Leader Product & Project Awards give companies a solid base of products, vetted by experts, to choose from, as well as a variety of successful projects to illustrate how sustainability and energy management are helping companies improve.

Scores were determined by a panel of independent judges headed by Peter Bussey of LNS Research and also including judges from Ball Aerospace & Technology, BSI Group, C&A, ConAgra Foods, Denver International Airport, ERM, Fetzer Vineyards, General Motors, LNS Research, MUFG Union Bank, Sears Holding Corporation, Staples, the University of California Berkeley, University of Colorado, U.S. Department of Energy, and USG Corporation.

One judge had this to say about SunPower's Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Silver solar panels:

"A comprehensive approach to the sustainable development of highly efficient solar panels. SunPower is an industry leader in the solar panel market and the only provider who has achieved the Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Silver designation."

The Product of the Year award criteria specifically focuses on innovative products that improve energy management, waste management, water efficiency, supply chain efficiency, packaging, air quality, or any other area of energy and environmental management. Administered by the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, Cradle to Cradle certification evaluates a product across five similar categories including material health, material reutilization, renewable energy use, water stewardship, and social fairness.

"SunPower's manufacturing facilities and employees around the world operate with environmental sustainability and social responsibility at their core," said Marty Neese, SunPower chief operating officer. "Customers can trust that we make our solar panels as sustainably as the clean energy they produce, helping them reach long-term sustainability goals like achieving LEED certification for a building or reducing a home's carbon footprint."

Four SunPower facilities located in Mexico, France and the Philippines are producing Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Silver solar panels – the only solar panels in the world that carry the mark. These same SunPower manufacturing sites are on a path to becoming "triple certified" to add landfill-free verification and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification to their list of sustainability achievements.

For a comprehensive look at SunPower's sustainable manufacturing initiatives, visit the latest press release here.

About SunPower

As one of the world's most innovative and sustainable energy companies, SunPower Corp. (Nasdaq: SPWR) provides a diverse group of customers with complete solar solutions and services. Residential customers, businesses, governments, schools and utilities around the globe rely on SunPower's more than 30 years of proven experience. From the first flip of the switch, SunPower delivers maximum value and superb performance throughout the long life of every solar system. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, SunPower has dedicated, customer-focused employees in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South America. For more information about how SunPower is changing the way our world is powered, visit www.sunpower.com.

SunPower Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements regarding our future plans to achieve certain certifications. These forward-looking statements are based on our current assumptions, expectations and beliefs and involve substantial risks and uncertainties that may cause results, performance or achievement to materially differ from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited changes in our relationships with our suppliers or in our manufacturing processes. A detailed discussion of these factors and other risks that affect our business is included in filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from time to time, including our most recent reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q, particularly under the heading "Risk Factors." Copies of these filings are available online from the SEC or on the SEC Filings section of our Investor Relations website at investors.sunpowercorp.com. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information currently available to us, and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in light of new information or future events.

©2016 SunPower Corporation.  All Rights Reserved.  SUNPOWER and the SUNPOWER logo are registered trademarks of SunPower Corporation in the U.S. and other countries. Cradle to Cradle Certified™ is a certification mark licensed by the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute.  Cradle to Cradle Certified™ is a multi-attribute certification program that assesses products and materials for safety to human and environmental health, design for future use cycles, and sustainable manufacturing.