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Two of Napa Valley's popular wineries have installed SunPower solar electric systems at their facilities.
Hagafen Cellars and Kent Rasmussen Winery, both located on the Silverado Trail in Napa Valley, are using SunPower's stylish all-black solar panels to bring solar power to their production facilities and tasting rooms. The installation at Hagafen Cellars generates 37 kW of electricity, while the Kent Rasmussen Winery is a 34 kW system.
The systems were installed by Akeena Solar, one of the nation's largest solar installers, based in California. "The Rasmussen and Hagafen Winery projects represent the most recent wineries to use solar power to reduce their electric bills while helping to protect the environment," said Barry Cinnamon, CEO of Akeena Solar.
"We hear from both businesses and homeowners that their electric bills are soaring and solar power offers a way to lock in guaranteed pollution-free power at a guaranteed low price for years to come."
"We are pleased to add these innovative SunPower systems to our growing number of commercial installations," said Peter Aschenbrenner, vice president of sales and marketing for SunPower Corporation. "Our industry-leading technology allows customers to easily integrate solar into their rooftops while maximizing their energy harvest from any available roof space."
Kent Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Winery, added: "This is the second building on which we have installed SunPower panels, and the solar energy generated by these high-efficiency panels actually runs our meter backwards! One of our goals was to maximize solar power generation while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. With SunPower's solar panels, we have exceeded our expectations."
SunPower's solar panels are constructed with the company's A-300 high- efficiency solar cells, which use an all-back contact design that ensures no gridlines or tabs are visible on the front of the cells. SunPower's solar cells achieve an efficiency of at least 20 percent, the highest-efficiency commercially available of any solar cells worldwide.
The company's SPR-215 solar panels offer an all black appearance, increasing an aesthetic advantage, while maximizing the power generated per square foot of building area.