SunPower Corp., a San Jose, Calif.-based manufacturer of high-efficiency solar cells, solar panels and solar systems, announced that New York-headquartered Morgan Stanley has agreed to own and finance solar electric power systems that SunPower plans to install in seven Wal-Mart stores in California.
The financing agreement was secured under the SunPower Access program, which allows SunPower customers to purchase solar-generated electricity from a SunPower financing partner as an alternative to outright purchase of the solar power systems themselves.
Under this type of agreement, the company adds, SunPower arranges the solar power system's financing and sells the system to the SunPower financing partner, in addition to designing, deploying and maintaining the system to the customer's requirements. The customer pays the financing partner for the solar electricity generated over a long-term power purchase agreement.
Wal-Mart's new solar systems total more than 4 MW, according to SunPower, and are expected to provide an average of 25% of energy usage at each of the seven facilities.
